Rice football had a disappointing weekend, falling at home to UTEP. How did the rest of the conference fare and what’s next for Conference USA football in Week 11?
| Team | Last Week | Result | This Week |
| Charlotte | at Tennessee | L, 14-3 | at Marshall |
| FAU | at FIU | W, 49-14 | vs WKU |
| FIU | vs FAU | L, 49-14 | at UTSA |
| LaTech | at Mississippi State | L, 45-3 | vs Rice |
| Marshall | at Southern Miss | L, 26-24 | vs Charlotte |
| MTSU | vs WKU | W, 29-10 | at UTEP |
| North Texas | — OFF — | — | at ODU |
| ODU | — OFF — | — | vs North Texas |
| Rice | vs UTEP | L, 34-26 | at LaTech |
| Southern Miss | vs Marshall | W, 26-24 | at UAB |
| UAB | vs UTSA | W, 52-3 | vs Southern Miss |
| UTEP | at Rice | W, 34-26 | vs MTSU |
| UTSA | at UAB | L, 52-3 | vs FIU |
| WKU | at MTSU | L, 29-10 | at FAU |
Notable Week 10 results
UTEP comes out guns blazing
It’s safe to say nobody saw the result on South Main coming. A UTEP win is one thing, but a 31-3 lead for the Miners against any opponent seemed unthinkable. Well, it happened. The cushion was big enough to fend off 23 unanswered points from the Owls who pulled within one score midway through the fourth quarter but were unable to capitalize. The rebuild at Rice has been a struggle, but there’s nowhere to go but up.
FAU is not dead yet
Even though things went south early this season for Lane Kiffin and the FAU Owls they don’t seem to be packing it in. They’ll now play the role of spoiler — their first victim found that out in Week 10. FIU had been unbeaten in Conference USA play, that was before FAU dropped 49 points on the Panthers in a rout.
“Charlotte has a good football team”
Coach speak is a normal part of college football vernacular. It’s the comments coaches make almost nonchalantly, praising their opponent, offering platitudes about how guys “played hard” and so on and so forth. Tennessee head coach Jeremey Pruit, after the Vols 14-3 win over Charlotte, said the 49ers have “a good football team“. Coach speak or not, worse things could be said about your program from an SEC foe.
Week 11 storylines
Could UTEP win two in a row?
Middle Tennessee and Rice are having two very different seasons. Rice is still hunting for their first conference win and Middle Tennessee sits atop the East. The Miners’ impressive start against Rice was a reminder of what others have seen from UTEP this year. They play physical and have a sturdy defense. A UTEP winning streak might not be likely, but it’s possible. How about that?
Can anyone cool down the Blazers?
UAB is one of the best feel-good stories of 2018. The recently reinstated Blazers have run roughshod over the rest of CUSA West, giving no quarter. UTSA was their most recent victim. Next up is Southern Miss, who’s coming off a win over Marshall. A perfect CUSA season is in play for UAB. Can they finish strong?
A much-needed break
Two Conference USA squads were on bye last week, North Texas and Old Dominion. The Mean Green and the Monarchs return to action in Week 11, facing each other. Both teams had a tough stretch of games entering the break and needed time to recharge. Who will come out ready to play on Saturday?