Conference USA Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron in Week 0.
| Team | Week 0 | Result | Up Next |
| Charlotte | vs FAU | L,43-13 | vs William & Mary |
| FAU | at Charlotte | W, 43-13 | at Ohio |
| FIU | — OFF — | — | vs Bryant |
| LA Tech | — OFF — | — | at Missouri |
| MTSU | — OFF — | — | at James Madison |
| North Texas | at UTEP | W, 31-13 | vs SMU |
| Rice | — OFF — | — | at USC |
| UAB | — OFF — | — | vs Alabama A&M |
| UTEP | vs North Texas | L,31-13 | at Oklahoma |
| UTSA | — OFF — | — | vs Houston |
| WKU | vs Austin Peay | W, 38-27 | at Hawaii |
Notable Week 0 results – Standings
WKU survives
When the fourth quarter began in Bowling Green this past Saturday, WKU was nursing a one-point lead against an FCS squad. The Tops turned stepped on the gas, forced some turnovers and got more touchdowns from quarterback Austin Reed to put things away, but it wasn’t the comfortable opener they might have been hoping for.
FAU pummels Charlotte
Charlotte quarterback Chris Reynolds was knocked out of this game early on. By the time he was able to re-enter the game at the start of the second half, Charlotte trailed 26-7. Outside of a few highlight reel plays by Charlotte wideout Grant Dubose, this was all FAU all day. Five different Owls scored touchdowns, including defensive back Justin McKithen. Dubose’s second touchdown was incredible, though.
.@_gdubose with the #SCTop10 grab around the defender! 😱@CharlotteFTBL x #CUSAFB pic.twitter.com/P5fKI2lCmi
— Conference USA (@ConferenceUSA) August 28, 2022
UTEP fizzles against North Texas
Much was made of the Miners’ expectations entering the 2022 season. Perennial cellar dwellars, the program was picked to finish in the middle of the pack this year and opened the season with a sell-out home crowd against fellow middle-ranked North Texas. The Mean Green marched up and down the field and stifled the UTEP offense for much of the night. It still might be a good year in El Paso, but this wasn’t a performance anyone will look kindly upon in the future.
Looking ahead – Key storylines
Lonestar Showdowns
Conference USA will host a pair of Lonestar-sized rivalry games to kick off the 2022 season. UTSA hosts AAC favorite Houston (2:30 PM CT) at the Alamodome while North Texas welcomes crosstown rival SMU (6:30 PM CT) to Denton. Both of these games should be worth tuning into for those that have the chance.
Heavy underdogs take their shots
Paycheck games will always be a part of Conference USA football schedules. Week 1 features three such games. Rice travels to USC, Louisiana Tech plays at Missouri and UTEP visits Oklahoma. C-USA always seems to manage a P5 upset at least once throughout the year. All of these project to be long shots, but crazier things have happened.
Early season tune-ups
On the other end of the spectrum, UAB will ease into its 2022 campaign with a tune-up game against Alabama A&M and Charlotte will play their second game of the season against William and Mary. Middle Tennesee also draws an FCS team in Week 1, but the transitioning James Madison is a much more challenging opponent.