AAC Football was back in action this weekend. Here’s the latest from the teams on the gridiron this week.
| Team | Record | This Week | Result | Up Next |
| Army | 4-0 (3-0) | at Temple (Thr) | W, 42-14 | at Tulsa |
| Charlotte | 2-3 (1-0) | at Rice | W, 21-20 | vs ECU |
| ECU | 3-2 (1-0) | vs UTSA | W, 30-20 | at Charlotte |
| FAU | 2-3 (0-1) | vs Wagner | W, 41-10 | — OFF — |
| Memphis | 4-1 (0-1) | vs MTSU | W, 24-7 | — OFF — |
| Navy | 4-0 (3-0) | at UAB | W, 41-18 | at Air Force |
| North Texas | 4-1 (1-0) | vs Tulsa | W, 52-20 | — OFF — |
| Rice | 1-4 (0-2) | vs Charlotte | L, 21-20 | — OFF — |
| Temple | 1-4 (0-2) | vs Army (Thr) | L, 42-14 | at UConn |
| Tulane | 3-2 (1-0) | vs USF | W, 45-10 | at UAB |
| Tulsa | 2-3 (0-1) | at North Texas | L. 52-20 | vs Army |
| UAB | 1-3 (0-1) | vs Navy | L, 41-18 | vs Tulane |
| USF | 2-3 (0-1) | at Tulane | L, 45-10 | — OFF — |
| UTSA | 2-3 (0-1) | at ECU | L, 30-20 | — OFF — |
Notable Results and Storylines // (Standings)
Green Wave Roll
Although South Florida quarterback Byrum Brown did leave this game early with an injury, it wouldn’t have changed the outcome in the slightest. Tulane mopped the floor with South Florida, exorcising some demons from a few near-misses against Power conference opponents in recent weeks. Army and Navy are the conference frontrunners thus far, but don’t sleep on a complete Tulane squad that can score and play elite defense.
Tell me more
East Carolina upset UTSA in a game in which the Roadrunners led 13-3 in the waning minutes of the first half. The Pirates have shown some spunk in recent results while UTSA hasn’t quite found its groove without Frank Harris. Which reality is more causal, though? Is ECU rising or UTSA sliding? Both? To what degree? It’s just too early to tell.
To the bottom
Rice outgained Charlotte and at the two-minute timeout but was unable to prevent the go-ahead score and missed a field goal at the end of regulation that would have won the game. Instead, they lost and now sit a 1-4 through five games. A promising season now sees the Owls enter the bye week tied with Temple for the worst record in league play. Temple has an FBS win, though. Rice does not.
Looking ahead – Key storylines
Rivalry, Beware
Navy has looked much improved this season while Air Force has struggled, but those things tend to go out the window when rivalry games arrive. A non-conference loss wouldn’t be catastrophic for the Midshipmen by any means, but it would mean a hit for — and I can’t believe I’m saying this — they’re potential College Football Playoff aspirations. Those are the sorting of dreams you get to have after taking down the preseason conference favorite and starting league play a sterling 3-0.
Bye week blues
Rice, UTSA and South Florida all enter their bye weeks in varying states of unrest. All three lost the week before and have some adjustments to do before kicking off the second half of their seasons in Week 7. None of this trio expected to be below ..500 at this point in the season, but it’s the cards they’ve been dealt. Whoever makes the most of this extra time has a chance to salvage things. UTSA and Rice will find that answer soon enough, meeting in Houston following their bye.
Fluke or Fortune?
Charlotte got a big win in Houston on Saturday, knocking off Rice. The game was going sideways before the 49ers made a quarterback change, sitting Trexler Ivey in favor of Deshawn Purdie, who led three scoring drives in the second half. Another win next week against East Carolina has the potential to bolster the 49ers’ aspirations and turn this from a lost season into a competitive one. We’ll find out soon enough.
