American Conference 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 | 4-4 (2-3) | at Air Force | W, 20-17 | vs Temple |
| Charlotte | 1-7 (0-5) | — OFF — | — | at ECU |
| ECU | 5-3 (3-1) | at Temple | W, 45-14 | vs Charlotte |
| FAU | 3-5 (2-3) | — OFF — | — | vs Tulsa |
| Memphis | 8-1 (4-1) | at Rice (FRI) | W, 38-14 | Tulane (FRI) |
| Navy | 7-1 (5-1) | at North Texas | L, 31-17 | at Notre Dame |
| North Texas | 8-1 (4-1) | vs Navy | W, 31-17 | — OFF — |
| Rice | 4-5 (1-4) | vs Memphis (FRI) | L, 38-14 | vs UAB |
| Temple | 5-4 (3-2) | vs ECU | L, 45-15 | at Army |
| Tulane | 6-2 (3-1) | at UTSA (THR) | L, 48-26 | at Memphis (FRI) |
| Tulsa | 2-6 (0-5) | — OFF — | — | at FAU |
| UAB | 3-5 (1-3) | at UConn | L, 38-19 | at Rice |
| USF | 6-2 (3-1) | — OFF — | — | vs UTSA (THR) |
| UTSA | 4-4 (2-2) | vs Tulane (THR) | W, 48-26 | at USF (THR) |
Storylines // Standings // Preseason Poll
The Home Tree Strike Again
This offseason UTSA head coach Jeff Traylor made an Avatar reference when he equated the connection between his Roadrunners and the Alamodome to the relationship between the alien natives to their home tree in the film. Something mystical appears to be happening in San Antonio, though. The heavy underdogs whipped American conference title contender Tulane to improve to 3-1 at home this season.
Mean Green Mash Midshipmen
It doesn’t matter where they play, North Texas is mauling almost everyone these days. The Mean Green comfortably put away the previously unbeaten Navy Midshipmen to put themselves in position to make their first American Conference Championship Game appearance. In this one, UNT running back Caleb Hawkins rushed for 197 yards and four touchdowns.
Don’t Sleep on the Pirates
East Carolina was handed a one-score loss by Tulane, but has taken care of business against every other G5 team on their schedule and remains alive in the conference title race after thumping Temple on Saturday. Tied at 15 apiece, East Carolina rattled off 31 unanswered points and had the game in hand midway through the third quarter.
Looking ahead – Key storylines
A Possible Title Game Elimination Game?
East Carolina, Memphis, Navy, North Texas, Tulane and South Florida enter Week 11 with just one conference loss. Two of them, Tulane and Memphis, face each other. Given how tight the race is, a second conference loss might spell the end of a any of these school’s championship hopes and knock them out of College Football Playoff contention as well.
Birds Leaving the Nest
UTSA has been a different team away from San Antonio this season, but they just proved they can hang with the upper tier of this conference when they’re at their best. South Florida remains within striking distance of the conference title game and needs to avoid a scare against the suddenly feisty Roadrunners.
Keeping Hopes Alive
On the other end of the standings, both Rice and UAB are battling for an outside shot at bowl eligibility. The winner of Saturday’s contest gets a step closer to threading that needle. The Owls would be just one win away with two games remaining. Any form of postseason appearance would be impressive for head coach Scott Abell in his first season on campus.
