The AAC season kicks off this week. This includes Army, who plays Lehigh to begin its first season in the American Athletic Conference. Continuing our routine from last year, when Army officially joined America’s conference, As For Football looks around the AAC and previews the league’s Week One slate.
Tune-Up Games Galore
— Alcorn State @ UAB, Thursday, 8 PM ET (ESPN+)
— Northwestern State @ Tulsa, Thursday, 8 PM ET (ESPN+)
— Southeast Louisiana @ Tulane, Thursday, 8 PM ET (ESPN+)
— Lehigh @ Army, Friday, 6 PM ET (CBS Sports)
— Bucknell @ Navy, Saturday, 12 PM ET (CBS Sports)
— Norfolk State @ East Carolina, Saturday 6 PM ET (ESPN+)
— North Alabama @ Memphis, Saturday, 7 PM ET (ESPN+)
— Bethune-Cookman @ USF, Saturday, 7 PM ET (ESPN+)
Eight of the fourteen AAC schools play FCS opponents this week. There are hardly any games with real upset potential, but the conference does have two games against schools that played in Week Zero. Memphis hosts FCS Kickoff participant North Alabama, and East Carolina faces Norfolk State, who nearly beat the defending Celebration Bowl champions in the MEAC-SWAC Challenge. While Memphis and ECU are heavily favored in these games, their opponents’ recent game experience could make these games closer than anticipated.
Two schools in transition look to find answers to big off-season questions. Tulane begins life without four-year starting quarterback and Green Bay Packer draft pick Michael Pratt against Southeastern Louisiana. Spot starter Kai Horton, who has three starts in his career, and Oregon transfer Ty Thompson competed for the starting nod. Meanwhile, Navy debuts its new offensive scheme, which offensive coordinator Drew Cronic dubs a “milennial Wing-T” against Bucknell. This has been a topic of much curiosity during the off-season. Even though this is the 12th meeting ever between the Bison and the Midshipmen, this is their first meeting since the Warren G. Harding administration way back in 1925.
USF QB Byrum Brown and Memphis QB Seth Hennigan look to launch dark horse Heisman campaigns this week as well. Brown and USF enter the season with significant hype after a bowl appearance alongside Brown’s 3202 passing yards and 809 rushing yards in 2023. Hennigan and Memphis are New Year’s Six contenders, like USF, looking for their first league title since 2019. Henigan enters the year with over 10,000 career passing yards and 77 touchdowns.
Memphis plays North Alabama, as mentioned before, while USF plays Bethune Cookman.
Potential Power Four Upsets
— Temple @ Oklahoma, Friday, 7 PM ET (ESPN)
— Florida Atlantic @ Michigan State, 7 PM ET (ESPN)
“Power 6ix” has been the AAC rallying cry since its inception, with the conference campaigning for a seat at the table alongside college football’s ruling class. Over the years, the AAC proved its case with several big wins against the Power Five. The conference looks to enhance this reputation more in Week One.
However, to put it bluntly, their chances are slim this week.
Two schools will play Power Four teams (sorry, Washington State and Oregon State) in Week One.
On Friday night, Temple plays Oklahoma in a game with plenty of national draw. Oklahoma plays its first game as an SEC member in front of an ESPN audience against the Owls. Temple will begin life without star quarterback E.J. Warner after he transferred to a different set of Owls, going to Rice. Warner threw for over 3000 yards the past two seasons, with last year’s milestone coming in only ten games.
Alas, Temple looked like a completely different team without Warner last year, losing by an average score of 50-7 in the two games he missed. Needless to say, expectations for the offense are low. The Owls look to depend heavily on a ground game spearheaded by Joquez Smith, who ran for 325 yards last year. Unfortunately, the Owls are currently 42.5-point underdogs to the Sooners.
Another set of Owls has a better chance at a Power Five upset on Friday night. Florida Atlantic hopes the third time’s the charm against Michigan State. The Owls will be looking for their first win over the Spartans in three tries.
FAU looks to take advantage of turnover at the quarterback position in East Lansing with a defense that returns six starters, including its leading tackler, Jackson Ambush (89 tackles). The defense also adds a pair of players from the transfer portal with Big Ten starting experience, Prince Boyd from Purdue and Phillip Dunham from Indiana. The Owls’ last Power Five win came in 2007 when FAU beat Minnesota at Hard Rock Stadium — then Dolphins Stadium — when the stadium still hosted the Florida Marlins.
Battles for Group of Five Supremacy
— Kennesaw State @ UTSA, Saturday, 3:30 PM ET on ESPN+
— North Texas @ South Alabama, Saturday, 5 PM ET on ESPN+
— Sam Houston @ Rice, Saturday, 7 PM ET on ESPN+
— James Madison @ Charlotte, Saturday, 8 PM ET on ESPNU
The emergence of the Sun Belt has become one of college football’s most fascinating recent developments. Once the FBS’ perennially overlooked conference, with one or two bowl tie-ins in their first decade, the Sun Belt has recently become one of college football’s most exciting conferences. Recent near-New Year’s Six seasons by Coastal Carolina and Louisiana along with James Madison’s blazing-fast rise to national prominence have given the conference a legitimate argument as the best Group of Five league.
The American hopes to delegitimize the Sun Belt’s case with a pair of Week One games. Charlotte hosts James Madison on Saturday. Despite going 11-2 last season, James Madison returns just 5 of 22 starters from last season. However, the injury bug has already hit the 49ers. Head coach Biff Poggi estimated that Charlotte could be without up to nine starters due to camp injuries. A Charlotte win against the Dukes goes a long way toward the AAC staving off claims of the Sun Belt’s preeminence in the Group of Five. Experts believe the 49ers have a chance; Charlotte is a mere 8.5-point underdog to JMU.
South Alabama-North Texas ought to be a more evenly matched game. North Texas looks to begin its turnaround from a 5-7 season against last year’s 68 Ventures Bowl champion South Alabama. Head Coach Eric Morris’ Air Raid looks to pick apart a South Alabama defense with just three returning starters. The Jaguars were 25th in the country in scoring defense and 15th in total defense last year, but they look primed for a drop after losing several key contributors.
Meanwhile, Oklahoma transfer QB Chandler Morris helms one of the country’s most balanced attacks in 2023. North Texas averaged over 300 passing yards per game and 191 on the ground. Still, the Mean Green lost several pieces with the departure of last year’s starting quarterback, Chandler Rogers, their 2023 leading rusher Ayo Deyi, and 1000-yard receiver, Jay Macklin. The outcome of this game gives a peak at whether Coach Morris’ scheme at North Texas is “plug-n-play”.
Finally, the American also has a pair of games against projected Conference USA cellar-dwellers. Rice hosts east Texas rival Sam Houston, while UTSA welcomes Kennesaw State to the FBS.
Transition at quarterback should be the biggest storyline for both schools. Rice goes from one transfer quarterback to another as E.J. Warner takes the reins from the well-traveled J.T. Daniels. Over at UTSA, the team will begin a season without QB Frank Harris II for the first time since 2016, UTSA will begin its season without legendary quarterback Frank Harris II on the roster.
Sam Houston-Rice could become a rivalry to watch in the future since Houston canceled the Bayou Bucket rivalry with Rice. Sam Houston and Rice are only 70 miles apart, and both lack a clear rival within their respective conferences.
The American Athletic’s Week One slate is far from the most enticing of the season. Nonetheless, storylines abound. Fans and the press might even get some of the offseason’s prominent questions answered this week.
Enjoy the games, everybody.
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