Three things we learned from the AAC in Week 10

We almost lost a perfect season this weekend, and the defending national champions were scrambling for answers. They survived, but how much longer can they continue playing this way? Underdogs had a ton of success against the favorites this weekend, and some even pulled off the upset. We learned quite a bit this week, but here are three of the biggest things we learned from Week 10.

UCF is playing a dangerous game

It’s not a game that they want to play, but the Knights are getting close to losing. It would be fun to see them go undefeated again this season, but they’re not making it easy. Temple gave the Knights everything they could, but came up just short in the 52-40 loss. The Owls offense torched the Knights defense for 670 yards, led by Anthony Russo’s 444 yards and four touchdowns passing. McKenzie Milton and the offense kept UCF in the game, and never gave up the lead once they had it in the second half. Offense cannot continue to be the only side the thrives on a weekly basis, because this team is on it’s way to a loss at this rate.

Houston finally got burned by its defense

Ok, so it hasn’t been pretty all year, but Houston’s defense finally cost them a game. Yes, there were other issues during the game, but there’s been one consistent issue this year. D’Eriq King and the offense have been phenomenal all year, and have been a big reason why the Cougars were 7-1. Every good unit will have a “bad game” and this week was the offense’s turn. Houston’s biggest weakness is they needed their offense to score at least 40 points, and they didn’t against SMU. The sky isn’t falling, but reality hit the Cougars hard Saturday, and it’s time to go back to the drawing board. A conference championship is still within reach, but Houston will need to fix some big issues before that happens.

Cincinnati is UCF’s last remaining threat in the East

It looks like the Bearcats had little trouble with Navy’s rushing attack. The Midshipmen mustered just 124 yards against Cincinnati’s defense, and the game was never close. With USF and Temple both losing, Cincinnati appears to be the only team in the East that can take the defending champs down. In a conference that’s not known for anything closely resembling defense, the Bearcats continue to separate themselves in the category. That could be the difference when it comes down to the big games.