American Athletic Conference

AAC Power Rankings after Week 7

Temple rises, Memphis falls, and everyone else pretty much stays the same.

By Joe Broback@joebroback Oct 15, 2019, 11:00am EDT

Temple continues to upset better competition, and keep themselves in position to be in the AAC East conversation. Cincinnati avoided an upset and stayed at their spot, and we saw USF rise in the rankings. Tulsa might have to begin talking about a new coach, and UConn’s going out just how we thought they would.

1. SMU

The Mustangs get two weeks to prepare for their next game, and they’ll need it. Up next is the giant killers, the Temple Owls. We’ll find out which team’s actually a legit contender in the conference.

Cincinnati v Houston — Ridder looked solid against Houston, and prevented an upset.

2. Cincinnati

It wasn’t pretty, but the Bearcats hung on for a 38-23 win over Houston. Desmond Ridder threw for 263 yards and three touchdowns, and also ran in for another score. The Bearcats head home to host the Tulsa Golden Hurricane in Week 8.

3. Tulane

It might as well have been a bye week. Tulane jumped on UConn early and never looked back on their way to a 49-7 win over the Huskies. The Green Wave produced 634 total yards of offense, and they’ll head to Memphis next week to face a Tigers team coming off a loss to Temple.

4. Temple

While the loss to Buffalo remains confusing, Temple’s play against superior competition isn’t. The Owls forced four Memphis Tigers turnovers on their way to a 30-28 upset. They get another chance to slay an undefeated team when they travel to Dallas to face SMU.

5. UCF

A bye week gives the Knights time to regroup, and focus on dominating the ECU Pirates. UCF’s run for a third consecutive conference title starts this week, even if they need some help.

6. Memphis

Brady White lost two fumbles and threw an interception in Memphis’ loss to Temple. The Tigers success continues to ride on White’s play, and it’s not looking good so far. On the positive side, Kenneth Gainwell is officially a stud after producing 204 yards of total offense.

NCAA Football: Air Force at Navy — Perry’s thriving in the triple option offense, and can help his team take another step this week.

7. Navy

Malcolm Perry rushed for 218 yards and three touchdowns to put away Tulsa last week. Now, they get a USF team looking to prove they’re a contender. Navy’s looking to do the same, and appear ready for the task.

8. Houston

Simply put, Houston’s just inconsistent. Not tanking. The Cougars gave Cincinnati all they could before falling short. A chance to score a bunch of points and get better emerges with a trip to face UConn. This game could be just what Houston needs to grow their confidence.

9. USF

It wasn’t looking good in the first half, but the Bulls turned things around after halftime. Jordan Cronkrite’s two touchdowns came at opportune times, including the go-ahead score. He finished with 158 yards rushing for the Bulls.

10. Tulsa

A bowl game’s still possible, but it won’t be easy. Tulsa fell behind 28-3 at halftime to Navy, and couldn’t get anything going to make it a game. It might be time to start talking about Phillip Montgomery’s hot seat.

11. ECU

The Pirates get two weeks to prepare for UCF, but that still might not be enough. ECU doesn’t have the firepower to hang with the Knights, so a low scoring game might be a better option.

12. UConn

The negative: UConn lost to Tulane 49-7. The positive: they didn’t get outscored in the fourth quarter.