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What an exciting week. Even with a limited number of games, the AAC continued to entertain. Even former Houston quarterback D’Eriq King made a few highlight reel plays this weekend. One team inserted their name into the contender conversation. Another is a long way from it.
Houston has contender potential
If you turned the Houston-Tulane game off after the first quarter, you probably think that Houston’s the worst team of 2020. If you stayed for the rest, you know that’s clearly not the case. Houston overcame three first quarter turnovers and dominated the remainder of their Thursday night game for a 49-31 win. Once they stopped turning the ball over, Houston didn’t find much resistance from the Green Wave. Marquez Stevenson led the way for the Houston receivers with 118 yards and a score, and 10 Cougars caught a pass. Oh, and there was this gem from Tre’Von Bradley.
Oh my TreVon Bradley pic.twitter.com/XEmfjXRM1c
— Joe Broback (@joebroback) October 9, 2020
Houston’s defense couldn’t be contained, as they force Tulane quarterback Michael Pratt into a number of rushed throws. Payton Turner continued showing his improvement as a defensive end, leading the way with 4.5 tackles for loss. Houston dominated Thursday outside of the first quarter, and the final three quarters are why they should be considered a contender in the AAC.
Temple’s delayed start produced rust
Another team that had to wait for their first game was Temple, and the Owls stumbled out of the gate. Navy had a 21-10 lead at halftime, and hung on late, thwarting a two-point conversion attempt with just over a minute left in the game. Temple was clearly rusty, but did its best to come back. They’ll still be a tough team to beat on a weekly basis, but it was clearly to much rust to get rid of to come away with a win.
Navy only loses big or wins close
Navy’s wins this year: a 27-24 comeback thriller over Tulane and a 31-29 nail biter against Temple this weekend. Navy’s losses: a 40-7 blowout loss to rival Air Force and a 55-3 opening week loss to BYU. A team known for consistency is riding a roller coaster this year. There’s been nothing in between yet for the Midshipmen, so fans should expect to either have their hopes crushed early or increase their blood pressure for four quarters.