The AAC had a tough week, as teams went 4-5 against out-of-conference opposition. | File photo/The Cougar
It was an action-packed weekend in the American Athletic Conference, as 11 of 12 teams were in action, including an early-season inter-conference match-up.
The early slate of games featured matchups with teams from Power-5 conferences, including the Big 12 Conference, Big 10 Conference and Southeastern Conference.
UConn
The University of Connecticut traveled to Columbia, Mo. to take on the University of Missouri Tigers.
The Huskies played a tough game, leading the Tigers at half, six to two, but mistakes, including two missed field goals, doomed UConn in the end.
The Huskies fell to the Tigers, 9-6, and now sit at 2-1 on the season, looking forward to a matchup with the United States Naval Academy next week.
USF
The University of South Florida Bulls squared off with the University of Maryland, but lost to the Terrapins 35-17, and their record moves to 1-2 on the season.
Tulsa
In a high-scoring affair, the University of Tulsa Golden Hurricanes couldn’t muster enough offense to pull the upset over the Oklahoma University Sooners, as they lost 52-38, with their record now sitting at 2-1.
Memphis
The University of Memphis went on the road to face Bowling Green State University, and pulled out a tight-win in a shoot-out, where the two teams combined for 85 points.
Memphis held off a late charge by the Falcons and held on to win, 44-41, improving to 3-0 on the season.
Temple
Another AAC team stayed perfect on the season, as the University of Temple also managed to escape on the road when they faced the University of Massachusetts.
The Owls capitalized on a 32-yard field goal with just seven seconds left in the game to escape against the Minutemen, and now sit at 3-0 overall.
Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati Bearcats overcame the loss of their starting quarterback and four turnovers by their backup to hold onto the win over the University of Miami-Ohio, 37-33.
The backup, true-freshman Hayden Moore, shook off his two interceptions to guide the Bearcats into the end zone with just over a minute left in the game, as Cincinnati improved to 2-1 on the season and 0-1 in conference play.
Navy and East Carolina
In the only inter-conference match-up of the week, the United States Naval Academy and East Carolina University squared off in Annapolis, Md.
The Midshipmen dominated the ground game behind five rushing touchdowns from their quarterback, capturing their first conference win in the AAC.
Navy now sits at 2-0 overall and 1-0 in conference play, while ECU moves to 1-2 on the season and 0-1 in the AAC.
UCF
The University of Central Florida lost in a close game against FCS-foe Furman University, as the Knights couldn’t overcome a one-point fourth-quarter deficit in the 16-15 loss, still winless on the season at 0-3.
SMU
Southern Methodist University traveled the short bus ride over to Ft. Worth, Texas to face off against the No. 3 ranked Texas Christian University Horned Frogs.
The Mustangs hung around with the Frogs for most of the night, but despite being within one score in fourth quarter, couldn’t pull off the upset, as TCU won, 56-37.
Tulane
The Tulane University Green Wave got their first win of the year, as they defended their home field against the University of Maine, earning a 38-3 win.
How the table reads
Following all the action of the weekend, the standings in-conference started to take shape, with Navy sitting at first in the West division, and Temple taking the first spot in the East division.
The Cougars sit in third in the West division, behind both Navy and the 3-0 Memphis Tigers.
Houston will have a chance to improve on its record against Texas State University at home on Saturday at 7 p.m.
