After a wild weekend in the AAC, in which the Memphis Tigers took down 13th ranked Ole Miss, the standings remained mostly unchanged. | Justin Tijerina/The Cougar
Week seven of the college football season featured fireworks in the American Athletic Conference, including one team dethroning a Power-5 rival.
Houston and Tulane
The Cougars got action kicked off on Friday night on the road against the Tulane University Green Wave.
Houston jumped out to a 28-7 lead at halftime, and the defense dominated from there, holding Tulane scoreless for the rest of the night.
Junior quarterback Greg Ward, Jr. continued his strong play and junior receiver Demarcus Ayers had a great all-around game, recording a rushing touchdown and a punt return touchdown on a 73-yard return.
The Cougars improved to 6-0 on the season and 3-0 in the AAC, while Tulane fell to 2-4 on the year, with a 1-2 mark in conference play.
Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati Bearcats also played on Friday night, heading out for a game against Brigham Young University Cougars.
Despite leading 10-0 after the end of the first quarter, Cincinnati saw its lead slip away. The Cougars’ 21 points in the fourth quarter doomed the Bearcats, who moved to 3-3 overall this season with the loss.
Memphis
Saturday featured a full slate of action, highlighted by the University of Memphis Tigers hosting the 13th ranked University of Mississippi Rebels.
Despite falling behind early, Memphis maintained its composure, outscoring Ole Miss 17-0 in the second quarter to take a 10-point lead into halftime.
The Tigers held on in the second half, using great clock management to salt away the time for a win over its Southeastern Conference foes to stay perfect at 6-0 this year.
USF and UConn
The University of South Florida Bulls squared off against the University of Connecticut Huskies in East Hartford, Conn. and walked out with a road win over.
The Bulls put up 21 second-half points to take their first conference win of the year, improving to 3-3 overall and 1-1 in the AAC, while the Huskies fell to 3-4 and 1-2 in conference games.
Tulsa and East Carolina
The University of Tulsa and East Carolina University squared off, with the Golden Hurricane looking to capture their first conference win of the season against the Pirates.
Despite mounting a comeback bid in the fourth quarter, the Hurricane couldn’t get enough offense, as the Pirates defended home field in the 30-17 win.
With the victory, ECU sits at 4-3 overall and 2-1 in AAC play, while Tulsa moves to 3-3 this season, while remaining winless in the AAC with an 0-2 record.
UCF and Temple
The University of Central Florida and Temple University capped off the weekend in the AAC, with the UCF looking for its first win of the year, as it traveled to Philadelphia to face the top team in the East division.
Despite only trailing by one point at halftime, UCF managed just one field goal after the break, as it saw its upset bid slip out of reach following 16 fourth-quarter points from Temple.
The Owls improved to 6-0 with the win, remaining perfect in conference play at 3-0, while the Knights stayed winless, at 0-7 overall and 0-3 in the AAC.
Navy and SMU
Both teams had a bye week.
Standings
There wasn’t much movement in the standings after the weekend, as three teams remain undefeated overall, with only four teams undefeated in conference.
Temple remained atop the East, while Houston and Memphis continue to battle for the top spot in the West, with Navy lurking right behind them.
How did Tulsa “mount a comeback”….the game was never close and they scored a cheap TD against back-up players at the end? lol