We’re at the perfect halfway point in the regular season, as 13 of the 14 teams from the American Conference competed in six games, while Rice is the lone team to play a seventh. We’re starting to see
increasing separation from the top to the bottom as conference play enters full swing.
Based on non-conference play, this is one of the stronger American Conferences in recent memory as the league generated notable wins over Duke, Florida, Boise State, Northwestern, Kansas State, Arkansas, and Washington State, to name a few. Two teams are currently undefeated and two teams are currently ranked in the AP Top 25, although there isn’t a one-to-one overlap in those teams.
So halfway through the season, here is the current snapshot of the American Conference, ranked in reverse order from 14 to 1:
14. Charlotte 49ers
Record: 1-5, 0-3 American
Best win: vs. Monmouth (FCS), 42-35
Worst loss: vs. Rice, 28-17
Tim Albin departed a consistent MAC juggernaut in Ohio for a rebuild project in Charlotte, and the MAC Championship-winning coach is still working to lay the foundation in his new home. The 49ers’ 2025 has already been a massive struggle, both from a performance standpoint and from an injury standpoint. They rank 124th in both scoring offense and scoring defense, losing games by an average score of 32.5 to 17.7. All five losses were largely uncompetitive and the lone victory required offensive heroics from quarterback Conner Harrell against an FCS program. Speaking of Harrell, he is out for the year and one of many names on a CVS receipt of injuries. Charlotte will look to show some resilience as the season progresses, but there aren’t many probable opportunities to notch a first FBS win given the upcoming gauntlet.
13. UAB Blazers
Record: 2-4, 0-3 American
Best win: vs. Akron, 31-28
Worst loss: at Florida Atlantic, 53-33
UAB fired Trent Dilfer after a 53-33 loss at Florida Atlantic in Week 7. Dilfer’s tenure officially concludes at 9-21 and 0-15 on the road. The former Super Bowl champion quarterback facilitated the Blazers’ transition from the Conference USA to the American, but none of their CUSA success was replicated in their new conference. UAB only defeated one bowl eligible team (2023 South Florida) under Dilfer and ranked in the cellar defensively in all three years at the helm. The Blazers currently rank dead last in scoring defense at 41.3 points per game, but the Jalen Kitna-led offense has been sharp, scoring 24+ in five of six games. UAB now proceeds with offensive coordinator Alex Mortensen taking interim duties as Memphis, UConn, Rice, North Texas, South Florida, and Tulsa make up the remaining slate.
12. Rice Owls
Record: 3-4, 1-3 American
Best win: at Louisiana, 14-12
Worst loss: vs. Florida Atlantic, 27-21
Rice drew headlines in the offseason for an interesting schematic shift, ditching its pro-style approach for an option style offense under Scott Abell, who turned Davidson from a doormat to a power at the FCS level. Abell’s Owls saw immediate success, upsetting reigning Sun Belt runner-up Louisiana on the road in Week 1, playing Houston tight for a half, and comfortably knocking off an FCS opponent and Charlotte to improve to 3-1. However, the Owls currently ride a 3-game win streak and are incredibly banged up at quarterback after a deflating 61-13 annihilation at UTSA. Rice missed a golden opportunity at a home win against Florida Atlantic in Week 6 and now it must win three of its last five — with four teams sporting winning records ahead on the schedule.
11. Tulsa Golden Hurricane
Record: 2-4, 0-3 American
Best win: at Oklahoma State, 19-12
Worst loss: at New Mexico State, 21-14
It’s been an interesting year for Tulsa where the team can lose to New Mexico State and win on the road at Oklahoma State, with neither result being all that surprising. The Golden Hurricane are in the midst of a rebuild under first-year head coach Tre Lamb, and Lamb already crafted a signature moment on a Friday night in Stillwater as his team outplayed Oklahoma State and defeated the Cowboys for the first time since 1998 — snapping a 10-game series losing streak. Other than that moment, there have been trials and tribulations for the Golden Hurricane. They’re 0-3 in conference play, but they faced three of the conference’s toughest tests in Navy, Tulane, and Memphis. Nobody on the remaining schedule is currently above .500, providing Lamb several opportunities down the stretch to accelerate his developing program.
10. Florida Atlantic Owls
Record: 3-3, 2-1 American
Best win: at Rice, 27-21
Worst loss: at FIU, 38-28
The Zach Kittley era at Florida Atlantic is off to a 2-1 start in conference play, as the Owls currently ride a 2-game win streak after upending Rice and UAB. The first four games were a struggle for FAU, with a porous run defense and a high turnover rate causing a 1-3 stumble out of the gate. However, the blowout losses to Maryland and Memphis were closer than the scores indicated as FAU moved the ball well — it just couldn’t hang onto it. With Kittley bringing his air raid concepts from Texas Tech to Boca Raton, FAU ranks fourth nationally in passing yards and can be a difficult matchup for many American defenses. If not for a 38-28 road loss to FIU — its first loss in the Shula Bowl rivalry since 2016 — the Owls’ rebuild would be in excellent shape at the midway point.
9. UTSA Roadrunners
Record: 3-3, 1-1 American
Best win: at Colorado State, 17-16
Worst loss: vs. Texas State, 43-36
UTSA is now in year six of the Jeff Traylor era, and the Roadrunners still haven’t produced a losing season. They’re .500 at the regular season midway point, surviving a nail-biter at Colorado State and dropping close games to Texas Tech and Temple. However, UTSA clearly separated itself from the nadir of the conference last Saturday, handling Rice in 61-13 fashion while setting a program record for scoring. The Roadrunners’ explosive offense is led by home run hitting running back Robert Henry Jr., who ranks fourth nationally in rushing and routinely scores from 70 yards out. The defense has been a mixed bag so far, but the Roadrunners are quite adept at limiting the run despite replacing all 11 starters on that end. We’ll see what UTSA is truly made of as a brutal upcoming schedule awaits, featuring North Texas, Tulane, and South Florida as the next three games.
8. Army Black Knights
Record: 3-3, 2-2 American
Best win: at Kansas State, 24-21
Worst loss: vs. Tarleton State (FCS), 30-27
2024 was a storybook season for Army, as the Black Knights reached a record 12 wins and also claimed the program’s first conference championship in year one of American Conference membership. Jeff Monken’s team was ready for the repeat, but the season got sidetracked on Friday night of Week 1. Army, which didn’t even trail for a second second in 2024 until November, was stunningly upended by FCS Tarleton State in double-overtime — arguably the most surprising result of the year. However, in true Jeff Monken fashion, the Black Knights brushed off the loss and spearheaded a comeback to knock off Kansas State in Manhattan the following week. After consecutive conference wins, Army is now an even .500 both overall and in the conference standings. It won’t be easy to defend the league title, but there are still chances at statement wins, including an upcoming Oct. 18 battle with Tulane — a rematch of the 2024 American title game.
7. Temple Owls
Record: 3-3, 1-1 American
Best win: vs. UTSA, 27-21
Worst loss: vs. Navy, 32-31
Welcome back, Temple football. The Owls cycled through endless 3-9 seasons, as every year from 2021 to 2024 was Groundhog Day. But halfway through the season under first-year head coach K.C. Keeler, the Owls are already sitting at the 3-win mark with six opportunities to produce their best record of the 2020s. Temple didn’t face a walk-in-the-park schedule either. The Owls already challenged 5-1 Oklahoma, 6-0 Georgia Tech, and 6-0 Navy — holding a touchdown lead in the final minute of regulation against the Midshipmen. Those were all defeats, but Temple already logged an impressive win that the Owls of past years wouldn’t have concocted. That occurred in Week 6 against UTSA, storming back from an 11-point second half deficit to win in Philadelphia. Keeler’s Owls are seeing progress on both sides of the ball, particularly on offense where quarterback Evan Simon has grow tremendously.
6. East Carolina Pirates
Record: 3-3, 1-1 American
Best win: vs. Army, 28-6
Worst loss: at NC State, 24-17
East Carolina hasn’t managed the easiest schedule to date, facing a non-conference slate of NC State and BYU and running into a road conference matchup at Tulane all before the season’s midway point. The problem is, the Pirates lost all three matchups — and the NC State and Tulane games (both seven point losses decided in the final seconds) were certainly winnable for head coach Blake Harrell and Co. ECU is traditionally known for dynamic offenses, but this year’s Pirate team is primarily defensive driven. Only BYU piled more than 24 points on the nation’s 15th-ranked scoring defense, and ECU presents a menacing run defense that collects backfield stops with ease. However, the offense has sputtered at times and has been subject to frequent slow starts. Still, this team is talented and should be favored in five of its six remaining games as it eyes to crash the conference championship.
5. North Texas Mean Green
Record: 5-1, 1-1 American
Best win: vs. Washington State, 59-10
Worst loss: vs. South Florida, 63-36
North Texas’ first 5-0 start since 1959 immediately became one of the best stories in college football. The Mean Green faithful rallied like never before, selling out DATCU Stadium and producing a record crowd in a Friday night nationally televised showcase vs. South Florida. However, North Texas showed in that high-stakes collision that there is still room to grow under third-year head coach Eric Morris. The Mean Green fell 63-36 thanks to five turnovers, even though the offensive output remains lethal. With rising star quarterback Drew Mestemaker running the show, North Texas owns the nation’s 6th-ranked scoring offense — showing its mettle in a 59-10 blowout over Washington State. Defense still has a way to go, but first-year coordinator Skyler Cassity is making tremendous strides on that end, and they rank second in the FBS in turnovers forced. The schedule is devoid of Memphis, Tulane, and East Carolina, so North Texas is still very much in the title race.
4. Navy Midshipmen
Record: 6-0, 4-0 American
Best win: vs. Temple, 32-31
Worst loss: N/A
Navy ranks third in the FBS in longest win streak at nine, only trailing Memphis and Ohio State which have 10 apiece. The Midshipmen are rolling just like they were at this time last year, producing consecutive 6-0 starts for the first time since 1978 and 1979. They are one of the final 11 remaining unbeatens, but Navy hasn’t faced anybody better than 3-3 Temple yet — a game the Midshipmen won with a last-minute touchdown and a clutch two-point conversion. With Blake Horvath leading the offense as a star rusher and capable passer, Navy averages the 15th-most yards per game in the FBS. And although the defense boasts the best player in the conference in defensive tackle Landon Robinson, there have been issues on the back end. The Midshipmen allowed 31 points in consecutive weeks, and they’ll need to shore up the defense as the schedule significantly ramps up for the second half.
3. Tulane Green Wave
Record: 5-1, 2-0 American
Best win: vs. Duke, 34-27
Worst loss: at Ole Miss, 45-10
Tulane is the 2020s standard of the American Conference, appearing in each of the last three conference championship matchups and winning one, along with a New Year’s Six bowl in 2022. The expectations never dropped as the baton was passed from Willie Fritz to Jon Sumrall, and Tulane is in prime position for another run at an American title. The Green Wave picked up two high-quality non-conference victories, throttling 4-2 Northwestern 23-3 in a win that keeps looking better and handling 4-2 Duke 34-27 (was 34-16 until the final three minutes) in New Orleans. Yes, there is a 35-point blemish at Ole Miss on its résumé in a day where everything went wrong. But the Green Wave feature a strong balance between a dynamic offense led by mobile quarterback Jake Retzlaff and a defense capable of forcing pressure up front and generating takeaways.
2. Memphis Tigers
Record: 6-0, 2-0 American
Best win: vs. Arkansas, 32-31
Worst loss: N/A
The longest win streak in the FBS belongs to Memphis, which has rattled off 10-straight victories, going back to a strong finish to 2024. The Tigers have sustained winning excellence since 2014, but they’re reaching new heights under sixth-year head coach Ryan Silverfield — a winner of 28 of his last 33. In its first 6-0 start since 2015, Memphis was the first team in the country to clinch bowl eligibility and the Tigers haven’t seen a letdown performance, covering the spread in all six outings. Memphis’ signature win transpired in Week 4, overcoming an 18-point deficit to knock off Arkansas at home. What’s especially impressive about this Silverfield team is it retained hardly anybody from the 2024 squad which finished 11-2 and ranked No. 24. Instead, Memphis unearthed new stars like Sutton Smith and Cortez Braham Jr. while assembling a stellar defense from the transfer portal.
1. South Florida Bulls
Record: 5-1, 2-0 American
Best win: vs. North Texas, 63-36
Worst loss: at Miami (FL), 49-12
Take your pick for best win, because South Florida has several résumé-boosting victories. The Bulls opened the season upending back-to-back ranked opponents, throttling Boise State 34-7 and knocking off Florida 18-16 at The Swamp on a buzzer-beating field goal. USF couldn’t make it three-straight ranked wins after current No. 2 Miami (FL) had its way with a 37-point victory. However, the loss only made the Bulls stronger. They’ve averaged 60 points per game in the three outings since the loss, storming into a raucous road environment and throttling North Texas, 63-36. Byrum Brown’s dual-threat abilities are taking Alex Golesh’s hyper-speed offense to new heights, while Jhalyn Shuler/Mac Harris led defense has ramped up the intensity, ranking first in the FBS in turnovers forced. The Bulls made the leap from good to great and are firmly contenders for the 2025 American.
