The American Conference wound up with one legit barnburner last weekend, but it wasn’t the match-up we expected. While UTSA hung with North Texas for a half, the Mean Green put the hammer down after the break, running up the score and leaving little doubt as to which school had the better team. Later that day, though, UAB shocked Memphis in the upset of the season.
New coach, new quarterback. Who cares?!
Winners and losers aside, the Tigers and Blazers put on one of the most exciting contests of 2025.
What does Week 9 have in store? Let’s get into it.
#18 South Florida at Memphis (+5.5)
12:00 pm on ESPN2
Memphis (6-1, 2-1 in the American) lost starting QB Brandon Lewis last week in their debacle down at UAB (3-4, 1-3 in the American) and had to turn to freshman backup QB AJ Hill. Worse still, the Tigers gave up a staggering 219 yards rushing on every bit of 5.3 yards/carry. Now they host the #18 South Florida Bulls (6-1, 3-0 in the American), and all other factors aside, this South Florida team runs the rock one Hell of a lot more effectively than UAB usually does.
USF QB Byrum Brown has looked electric all season. He’s completing 63.4% of his passes and has thrown 16 touchdowns against just 5 interceptions. He also leads his team in rushing with 475 yards and 6 rushing touchdowns on nearly 5 yards/carry. But that’s only because USF employs a running back by committee approach. Three different guys have at least 40 carries this season, and a fourth has 32. All four of USF’s leading running backs average at least 5 yards/carry, and RB Sam Franklin puts up an average 6.3 yards every time he gets the call. Oh by the way, five different wide receivers have at least 16 catches as well, and two different tight ends have combined to catch 19 balls for 4 touchdowns.
Until last week, we’d have argued that Memphis would be ready for all that. They currently have the nation’s 24th ranked rushing defense, allowing just 106.7 yards/game on 3.5 yards/carry. Last week, though, UAB shattered all expectations and put the Tigers decidedly onto the back foot.
With QB Brandon Lewis at the helm, Memphis has one of college football’s better offenses. However, Hill completed just 52% of his passes last week while throwing both a touchdown and a pick. Maybe the Tigers can make up the difference in the running game, but that won’t be easy against a USF defense that gives up just 133 rushing yards/game on 3.3 yards/carry.
We’d like to say that whichever of these teams runs the ball better will win this game, and maybe that will turn out to be true. Reality, though, says that quarterback play could become the x-factor this week, and if that’s the case, USF will have a very real advantage.
Did the Tigers try to look past UAB? Can they bounce back in time to give South Florida a game?
We’ll find out this Saturday.
Nothing better than game day in the Bay.
— USF Football (@USFFootball) October 20, 2025
🎥 Cinematic Recap: South Florida vs FAU#ComeToTheBay | #StayInTheBay pic.twitter.com/VrN8sfz9IF
Temple (-5.5) at Tulsa
3:30 pm on ESPN+
Temple stands 4-3, 2-1 in the American, and they need this game to stay in bowl contention. They have arguably the most improved squad in the conference with a well-balanced offense and a strong secondary alongside an improving front seven.
QB Evan Simon in particular looks better than ever. Dude has gone 108/174 passing this season (62.1%) for 1,343 yards and 16 touchdowns with no interceptions, and he’s still improving, especially in his his pocket awareness. Simon took three sacks against Oklahoma, two sacks each against Georgia Tech and UTSA, and then just one sack in each of his last two games, versus Navy and Charlotte. Simon also now has help in the running game via RBs Jay Ducker and Hunter Smith, both of whom average well above 5.5 yards/carry and who’ve collectively scored 7 rushing touchdowns.
Tulsa (2-5, 0-4 in the American) fans seem to believe that their team can start a late-season run this week, but this Temple team provides a serious challenge. Among other things, the Golden Hurricane give up nearly 200 yards rushing/game and allow opponents to convert just over 44% of their third downs. Their passing defense has been better than that, but Tulsa also draws a Hell of a lot of penalties, and they turn the ball over far too often as well.
Can Temple run the rock consistently enough to control this game? If they do, they’ll need just one more win from amongst games at home versus ECU, at Army, at home versus Tulane, and at North Texas to finish the season with a bowl berth.
Take a cinematic look back at our win against Charlotte 🎥#TempleTUFF pic.twitter.com/zAMzPzfooC
— Temple Football (@Temple_FB) October 21, 2025
UConn at Rice (+10.5)
3:00 pm on ESPN+
The Rice Owls (3-4, 1-3 in the American) host the resurgent UConn Huskies (5-2) this week in the conference’s only out-of-conference match-up. This could become a fascinating contest. Rice now runs a super run-heavy option scheme that’s putting up more than 215 yards rushing/game. They match that at home against a UConn defense that allows 160 yards rushing/game on just over 4 yards/carry. The Owls ought to be able to make that work. However, they’ll have to make it work well enough to keep pace with a UConn team that throws for nearly 300 yards/game and runs for more than 170.
Army fans will understand this challenge implicitly. Can the Owls pound the rock and control the game’s flow well enough to give their defense a chance against this talented UConn attack?
The Owls still have an outside shot at a bowl berth, but they can’t afford to slip up this week. They host Memphis next week and have UAB, North Texas, and South Florida still to come. Maybe Rice can find two victories in that final stretch, but it’s extremely doubtful that they can find three.
Win the 'Right Now' and keep it pushing…
— Rice Athletics 👐 (@RiceAthletics) October 21, 2025
Senior captain Micah Barnett joins this week's episode of Rice Unfiltered to take us inside the mind of a @RiceFootball student-athlete, coming off a bye week and heading into Week 9. 🎙️#GoOwls👐 pic.twitter.com/XjRnRlcuUZ
Other Conference Contests
North Texas (-26.5) at Charlotte
North Texas might put Charlotte on 100 Watch this week. They’re already on 70 Watch. This game kicks Friday at 7:00 pm on ESPN2.
Florida Atlantic (+15.5) at Navy
FAU (3-4, 2-2 in the American) beat Rice and got Trent Dilfer fired at UAB, but they have yet to beat a team with a winning record. QB Caden Veltkamp has been good, but he turns the ball over a lot, and he doesn’t get a lot of help from his defense, especially against the run. That makes this FAU team a lot like the other teams Navy (6-0, 4-0 in the American) has beaten this year.
They ought to beat FAU, too.
Final Thoughts
If it feels like we know what we ought to expect this week, well, we felt like we knew what we were in for last weekend, as well. And then it all went crazy. That might happen again, especially if Memphis and Tulsa come ready to play.
Enjoy the games, friends. We’ll see you next week.
Go Army! Beat Air Force!!!
