The American Conference Championship picture became clearer than ever in Week 13. Two of the league’s frontrunners distanced themselves from the pack, while another lost a must-win game. Offensive explosions filled the conference landscape alongside these important contests, creating another eventful week in the conference.
Without further ado, let’s go Around the American.
Tulane and North Texas Pull Ahead in the Championship Race
Four teams entered the penultimate week of the regular season tied for the conference lead with one loss. Tulane and North Texas won big to solidify themselves as frontrunners, while East Carolina experienced the house of horrors that is the Alamodome. Navy sat idle before its Thanksgiving night clash with Memphis.
#24 Tulane blew out a hungry Temple squad seeking bowl eligibility, 37-13, thanks to 122 rushing yards from RB Jamuri McClure. McClure seemingly came out of nowhere, totaling 245 yards across 10 games in the past two years. McClure’s sudden emergence highlights the mysterious chain of quality running back talent that seems to find its way to New Orleans year-in and year-out. He could follow in the footsteps of recent Green Wave greats Makhi Hughes and Tyjae Spears.
The Green Wave currently have a 6-1 conference record and will host the conference championship game with a win over Charlotte (1-10) next week. The American Conference’s tiebreakers give Tulane the advantage over the other one-loss teams due to its ranking in the College Football Playoff.
Meanwhile, North Texas overcame an early 14-0 deficit to blow out Rice (5-5), 56-24. WR Wyatt Young caught eight passes for 295 of UNT QB Drew Mestemaker’s 469 yards. While Mestemaker and RB Caleb Hawkins get most of the national attention, Young has become a bona fide Biletnikoff Award candidate. He has 56 receptions for 1076 yards and 10 touchdowns. He deserves to be a finalist for the award. Hawkins added three touchdowns to bring his total to 19 for the season.
North Texas positioned itself ahead of Navy in the tiebreaking procedures thanks to its head-to-head win over the Mids. The Mean Green sit 6-1 in league play and will likely earn a spot in the American Conference Championship with a win over Temple on Black Friday.
ECU Falls to UTSA
East Carolina could not keep its frontrunner status after a 58-24 loss to UTSA in the Alamodome. The Pirates entered the Alamodome with one loss and an outside shot at the conference title game, but like Tulane, they fell prey to the Alamodome. The Roadrunners are now 29-3 at the Alamodome since 2020.
UTSA QB Owen McCown threw for five touchdowns, while RB Will Henderson ran for over 100 yards for the second week in a row. Most fans consider Drew Mestemaker, Byrum Brown, and Blake Horvath to be the elite quarterbacks in the conference, but McCown has quietly built a solid resume. He has 25 touchdown passes to just six interceptions and has pulled within reach of joining Frank Harris as the only Roadrunner quarterbacks to throw 30 touchdown passes in a season.
For all intents and purposes, East Carolina’s conference championship game hopes have ended. The Pirates lost head-to-head to Tulane and likely do not have the computer rankings edge over USF, Navy, or Memphis should chaos ensue in the final week.
Other Notes From Around the League
USF QB Byrum Brown totalled 416 yards of offense and five touchdowns in USF’s 48-18 dismantling of UAB. Brown now has over 3700 yards of total offense and 37 touchdowns. He is truly one of the country’s most dynamic players.
FAU QB Caden Veltkamp threw for 494 yards and two touchdowns, but his Owls lost a heartbreaker to UConn, 48-45. The Owls allowed 446 passing yards to UConn QB Joe Fagnano, including a game-winning touchdown pass with just 26 seconds left to play. With the loss, FAU will miss a bowl game for the fifth straight season.
Charlotte covered the 42.5-point spread but only gained 169 total yards in a 35-3 loss to Georgia. But at least they didn’t get shut out.
We’ll see if Army can make anything out of their trip to the Alamodome house of horrors this weekend. Alas, it looks like a tough task.
Go Army! Beat UTSA!!!
