Busy Final Weekend Ahead In The American
For those looking for an alternative to Black Friday shopping, The American has a full menu of post-Thanksgiving intrigue on tap for the weekend. The schedule begins Friday at noon ET on ABC as Memphis hosts Houston in a game that will determine The American’s West Division champion. A pair of East Division matchups follow as Cincinnati hosts ECU at 3:30 ET on CBS Sports Network, and USF hosts UCF in the War on I-4 on ESPN. Saturday’s ledger features a doubleheader on ESPNU as Tulane hosts Navy at noon ET and UConn hosts Temple at 3:30. CBS Sports Network as Tulsa at home against SMU at 3:30 ET.
American Championship Returns To Spectrum Stadium
The American Athletic Conference Football Championship will return to Spectrum Stadium in Orlando, Florida, after UCF claimed The American’s East Division title with a 38-13 win against Cincinnati last Saturday. The championship game will be played Saturday, Dec. 1, at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be televised nationally on ABC for the fourth consecutive season.
American Players In The Running For National Honors
The American Athletic Conference has enjoyed a steady presence at the annual Home Depot College Football Awards in the league’s first five years. Two players from The American will have a chance to bring home top individual honors in 2018 as Memphis running back Darrell Henderson has been named as a finalist for the Doak Walker Award as the nation’s premier running back, while Cincinnati’s James Smith is a finalist for the Ray Guy Award as the college punter of the year. Smith could become the second player from The American to win the Ray Guy Award; Memphis’ Tom Hornsey won in 2013. .
Breakout Star At ECU
Among the many players in The American who have enjoyed breakout seasons, perhaps none are more impressive than ECU defensive end Nate Harvey. Harvey, who was an invited walk-on in 2017 as a fullback and special teams player following two years in junior college, moved to defensive end for 2018 and has responded with a record-breaking senior year. Harvey has registered 24.0 tackles for loss – breaking the conference record of 23.0, set by Houston’s Ed Oliver last year – and has 13.5 sacks, leaving him one shy of the league record., set by Louisville’s Marcus Smith in 2013. Harvey is the NCAA leader in both sacks per game (1.35) and tackles for loss per game (2.4) with two games remaining.
The American Wins The Prime Time Ratings Battle
Last Saturday’s American Athletic Conference game between UCF and Cincinnati was the highest-rated college football contest in the prime time window. The final viewership numbers will be announced by ABC/ESPN later in the week, but the early ratings show that The American’s East Division showdown topped Notre Dame-Syracuse on NBC and Oklahoma-Kansas on Fox.
On The Cusp
The American Athletic Conference has six bowl-eligible teams entering the weekend as UCF, Cincinnati, Houston, Memphis, USF and Temple have punched their postseason tickets. SMU and Tulane would gain bowl eligibility with wins this weekend. If both SMU and Tulane win, The American would match its record of eight postseason teams set in 2015. The league has had seven bowl teams in each of the last two seasons.