In week two of the college football season, the American Athletic Conference had five opportunities against Power Five conference foes to improve the conference’s perception and standing. Three of them were victories of the P5. Also, the AAC had a big interconference matchup between Navy and Memphis.

The AAC’s biggest win of the week belongs to the South Florida Bulls. USF hosted and defeated Georgia Tech out of the Atlantic Coast Conference, 49-38. The big difference in this game was by Bulls returner Terrence Horne who returned back-to-back kickoffs for 98 and 97 yards, respectively, for touchdowns that helped push the Bulls ahead early. The Bulls erased a 10 point deficit in the fourth quarter with 21 unanswered points behind a Blake Barnett touchdown pass to Horne and two Barnett runs.

The Bulls improve to 2-0 with the win, tied with UCF and Cincinnati who each shutout their opponents for their second wins. ECU brought themselves within a game toppling the ACC’s North Carolina Tarheels in a P5 triumph.

Out West; the Houston Cougars also took care of business on the field by manhandling the Arizona Wildcats out of the PAC-12 45-18. Houston quarterback D’Eriq King was involved in six touchdowns, including four through the air, despite only completing 17 of 34 passes. This game was never close as the Cougars opened to a 38-0 league. Houston is also 2-0 after this win and in current sole possession of first place In the division.

Navy came back and survived against Memphis 22-21. In a see-saw matchup between two West Division contenders, Memphis scored 14 straight points in the third quarter before Navy scored 13 straight points before holding on for victory. Both teams are 1-1 on the season and one game back from Houston.

Week 3 Matchups

The American has six matchups against Power 5 competition during week 3. The matchups are highlighted by East Carolina traveling to 12th ranked Virginia Tech and SMU visiting 21st ranked Michigan. The other matchups include: Temple at Maryland, 19th ranked UCF at North Carolina (weather permitting), South Florida at Illinois, and Houston at Texas Tech. On the season, the AAC is 4-2 against Power 5 teams.

Offensive Player of the Week

After figuring in six touchdowns (four passing, two rushing) in @UHCougarFB‘s 45-18 win against Arizona, quarterback D’Eriq King is the #AmericanFB Offensive Player of the Week. 📝: https://t.co/QvLxnoSq2Y pic.twitter.com/R7WfwOv7BJ — American Football (@American_FB) September 10, 2018

D’Eriq King led the Cougars to the most dominate of the week’s three AAC Power 5 victories over Arizona. His 246 yards passing and 31 yards rushing on five carries asserted Houston’s current first place ranking in the West division.

Defensive Player of the Week

With a team-high nine tackles and two forced fumbles to help lead @NavyFB to a 22-21 win against Memphis, safety Sean Williams is the #AmericanFB Defensive Player of the Week. 📝: https://t.co/QvLxnoAPbq pic.twitter.com/BTKX9dYqP8 — American Football (@American_FB) September 10, 2018

The top defensive contribution for the AAC this week came from Navy’s safety Sean Williams. His team-high nine tackles and two forced fumbles was a big factor in Midshipmen turning in four Tiger turnovers. With Williams and his squad winning this intra-conference matchup by one-point, there is a potential for

Special Teams Player of the Week

The first player in American Athletic Conference history to have two kickoff returns for touchdowns in a game, @USFFootball‘s Terrence Horne is the #AmericanFB Special Teams Player of the Week. 📝: https://t.co/QvLxnoSq2Y pic.twitter.com/IZcNTV1UL4 — American Football (@American_FB) September 10, 2018

Absolutely no surprise that Terrence Horne’s two touchdown returns for USF landed him the honors for special teams in week two. The pair of scampers to the house in a single was not only an historical achievement, but it was essential in the Bulls locking down the Power 5 win over GA Tech.

I’ve been writing off and on since 2003, where I first wrote for Southern College Sports. After a hiatus, I returned in 2012 with The Sports Chronicles, a predecessor of NGSC Sports. After a brief stint with WBLZ in 2017, I returned to NGSC Sports before joining Blue HQ Media in 2018. Also, from 2015 to 2017, I helped run Off the Cuff, a sports program and blog with STLR Media. I have done radio and podcasts dating back to 2006 with The Student of the Game, an NFL podcast. In 2012, I cohosted TSC Saturday Night on the Sports Chronicles and The OT With Andrew G on WTMY in Sarasota, FL. I later moved the OT to NGSC Sports until 2014 where I started The College Cram, also on NGSC Sports. After a brief hiatus, I returned to radio in 2015 with both Off the Cuff on STLR and The Mad Scientist Sports Lab on The Inscriber.