SATURDAY, DECEMBER 3
ROOFCLAIM AMERICAN ATHLETIC CONFERENCE
CHAMPIONSHIP GAME
UCF at Tulane………………………………………………….4 p.m.
Television: ABC
Series: UCF leads, 10-2
Last Meeting: Nov. 12, 2022 (UCF, 38-31)
POSTSEASON HONORS
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Tyjae Spears • Jr. • RB • Tulane • Ponchatoula, La.
Spears becomes the first Tulane player, and the first non-quarterback, to be named as American Offensive Player of the Year. Spears finished the regular season with 1,177 rushing yards, good for third in The American, and a league-leading 14 rushing touchdowns. He registered a conference-best 972 yards and eight TDs in conference games, helping the Green Wave to a 7-1 league record (10-2 overall) and its first appearance in The American Championship Game.
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Ivan Pace Jr. • Sr. • LB • Cincinnati • Cincinnati,Ohio
Pace is the second consecutive Cincinnati player to be named as The American’s Defensive Player of the Year, following cornerback Sauce Gardner’s honor in 2021. This year’s selection also marks the second consecutive conference player-of-the-year honor for Pace, who was the MAC Defensive Player of the Year at Miami (Ohio) last season. An Associated Press Mid-Season All-America choice and a finalist for the Butkus Award and the Bednarik Award, Pace leads The American with 120 tackles and 19.5 tackles for loss and is second in the conference with 9.0 sacks.
SPECIAL TEAMS PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Mason Fletcher • So. • P • Cincinnati • Melbourne, Australia
Fletcher is Cincinnati’s first player to win American Special Teams Player of the Year honors. The sophomore leads The American and is fourth nationally with a 46.7-yard punting average and 28 punts inside the opponent’s 20-yard line. He hit 14 punts of at least 50 yards, including an 84-yard punt that shattered The American’s distance record. A Ray Guy Award finalist, Fletcher helped Cincinnati finish the regular season ranked second nationally in net punting at 44.7 yards.
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR
E.J. Warner • Fr. • QB • Temple • Phoenix, Ariz.
Warner becomes the first Temple player to be chosen as The American’s Rookie of the Year. The true freshman took over as the Owls’ starter in the third game of the season and finished the 2022 campaign with 3,028 passing yards and 18 touchdown passes, capped by a 527-yard, five-touchdown effort in the season finale against East Carolina. Warner finished fourth in The American in passing, averaging 275.3 yards per game in his debut season.
COACH OF THE YEAR
Willie Fritz • Tulane
Fritz was the unanimous choice of his peers as American Coach of the Year after he orchestrated Tulane’s turnaround from a 2-10 season in 2021 to a 10-2 showing and a first-place finish in The American’s regular-season standings. The Green Wave is ranked No. 18 in this week’s Associated Press poll as Tulane earned its first 10-win season and top-25 rankings since 1998. He is the third coach to be unanimously chosen as American Coach of the Year, joining Justin Fuente of Memphis in 2014 and Scott Frost of UCF in 2017.
AMERICAN NOTEBOOK
One Of Five
Saturday’s RoofClaim American Athletic Conference Championship Game will be one of five FBS conference title games between two ranked teams. The others will be in the ACC, Big 12, Pac-12 and SEC.
Everyone Wins
Since the start of the 2014 season, all 11 American Athletic Conference teams have been ranked at least once in the Associated Press top 25 poll. The American, the ACC and the Big 12 are the only FBS conferences that have had each member ranked since 2014.
Conference Call
The American will finish the regular season with a combined 9-3 record against non-autonomous FBS conference opponents in 2022.
Variety Show
Since The American began playing a championship game in the 2015 season, eight of the conference’s 11 teams will have played in the game at least once. Six of the 11 teams will have hosted the championship game.
Ranked vs. Ranked
Prior to last week’s win at No. 21 Cincinnati, the last time a ranked Tulane team defeated another ranked team was a 10-3 win by the 19th-ranked Green Wave against No. 6 Ole Miss Oct. 20, 1956.
Play On
The American Athletic Conference will have seven bowleligible teams in the 2022 season (UCF, Cincinnati, Tulane, East Carolina, SMU, Houston, Memphis).
All Good Things …
Cincinnati saw a 32-game winning streak at Nippert Stadium, end with last week’s loss to Tulane. The Bearcats’ last home loss at been a 35-24 setback to Temple Nov. 10, 2017.
All Bad Things …
Tulane snapped a streak of 61 consecutive losses against AP-ranked teams with its 27-24 win at Cincinnati Friday. The Green Wave’s last win against a ranked team was a 27-23 decision at No. 19 Vanderbilt Oct. 6, 1984.
Feels Like We’ve Been Here Before
UCF is in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game for the third time in six years. The Knights won the 2017 and 2018 championship games, both in Orlando.
Road Sweet Road
Houston is 10-2 in its last 12 road games.
Top Of The Charts
East Carolina QB Holton Ahlers has set The American’s career passing yards and total offense records. Houston QB Clayton Tune holds the conference’s career record for touchdown passes.
Career Passing Yards
- 13,627 Holton Ahlers, East Carolina (2018-)
- 11,767 Clayton Tune, Houston (2018-)
- 10,782 Dane Evans, Tulsa (2014-16)
Career Total Offense
- 15,025 Holton Ahlers, East Carolina (2018-)
- 12,963 Clayton Tune, Houston (2018-)
- 12,418 Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati (2018-21)
Career Touchdown Passes
- 101 Clayton Tune, Houston (2018-)
- 92 Holton Ahlers, East Carolina (2018-)
- 90 Brady White, Memphis (2018-20)
Catching On
The American Athletic Conference had three of the 12 semifinalists for the Biletnikoff Award, which goes to the nation’s top receiver — SMU WR Rashee Rice, Tulsa WR Keylon Stokes and Houston WR Nathaniel Dell. The American is the only conference with three semifinalists.
Magic Numbers
SMU WR Rashee Rice leads all FBS players with 1,355 receiving yards this season. Houston WR Nathaniel Dell is second by one yard at 1,354 yards. The players are tied with 3,111 career yards each.
Marshall Plan
Navy LB John Marshall was the lone unanimous selection to the American Athletic Conference all-conference first team. Marshall leads The American with a school-record 10.5 sacks.
Multi-Talented
Tulsa WR Keylon Stokes finished his career with an American Athletic Conference-record 5,474 career all-purpose yards and 3,774 receiving yards (second).
Career All-Purpose Yards
- 5,474 Keylon Stokes, Tulsa (2018-)
- 5,320 Malcolm Perry, Navy (2016-19)
Career Receiving Yards
- 3,949 James Proche, SMU (2016-19)
- 3,774 Keylon Stokes, Tulsa (2018-)
Pencil It In
Memphis QB Seth Henigan has thrown at least one touchdown pass in all 23 games of his collegiate career.
Pace Setter
Cincinnati LB Ivan Pace Jr. has been chosen as a finalist for the Butkus Award (top linebacker) and the Bednarik Trophy (top defensive player). A transfer from Miami (Ohio), Pace was named The American’s Defensive Player of the Year one year after he was similarly honored by the Mid-American Conference.
Flip The Field
Cincinnati P Mason Fletcher one of three finalists for the Ray Guy Award as the nation’s top punter.
Best Behavior
Navy is the least-penalized team in the nation. The Midshipmen average 3.5 penalties and 28.3 yards per game.
Any Way You Want It
Navy is 2-0 this season in games in which the Midshipmen have not completed a pass.
Line In The Sand
UCF ranks fifth nationally in red zone defense. The Knights have limited opponents to 68.0% effectiveness in the red zone.
Halfway There
Cincinnati LB Ivan Pace Jr. was chosen as an Midseason All-America selection by the Associated Press, Sporting News and The Athletic. SMU WR Rashee Rice was a second-team Midseason All-America choice of The Athletic.
Draft Cards
The American matched its best showing in the NFL Draft with 19 players selected in 2022. Two American players — Cincinnati CB Ahmad Gardner at No. 4 and Tulsa OT Tyler Smith at No. 24 — were chosen in the first round, while The American had 10 players taken in the first two days of the draft, surpassing the league’s previous high of six players.
Mark Your Calendars
With Tulane and UCF both appearing in this week’s College Football Playoff rankings, The American is expected to send a team to either the College Football Playoff or a New Year’s Six bowl for the eighth time in 10 years.
The American in CFP/New Year’s Six Bowls
2013 UCF 52, Baylor 42 (Fiesta Bowl)
2015 Houston 38, Florida State 24 (Peach Bowl)
2017 UCF 34, Auburn 27 (Peach Bowl)
2018 LSU 40, UCF 32 (Fiesta Bowl)
2019 Penn State 53, Memphis 39 (Cotton Bowl)
2020 Georgia 24, Cincinnati 21 (Peach Bowl)
2021 Alabama 27, Cincinnati 6 (CFP Semifinal/Cotton Bowl)
TALKING POINTS
UCF
9-3, 6-2 American
@UCF_Football
Last: Won at South Florida, 46-39
Next: Dec. 3 at Tulane (ABC)
American Ranks
Total Offense………………………….486.5 …………………. 2nd
Total Defense…………………………360.2 …………………..4th
Scoring Offense ……………………….34.9 …………………..4th
Scoring Defense ……………………….21.3 …………………..3rd
• UCF scored the go-ahead touchdown with 20 seconds left to take the win against South Florida in the regular-season finale, sending the Knights to The American Championship Game for the third time (2017, 2018).
• UCF has won four American titles overall (2013, 2014, 2017, 2018).
• UCF’s last five games have all been decided by nine points or fewer. The Knights are 4-1 in those games.
• UCF ranks seventh nationally in rushing offense (243.7 ypg) and has at least 200 rushing yards in nine of 12 games this season.
• The Knights had nine players named to The American’s all-conference teams.
CINCINNATI
9-3, 6-2 American
@BearcatsFB
Last: Lost to Tulane, 27-24
Next: TBD
American Ranks
Total Offense………………………….392.8 …………………..8th
Total Defense………………………… 328.5 ……………………1st
Scoring Offense …………………………31.1 …………………..6th
Scoring Defense ………………………20.3 …………………. 2nd
• Cincinnati saw its 32-game home field winning streak end with the loss to Tulane in the regular-season finale.
• LB Ivan Pace Jr. became the second straight Cincinnati player to be named as The American’s Defensive Player of the Year, following 2021 winner CB Ahmad Gardner.
• Pace is a finalist for the Butkus Award as the nation’s top linebacker and the Bednarik Award as the top defensive player.
• P Mason Fletcher, who ranks second nationally in punting average, is The American’s Special Teams Player of the Year.
• Head coach Luke Fickell stepped down after the regular season to take a similar position at Wisconsin.
EAST CAROLINA
7-5, 4-4 American
@ECUPiratesFB
Last: Won at Temple, 49-46
Next: TBD
American Ranks
Total Offense………………………….459.0 …………………..4th
Total Defense…………………………409.9 ………………….. 7th
Scoring Offense ……………………….30.8 …………………..8th
Scoring Defense ……………………….27.0 …………………..5th
• RB Keaton Mitchell matched his career highs with 222 rushing yards and three touchdown runs in the Pirates’ regular-season finale against Temple.
• Mitchell has registered six consecutive 100- yard games entering Bowl Season.
• Mitchell is the first East Carolina player with consecutive 1,000-rushing-yard seasons since Tay Cooper in 2012 and 2013.
• QB Holton Ahlers enters the postseason with 13,627 passing yards, ranking 11th in NCAA FBS history and the most among active players.
• Mitchell was named to the all-conference first team, while WR C.J. Johnson and CB Malik Fleming were second-team choices.
HOUSTON
7-5, 5-3 American
@UHCougarFB
Last: Lost to Tulsa, 37-30
Next: TBD
American Ranks
Total Offense…………………………..459.7 …………………..3rd
Total Defense………………………… 429.9 …………………..9th
Scoring Offense ………………………..37.8 …………………. 2nd
Scoring Defense ……………………… 33.2 …………………..8th
• WR Nathaniel Dell enters Bowl Season as the national leader with 16 rushing touchdowns and is second nationally with 1,354 receiving yards.
• QB Clayton Tune was named to the all-conference first team after he had 37 touchdown passes in the regular season.
• Tune is The American’s career leader with 101 career touchdown passes. He trails only Wake Forest QB Sam Hartman (107) among all active FBS players.
• Houston had five players named to the all-conference first team and nine total all-conference selections.
• Dell has at least one touchdown reception in 10 games this season, the most of any player nationally.
MEMPHIS
6-6, 3-5 American
@TigersAthletics
Last: Lost at SMU, 34-31
Next: TBD
American Ranks
Total Offense…………………………..420.7 …………………..5th
Total Defense…………………………. 371.9 …………………..5th
Scoring Offense ………………………..35.1 …………………..3rd
Scoring Defense ……………………….27.3 …………………..6th
• The Tigers gained bowl eligibility for the ninth consecutive season. Memphis has the ninth-longest active bowl streak among NCAA FBS teams.
• QB Seth Henigan has thrown at least one touchdown pass in 23 consecutive games, or every game of his career.
• Memphis has won 77 games since 2014, the most among American Athletic Conference teams.
• S Quindell Johnson was chosen to the allconference first team, earning his third consecutive all-conference honor. Johnson was a two-time selection to the second team.
• LB Xavier Cullens and TE Caden Prieskorn were both second-team all-conference picks.
NAVY
4-7, 4-4 American
@NavyAthletics
Last: Won at UCF, 17-14
Next: Dec. 10 vs. Army (CBS)
American Ranks
Total Offense…………………………..330.7 ………………….11th
Total Defense………………………… 355.9 …………………..3rd
Scoring Offense ………………………..22.4 …………………10th
Scoring Defense ……………………….24.7 …………………..4th
• LB John Marshall was the only unanimous first-team selection to The American’s all-conference teams.
• Marshall leads The American with 10.5 sacks and is second in the conference with 18.5 tackles for loss.
• The Midshipmen closed conference play with a 17-14 win at then-No. 17 UCF.
• Navy has won two games this season (Temple, UCF) without completing a pass.
• The Midshipmen close their season Dec. 10 against Army in Philadelphia. The Midshipmen are looking for their second straight win against the Black Knights.
SOUTH FLORIDA
1-11, 0-8 American
@USFFootball
Last: Lost to UCF, 46-39
Next: Season complete
American Ranks
Total Offense………………………….390.8 …………………..9th
Total Defense………………………….516.6 ………………….11th
Scoring Offense ……………………….28.0 …………………..9th
Scoring Defense ……………………….41.2 ………………….11th
• South Florida erased an early 28-0 deficit to take a fourth-quarter lead before UCF scored the winning touchdown with 20 seconds left in the War on I-4 to close the regular season.
• RB Brian Battie closed the season by registering five consecutive 100-yard games.
• QB Byrum Brown, who was fourth on the depth chart in the preseason, started the last two games of the year and accounted for seven touchdowns in those games.
• LB Dwayne Boyles finished the season with 108 tackles, registering his second consecutive season with 100 stops.
• The Bulls will have a new head coach in 2023 as Jeff Scott was relieved of his duties during the season.
SMU
7-5, 5-3 American
@SMU_Football
Last: Defeated Memphis, 34-31
Next: TBD
American Ranks
Total Offense…………………………..479.8 …………………. 2nd
Total Defense………………………… 445.8 …………………10th
Scoring Offense ……………………….38.4 ……………………1st
Scoring Defense ……………………….34.7 …………………10th
• SMU is bowl eligible for the fourth consecutive season and the fifth time i the last six years.
• LB Jimmy Philips Jr. would tie SMU’s career record for games played (59) if he plays in the Mustangs’ bowl game.
• WR Rashee Rice was chosen to The American’s all-conference first team after he finished the regular season as the NCAA FBS leader with 1,355 receiving yards.
• DE Elijah Chatman and OG Justin Osborne were both second-team all-conference selections.
• QB Tanner Mordecai ranks second in The American in passing (300.6 yards per game) and passing touchdowns (31).
TEMPLE
3-9, 1-7 American
@Temple_FB
Last: Lost to East Carolina, 49-46
Next: Season complete
American Ranks
Total Offense…………………………. 342.9 …………………10th
Total Defense…………………………..377.2 …………………..5th
Scoring Offense ………………………..21.4 ………………….11th
Scoring Defense ……………………….27.9 …………………..6th
• QB E.J. Warner closed the Owls’ season by throwing for a school-record 527 yards and five touchdowns in the loss to East Carolina.
• Warner was named as The American’s Rookie of the Year after he finished fourth in the conference in passing (275.3) as a true freshman.
• Warner is the first player in Temple history to have a 500-yard game and the first to have two 400-yard games in a season. He set a freshman
record with 3,028 passing yards.
• DE Darian Varner was named to the all-conference first team, while LB Layton Jordan was chosen to the second team.
• Jordan scored three defensive touchdowns in 2022.
TULANE
10-2, 7-1 American
@GreenWaveFB
Last: Won at Cincinnati, 27-24
Next: Dec. 3 vs. UCF (ABC)
American Ranks
Total Offense…………………………..416.0 …………………..6th
Total Defense…………………………336.8 …………………. 2nd
Scoring Offense ………………………. 34.4 …………………..5th
Scoring Defense ……………………….19.8 ……………………1st
• Tulane clinched a spot in the American Athletic Conference Championship Game for the first time by ending Cincinnati’s 32-game home winning streak in the regular-season finale.
• Tulane has seven conference wins for the first time in program history.
• Tulane has improved by eight wins from last season, when the Green Wave finished 2-10.
• RB Tyjae Spears was named as The American’s Offensive Player of the Year, becoming the first non-quarterback to win the honor.
• Head coach Willie Fritz was unanimously chosen as the American Athletic Conference Coach of the Year.
TULSA
5-7, 3-5 American
@TulsaFootball
Last: Won at Houston, 37-30
Next: Season complete
American Ranks
Total Offense……………………………411.8 ………………….. 7th
Total Defense………………………….414.3 …………………..8th
Scoring Offense ……………………….30.6 …………………..8th
Scoring Defense ……………………….33.1 …………………..8th
• WR Keylon Stokes finished his career second on The American’s career receiving chart with 3,774 yards, trailing only former SMU WR James Proche (3,949).
• Stokes, an all-conference first team selection, leaves Tulsa as The American’s career recordholder in all-purpose yards (5,474).
• DE Anthony Goodlow and LB Justin Wright were both chosen to The American’s all-conference second team.
• Tulsa won its season finale for the fifth consecutive season.
• The Golden Hurricane announced that Philip Montgomery will not return as head coach. Montgomery went 43-53 and led his teams to four bowl games.
