AAC Week 10 Recap: FAU Snaps UTSA’s Streak, North Texas Stands Alone and the Alamodome Showdown Is Set
One Thursday night in Boca Raton changed the shape of the American Conference race. Florida Atlantic hung 60 points on UTSA, snapped the Roadrunners’ five-game winning streak and knocked them out of a share of first place. Two days later, North Texas ran away from Rice in Denton and now sits alone at 5-0. That sets up the game every Roadrunner fan has had circled: North Texas at UTSA, Saturday, Nov. 14, at the Alamodome.
Here’s how Week 10 played out, what it means for the title race, and why next Saturday is the biggest night of UTSA’s season. If you missed it, catch up with our Week 10 preview and power rankings and last week’s recap. All times are Central.
Florida Atlantic 60, UTSA 29: A long night in Boca
We picked UTSA 38-31 in our preview. We had the Owls’ offense right and everything else wrong. FAU piled up 563 yards, the most by any UTSA opponent this season, and 339 of them came on the ground (GoUTSA). Leonard Farrow ran for 126 yards on just 12 carries, Ethan Ervin added 92, and Caden Veltkamp went 17-of-25 for 210 yards and four touchdowns. Easton Messer was everywhere again: seven catches, 85 yards, three touchdown catches and a 14-yard touchdown pass after a lateral.
The Owls set the tone early. A 33-yard Messer punt return set up a 6-yard touchdown to Messer three plays later. UTSA answered right away with an 11-play, 75-yard drive capped by Mekhi Anderson’s 20-yard touchdown catch. Then FAU scored twice more in the first quarter to go up 21-7.
The Roadrunners kept punching back. A’Marion Peterson went straight up the middle for a 52-yard touchdown early in the second quarter. The extra point was no good, so it was 21-13.
Anderson turned a short catch over the middle into a 45-yard score to make it 28-19, but the two-point try failed. Jusiah Sampleton stopped Antonio Johnson at the 1-yard line on fourth down late in the half, and FAU still found the end zone on its next drive. Michael Petro tied the UTSA program record with a 54-yard field goal as time expired, and it was 35-22 at the break.
The second half started badly. FAU recovered a fumble deep in UTSA territory on the opening possession, scored, and added a two-pointer for a 43-22 lead. Owen McCown found Isaiah Butler-Tanner for a 26-yard touchdown on fourth-and-inches to make it 43-29, but Farrow’s 59-yard run late in the third quarter put it away.
There were bright spots. Anderson had the first 100-yard receiving game of his career, finishing with six catches for 117 yards and two touchdowns. McCown completed 20 of 35 passes for 265 yards and three touchdowns, and Peterson averaged 12.8 yards on six carries (GoUTSA). But you don’t beat anybody in this league giving up 339 rushing yards. Full stats are in the ESPN box score.
What the loss does and doesn’t mean
It was UTSA’s first loss since Sept. 19 against Texas and its first in league play. The Roadrunners are 7-2 and 4-1, tied with Memphis for second, one game behind North Texas in the loss column (American Conference). Nothing is lost yet. UTSA controls a big piece of its own fate because the team in first place has to come to the Alamodome.
FAU, meanwhile, is bowl eligible for the first time since 2020. The Owls are 6-3 and 3-2, and they head to Tulsa next.
North Texas 52, Rice 23: The Mean Green stand alone
North Texas didn’t make it easy on itself. The Mean Green led just 17-14 with under five minutes left in the third quarter on Homecoming in Denton. Then they scored 35 of the game’s final 38 points. Jahiem White ran 21 times for 139 yards and three touchdowns and caught four passes for 31 yards (American Conference). UNT has won six straight and has scored 40 or more in every one of them.
UNT is 7-2 overall and the only team without a conference loss. It went to the title game last season and looks like a good bet to get back. The Roadrunners can change that. Box score: ESPN.
Around the American
- East Carolina 20, South Florida 17 (Friday): ECU kicker Andrew Conrad hit a long field goal as time expired in his first attempt of the season. Landon Sides caught 14 passes for 126 yards. The Pirates are 5-4 and one win from bowl eligibility. USF falls to 6-3, 2-3 (box score).
- Tulsa 60, Tulane 10: Tulsa’s biggest margin of victory since 2012. Baylor Hayes went 26-of-33 for 338 yards and four touchdowns, Oran Singleton Jr. caught 13 passes for 177 yards and three scores, and the Golden Hurricane had six sacks. Tulane is 4-5 (box score).
- UAB 23, Charlotte 12: The Blazers scored 20 straight points across the third and fourth quarters. Rod Robinson II ran for 101 yards on 14 carries, and Marlin Dean had three sacks and a forced fumble (box score).
- Navy 42, Temple 35: San Antonio’s own Jackson Gutierrez, the John Jay alum, accounted for all six Navy touchdowns. He ran for 180 yards and a career-high five scores and went 6-of-11 for 178 yards and a touchdown. Navy led 28-0, Temple tied it 35-35, and Gutierrez scored the winner with 1:14 left (Navy Athletics).
- Air Force 24, Army 21 (non-conference): Army lost the Commander-in-Chief’s Trophy game at Michie Stadium and fell to 5-4. The Black Knights are still 4-2 in league play (box score).
American Conference standings
| Team | American | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| North Texas | 5-0 | 7-2 |
| Memphis | 4-1 | 7-2 |
| UTSA | 4-1 | 7-2 |
| Army | 4-2 | 5-4 |
| Florida Atlantic | 3-2 | 6-3 |
| UAB | 3-2 | 5-4 |
| East Carolina | 3-2 | 5-4 |
| South Florida | 2-3 | 6-3 |
| Tulsa | 2-3 | 5-4 |
| Tulane | 2-3 | 4-5 |
| Navy | 2-4 | 3-6 |
| Charlotte | 1-4 | 1-8 |
| Temple | 1-4 | 2-7 |
| Rice | 0-5 | 1-8 |
Standings through Week 10 games, from the American Conference postgame notes.
The big one: North Texas at UTSA
Saturday, Nov. 14, 8 p.m. CT, ESPNU, at the Alamodome. It’s Homecoming, and the first 10,000 fans get exclusive homecoming jerseys from Firstmark Credit Union (GoUTSA). Tickets are at goUTSA.com/tickets, and UTSA students get in free.
Here’s the simple version. A UTSA win pulls North Texas back into a tie in the loss column and puts the Roadrunners right back in the thick of the title race. A loss leaves them two games behind the Mean Green in the loss column. To get there, UTSA has to stop the run. North Texas brings a back in Jahiem White who just ran for 139 yards and three scores, and the Roadrunners just gave up 339 rushing yards.
The rest of Week 11: Memphis visits South Florida on Thursday (7 p.m. CT, ESPN). On Saturday, it’s East Carolina at Charlotte, UAB at Temple, Tulane at Rice and Florida Atlantic at Tulsa. We’ll have the full Week 11 preview and updated Snap Count Power Rankings this week. Want more on the league’s quarterbacks? Revisit our QB Draft Board.
Sources
- GoUTSA: UTSA winning streak snapped in Thursday night setback at Florida Atlantic
- American Conference: Week 10 football postgame notes and standings
- Navy Athletics: Gutierrez accounts for six touchdowns as Navy holds off Temple, 42-35
- ESPN/AP: FAU 60, UTSA 29 recap
- ESPN box scores: ECU-USF, Tulsa-Tulane, Charlotte-UAB, Temple-Navy, Rice-North Texas, Air Force-Army
- UTSA Football on X and UNT Football on X
Homecoming, first place and the Mean Green are all on the line next Saturday. Want every Roadrunners update leading up to it? Follow @SASnapcount210 on X.