AAC Week 8 Preview: UTSA Heads to Tulane, Army Visits Tulsa Friday Night
For the first time all season, UTSA leaves the state of Texas. The 6-1 Roadrunners are the only team still unbeaten in American Conference play, and they’re taking that 3-0 league record to New Orleans for a Saturday night game at Yulman Stadium. Tulane hasn’t lost there since the start of 2025 (UTSA Athletics; Tulane game notes).
That’s the main event. But Week 8 has five league games spread across three nights, and one is already in the books: Memphis rallied past East Carolina 41-34 in overtime on Thursday (recap below). Army visits Tulsa tonight, and on Saturday North Texas puts its unbeaten league mark on the line at Navy. UAB, USF, Charlotte and Temple are idle. If you missed it, here’s our Week 7 recap and power rankings. All times are Central.
UTSA (6-1, 3-0) at Tulane (3-3, 1-1): The Roadrunners hit the road
Saturday, 7 p.m. CT, ESPNU, from Yulman Stadium. Ted Emrich and Fozzy Whittaker have the call, and AM 760 The Ticket has it on radio in San Antonio (UTSA Athletics; American Conference).
UTSA is off to its best seven-game start since the 7-0 run in 2021. The Roadrunners are bowl eligible for a seventh straight year and are receiving votes in the AFCA Coaches Poll. They’ve also made a habit of late drama. Texas State (31-26), USF (31-24) and last week’s 38-34 win over Navy all came down to fourth-quarter game-winning drives (UTSA Athletics).
Now for the bad news: Tulane is a different team at home. The Green Wave have won 10 straight at Yulman, including a 3-0 mark there this season. All three losses came on the road: at Duke (17-3), at Kansas State (31-20) and at Army (20-17). Last Friday they forced six turnovers and recorded seven sacks in a 31-17 win over Memphis, which earned Kevin Adams III the league’s Defensive Player of the Week award (Tulane game notes; American Conference).
UTSA leads the series 2-1 and won 48-26 last season. Tulane’s lone win in the series came in New Orleans in 2023 (29-16). First-year coach Will Hall has used two quarterbacks: Kadin Semonza has five starts, and Trace Johnson started against Memphis (UTSA game notes; Tulane game notes).
Players to watch
- Owen McCown, QB, UTSA: 153-of-220 for 1,578 yards and 10 touchdowns. His .695 completion rate ranks third in the American. He threw for 359 yards and three touchdowns against Navy (UTSA Athletics).
- A’Marion Peterson, RB, UTSA: a team-best nine touchdowns (eight rushing, fourth in the league) and 7.3 yards per carry, plus the 41-yard game-winning catch against Navy.
- Will Henderson III, RB, UTSA: 562 rushing yards at 5.98 a carry, behind an offensive line that made the Joe Moore Award midseason honor roll.
- Kevin Adams III, DB, Tulane: 54 tackles. Against Memphis he had nine tackles, two interceptions and a fumble recovery (Tulane game notes).
- Dickson Agu, LB, Tulane: a team-high 56 tackles.
The key number is ball security. UTSA has lost only three turnovers all season, fifth-fewest nationally and second-fewest in the American, and Tulane just took the ball away six times in one night. Punter Caile Hogan (42.8 average, three inside the 20 against Navy) was named the league’s Special Teams Player of the Week, and field position could matter in this one (UTSA game notes).
Army (4-2, 3-1) at Tulsa (4-3, 1-2): Friday night revenge spot
Tonight (Friday), 7:30 p.m. CT, ESPN2, from H.A. Chapman Stadium on Military Appreciation Night. Courtney Lyle and Rene Ingoglia are on the call (Tulsa Athletics).
Army leads the FBS in rushing at 357.5 yards per game. It ran for 479 yards and eight touchdowns in last week’s 56-24 win over FAU, and it has turned the ball over only twice all year (Army game notes).
Tulsa won 26-25 at West Point last year by scoring the final 12 points. The Golden Hurricane come in off a 38-17 win at Rice, have forced at least one turnover in all seven games and rank first in the American with 15 takeaways. Their +11 turnover margin is tied for third nationally. This is also Tulsa’s first home game since Oct. 1 (Tulsa Athletics).
Players to watch
- Cale Hellums, QB, Army: 719 rushing yards, 13 rushing touchdowns (second nationally) and 119.8 yards per game. He ran for a career-high 223 against Tulane and tied a program record with five touchdowns against FAU (Army game notes).
- Baylor Hayes, QB, Tulsa: 1,081 passing yards, eight touchdowns and one interception. He was 20-of-27 for 249 yards and three touchdowns at Rice (Tulsa Athletics).
- Kyran Duhon, DL, Tulsa: leads the American with six sacks.
- Chris Thompson Jr., LB, Tulsa: 66 tackles, second in the league.
North Texas (4-2, 2-0) at Navy (2-4, 1-3): Mean Green’s air show at Homecoming
Saturday, 2:30 p.m. CT, CBS Sports Network, from Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium in Annapolis (Navy Athletics).
North Texas is the only other unbeaten team in league play, and it’s coming off a bye. The Mean Green rank third nationally in total offense (533.8 yards per game) and fifth in scoring (42.2). Their only losses are to Indiana and Texas State. They also beat Navy 31-17 last season. Navy has played five straight one-score games and gone 1-4 in them, including last week’s 38-34 loss at the Alamodome. The Mids have, however, won eight straight at home, and it’s Homecoming (Navy Athletics).
Players to watch
- Tayven Jackson, QB, North Texas: 143-of-198 (72.2%) for 1,868 yards, 15 touchdowns and four interceptions (Navy game notes).
- Jahiem White, RB, North Texas: 687 rushing yards and nine touchdowns at 7.2 yards per carry.
- Jackson Gutierrez, QB, Navy: eight rushing touchdowns and 107.3 rushing yards per game. He ran for 139 yards and two touchdowns at UTSA, and his 92-yard touchdown pass to Jordan Collins was the longest pass play in Navy history.
Rice (1-6, 0-3) at FAU (4-2, 1-1): Homecoming in Boca
Saturday, 11 a.m. CT, ESPNU, from Flagler Credit Union Stadium in Boca Raton (American Conference).
FAU is 3-0 at home, and this is its Homecoming. The series is tied 3-3, and FAU won the last meeting 27-21 at Rice. FAU throws for 307.7 yards per game, ninth nationally. Rice has lost six straight but has a quarterback who can break a game open with his legs (FAU Athletics; FAU game notes).
Players to watch
- Easton Messer, WR, FAU: No. 1 among active FBS players in career receptions (248) (FAU Athletics).
- Kelby Valsin, WR, FAU: leads the American in receiving yards (601), receiving touchdowns (6) and receptions per game (7.8).
- Caden Veltkamp, QB, FAU: leads the league with 26.8 completions per game (FAU game notes).
- Jacurri Brown, QB, Rice: 154 rushing yards and two touchdowns against Tulsa (scoring runs of 50 and 78 yards). It was his third 100-yard game of the season, the first time a Rice quarterback has done that since 2003 (Rice Athletics).
Final: Memphis 41, East Carolina 34 (OT)
Thursday night at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, Memphis won in overtime (ESPN box score; Memphis Athletics recap; ECU Athletics recap).
Memphis trailed 16-3 at halftime after ECU’s Noah Perez went 3-for-3 on field goals in the first half, then outscored the Pirates 31-18 after the break. ECU forced overtime when Mitch Griffis hit Landon Sides for a 20-yard touchdown with 1:30 left to tie it 34-34. In overtime, Marcus Stokes ran it in from 5 yards out, and Ellis Ellis Jr. picked off Griffis in the end zone on ECU’s possession to end it (ESPN play-by-play). Memphis moves to 6-2 (3-1 American), and ECU falls to 3-4 (1-2).
- Marcus Stokes, QB, Memphis: 29-of-43 for 320 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions, plus two rushing touchdowns, including the game-winner.
- Jemyri Davis, WR, Memphis: seven catches for 91 yards and two touchdowns.
- Landon Sides, WR, ECU: seven catches for 130 yards and a touchdown (ESPN box score).
American Conference standings
| Team | American | Overall |
|---|---|---|
| UTSA | 3-0 | 6-1 |
| North Texas | 2-0 | 4-2 |
| Memphis | 3-1 | 6-2 |
| Army | 3-1 | 4-2 |
| UAB | 2-1 | 4-3 |
| Florida Atlantic | 1-1 | 4-2 |
| Tulane | 1-1 | 3-3 |
| South Florida | 1-2 | 5-2 |
| Tulsa | 1-2 | 4-3 |
| Temple | 1-2 | 2-5 |
| Charlotte | 1-2 | 1-6 |
| East Carolina | 1-2 | 3-4 |
| Navy | 1-3 | 2-4 |
| Rice | 0-3 | 1-6 |
Standings as of Friday, Oct. 23, including Memphis’ 41-34 overtime win over East Carolina on Thursday (American Conference; FAU game notes; ESPN box score).
Snap Count picks (our opinion)
These are our opinions, nothing more. ECU-Memphis is already final (Memphis won 41-34 in overtime on Thursday), so it’s not on the list.
- UTSA 27, Tulane 24: Yulman will be loud, but this UTSA team keeps finding a way in the fourth quarter. We’ll ride McCown and the run game.
- Army 31, Tulsa 24: Tulsa’s takeaway streak against an Army offense that almost never turns it over. We’ll take the triple option.
- Upset alert: Navy 34, North Texas 27: The Mean Green can score with anybody, but Navy at home on Homecoming is no joke. We think the Mids grind the clock, keep that offense on the sideline and hand North Texas its first league loss.
- FAU 35, Rice 20: Messer and Valsin at Homecoming.
Sources
- American Conference: Week 8 times and TV
- American Conference: Week 7 postgame notebook
- UTSA Athletics: UTSA set for Saturday night matchup at Tulane
- UTSA game notes vs. Tulane (PDF)
- Tulane game notes vs. UTSA (PDF)
- Army game notes at Tulsa (PDF)
- Tulsa Athletics: Tulsa welcomes Army
- Navy Athletics: Navy hosts North Texas
- FAU Athletics: Game notes
- Rice Athletics: Tulsa outlasts Rice
- Memphis Athletics: Tigers take down East Carolina 41-34 in overtime
- ECU Athletics: ECU falls at Memphis in overtime, 41-34
- ESPN: East Carolina vs. Memphis box score (Oct. 22, 2026)
UTSA gets its first road test outside Texas in New Orleans on Saturday night. Want more American Conference coverage all week long? Follow @SASnapcount210 on X.