The Teams

The American Athletic Conference consists of 12 prestigious institutions: the University of Central Florida, the University of Cincinnati, East Carolina University, the University of Connecticut, the University of Houston, the University of Memphis, the U.S. Naval Academy (football only), the University of South Florida, Southern Methodist University, Temple University, Tulane University, University of Tulsa and Wichita State University (non-football).

In 2018, The American once again saw a member school claim a spot in a New Year’s Six bowl as UCF capped a 12-win season in the PlayStation Fiesta Bowl. It was the the fourth time in six seasons that The American placed its champion in a New Year’s bowl. UCF was ranked No. 11 in the final Associated Press poll, while Cincinnati was No. 23 in the final coaches’ poll.

The 2017 football season saw The American enjoy unprecedented success as UCF finished as the only undefeated team in the nation, and the first in the previous four college football seasons, capping a 13-0 campaign with a win against Auburn in the Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. UCF claimed a national championship as the No. 1-ranked team in the Colley Matrix and was ranked No. 6 in the final Associated Press poll.

Individual teams in The American have enjoyed some of their best seasons in program history as members of the conference. UCF has finished in the national top 10 twice in six seasons as a conference member – in 2013 and 2017. Houston went 13-1 in the 2015 football season, setting a school record for wins, while Navy won a program-record 11 games in its first season in the conference, also in 2015.

Memphis, which had not won 10 games in a season since 1938, has registered two 10-win seasons in the last four years (2015, 2017), while Temple enjoyed its first 10-win season in school history in 2015. USF finished in the top 25 for the first two times in program history (2016, 2017). Cincinnati registered its third 11-win season in program history in 2018.The American holds media rights partnerships with ESPN and CBS Sports which give the conference outstanding national exposure on the two industry leaders in sports television.

American Athletic Conference teams have access to the pinnacle of college football’s postseason structure. An American representative would be chosen for the College Football Playoff semifinals if it is among the top four teams in the CFP selection committee’s final ranking. Otherwise, the league would place its champion in a New Year’s Bowl if it is ranked higher than the champions of Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, the Mountain West Conference and the Sun Belt Conference.

Additionally, The American holds primary or secondary partnerships with nine bowls for the final year of its current six-year cycle, ensuring multiple annual matchups against the nation’s top conferences and providing desirable postseason destinations to member institutions.

With each passing season, the Sun Belt Conference continues to challenge itself, and its competitors, in all aspects of intercollegiate athletics. Not content with being simply the youngest football conference in the Football Bowl Subdivision, the conference has shown that it can rise each and every season that comes along. And since the birth of the league as a FBS member in 2001, the evidence is clear that the conference is indeed rising above competitors and peer conferences.

The league features 12 teams – Appalachian State University, University of Arkansas at Little Rock, Arkansas State University, Coastal Carolina University, Georgia Southern University, Georgia State University, University of Louisiana, University of Louisiana-Monroe, University of South Alabama, University of Texas Arlington, Texas State University and Troy University.

The Sun Belt has earned due respect in the FBS over the last several years by consistently beating teams from peer conferences, winning bowl games and upsetting Power Five teams. In fact, the 2018 football season is direct evidence of the Sun Belt’s success as the conference broke its record for non-conference wins in a single season. The 24 total wins eclipsed the previous mark of 22 set in 2016. Additionally, the Sun Belt’s 21 regular season non-conference wins broke the record of 19 that was set in 2013. The Sun Belt also had the best non-conference win percentage of any Group of Five Conference this past season.

Individual opportunities also extend beyond the league. The Sun Belt had 40 players on active NFL rosters during the past season, with representation on 23 of 32 NFL clubs. The league recently became one of seven conferences nationwide to have back-to-back first-round selections in the NBA Draft when Louisiana’s Elfrid Payton went No. 10 overall to the Orlando Magic and Georgia State’s R. J. Hunter was the No. 28 pick of the Boston Celtics the following year.The Sun Belt has gone 11-6 in bowl games the past three years, which makes the Sun Belt’s winning percentage the best among all conferences. In fact, over the past four years no one ranks higher in bowl winning percentage than the Sun Belt.

Just as important as on-field success, the Sun Belt’s commitment to academic excellence remains a league symbol. The league’s record book for grade point averages and academic honors is a constantly-changing document, seemingly with each year’s success outdoing the previous year. This past spring, a record 23 league programs were recognized for outstanding performance in the classroom, with those teams earning NCAA Public Recognition Awards for APR scores in the top 10 percent nationally. It was the fourth consecutive year the Sun Belt has broken or tied its record for teams honored.

With the departing of longtime commissioner Karl Benson, the Sun Belt is now being guided by Keith Gill. Gill is an Orlando, Fla., native and has earned a tremendous reputation throughout his athletics career. He was also tabbed as the 2015 Under Armour Athletic Director of the Year by NACDA, while at the University of Richmond.