In college athletics you have the Men and the boys. Now that the five power conferences have created a divide it has left the smaller conferences with less money behind, but the American Athletic Conference has made its way and survived to fight with the men. This list gives reason to why the AAC should sit at the grown ups table or the Power Six.
1.The University of Connecticut women's basketball team has won four straight NCAA Women's Basketball Championships, while their head coach Geno Auriemma is 11-0 in NCAA women's championship games.
2.The American Athletic conference (AAC) should also be considered a "Power Five" conference because of their recent successes on the gridiron. Throughout the past couple of years the AAC has been progressing in college football with numerous victories against "Power Five" programs. Some notable victories from the past year being:
American Conference Team"Power Five" Conference TeamFinal Score
Memphis TigersKansas Jay Hawks (Big 12)55-23
Temple OwlsPenn State Nittany Lions (Big Ten)27-10
Navy Midshipmen Pittsburgh Panthers (ACC)44-28
Houston Cougars#9 Florida State Seminoles (ACC)38-24
East Carolina PiratesVirginia Tech Hokies (ACC)35-28
These are only a few final scores with the AAC going head-to-head with a "Power Five" program, and the AAC team coming out on top. The AAC's recent success in College Football is undeniable. College Football is the most highly profitable collegiate sport Taking that into account I think you would have to be nuts not to include the AAC at least in the conversation of being a "Power Conference."
3.On top of the AAC's recent success in college football, it's possible that their future could be even brighter. According to Campus Insider the AAC's Houston Cougars are expected to be ranked in the top 10 in this year's preseason power rankings, coming in at #8. Houston had a very successful 2015-16 football season, with the Cougars finishing it off with a win against the ACC's Florida State Seminoles.
4.In 2014 the American Athletic Conference won both the men and women's NCAA Basketball Tournament when UCONN won both championships. The conference also had a team win a BCS New Years Eve bowl game when UCF beat Baylor.
5.In 2014 the American Conference lead the Group of 5 conferences with the conference averaging just fewer than 30,000 fans in attendance. East Carolina and the University of Central Florida were the leaders in attendance for the Group of 5.
6.Every school in the American Athletic Conference has decided to pay the full cost of attendance to help pay for the secondary expenses student athletes have to deal with such as travel and money for meals. This concept was designed for the Power 5 to get another leg up on the G5.
7.In 2015 the American Athletic Conference sent four of its eight baseball teams to the College World Series. These teams include Houston, University of South Florida, Tulane, and East Carolina University. Houston hosted one of the sixteen regional rounds.
8.In the 2016 season, the American Athletic Conference ranked sixth in number of teams that received bids for the NCAA Basketball Tournament, receiving 3 bids total. Only three less than the top 4 conferences. These universities included UConn, Temple, and Cincinnati.
9.In 2014 the American Athletic Conference had a player chosen third overall in the NFL Draft, when the Jacksonville Jaguars drafted Blake Bortles.
10.Even with numerous teams from the AAC considered to be ranked in the top 25 this preseason- Cincinnati, Memphis, Houston, Navy and Temple- there are still a number of teams on the outside looking in. All that can be done at this point is to find a big TV, grab some snacks, and get ready for an exciting 2016-17 season of AAC football!
Mike Aresco, the Commissioner of the American Athletic Conference has referred to his conference as the sixth power conference numerous times and why not? After reading our reasons, hopefully you agree with Mr. Aresco!
Share This Article
