Cincinnati Picked as the AAC Favorite

AAC media day has seen the Cincinnati Bearcats come away as the favorite to win the league. Out of the 30 first place votes, Cincinnati received 17. The second highest first place vote getter was Central Florida, the current and only league champion, with 7 votes. The other 6 first places votes went to the Houston Cougars.

Cincinnati was not the clear favorite despite the high first place vote totals. Cincinnati had 311 points to 296 points for UCF. The first place votes were also what separated Houston from 4th place East Carolina, 268 points to 262 points. Those four are expected to be the class of the league. Of course, Cincinnati doesn’t play UCF this year and Houston doesn’t play East Carolina. Cincinnati’s season ends by hosting Houston, UCF’s ends by traveling to East Carolina. UCF also visits Houston. East Carolina will visit Cincinnati. The favorable home schedule had to be a reason that the Bearcats were voted top Cats in the American.

The rest of the league shook out as followed. SMU and USF were a point away from each other, 158 to 157, for 5th and 6th respectively. Memphis was 7th, Temple 8th. Connecticut and Tulane tied for 9th with 98 points. Tulsa brought up the rear with only 94 points.

If Cincinnati is going to be in this league for the foreseeable future, might as well be the top gun. The target is on Cincinnati, let’s see the boys bring home the title.

Here is the full release from the American.

NEWPORT, R.I. –  The Cincinnati Bearcats have been one of the most consistent programs in college football in the last decade. It should be no surprise, then, that Cincinnati has been tabbed as the favorite in the 2014 American Athletic Conference preseason football media poll.

The Bearcats received 17 of a possible 30 first-place votes and had 311 points in the preseason voting of media representatives. UCF, which went 8-0 in The American last season, received seven first-place votes and was second in the poll with 296 points, while Houston had six first-place votes and took third 268 points.

Cincinnati has won at least nine games six times in the last seven years and has reached double digits in wins five times in that stretch. The Bearcats went 9-4 in 2013 – the first year at Cincinnati for veteran head coach Tommy Tuberville, who has 16 starters returning. The Bearcat offense returns starters at quarterback, running back and wide receiver and has an anchor on the offensive line in the form of offensive tackle Eric Lefeld, who was a unanimous all-conference selection last year. The defense loses three all-conference players from last year, but has veterans across the board, including second-team all-conference defensive end Silverberry Mouhon (9.5 sacks in 2013).

UCF was the runner-up to Cincinnati in the 2014 preseason poll, but the Knights were the outright American Athletic Conference champions in 2013. UCF went 12-1 last season, capped by a 52-42 win against Big 12 champion Baylor in the Fiesta Bowl, and finished the season ranked No. 10 in the Associated Press poll. Head coach George O’Leary has 17 starters returning from that team, but will have to replace the 2013 American Athletic Conference Offensive Player of the Year as quarterback Blake Bortles declared for the NFL Draft and was selected with the third pick. Linebacker Terrance Plummer, the Defensive MVP of the Fiesta Bowl, leads a group of nine returning defensive starters.

Houston went 8-5 overall and was 5-3 in the American Athletic Conference last year and has the benefit of 19 returning starters and the brand new TDECU Stadium for third-year head coach Tony Levine. While Houston made its name on offense in recent years, it was defense that carried the Cougars last season as Houston led the nation with 43 turnovers gained in 2013. Safety Trevon Stewart had four interceptions and six fumble recoveries on his own and will lead a defense that returns 10 starters. Quarterback John O’Korn was the 2013 American Athletic Conference Rookie of the Year after he threw for 3,117 yards and 28 touchdowns.

East Carolina was fourth in the preseason poll with 262 points, just six points behind Houston. Coach Ruffin McNeill led the Pirates to a 10-3 season last year, including a win against Ohio in the Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl, but East Carolina has just 11 starters back from that team and faces  a schedule that includes two top-10 teams from last year (UCF, South Carolina).  Quarterback Shane Carden, who ranked second nationally in completion percentage last season (70.5 percent) returns after he was named the Conference USA Most Valuable Player.

SMU edged USF for fifth in the poll as the Mustangs had 158 points to the Bulls’ 157. SMU saw a streak of four consecutive postseason appearances end with last year’s 5-7 season, but coach June Jones has never had back-to-back losing seasons in 15 years as a head coach. Wide receiver Darius Joseph had 108 receptions last year, good for second in The American, and was eighth nationally in receptions per game (8.6).

USF was sixth in the poll, one point behind SMU. The Bulls went 2-10 in Willie Taggart’s first year in Tampa, but return 16 starters that will be augmented by a recruiting class that was projected as the strongest in The American. Wide receiver Andre Davis returns after he set a school record with 735 receiving yards, despite having four different starting quarterbacks deliver the ball last year.

Memphis was tabbed for seventh in the preseason poll with 133 points. Coach Justin Fuente welcomes 18 starters back from last year, including eight from a defense that ranked 12th nationally against the run last year. Defensive end Martin Ifedi is a contender for national honors after he registered 11.5 sacks last year, while cornerback Bobby McCain led The American with six interceptions despite missing three games due to injury.

Temple was eighth in the poll with 105 points. The Owls went 2-10 overall and 1-7 in The American in the first year for head coach Matt Rhule, a record that belied how competitive Temple was in 2013. The Owls have just seven seniors on their 2014 roster, but have no shortage of top-end talent. Quarterback P.J. Walker ranked third in The American in pass efficiency (150.8) as a true freshman, trailing only Teddy Bridgewater and Blake Bortles. Linebacker Tyler Matakevich led the nation in solo tackles (8.8 per game) and is a strong candidate for national honors.

UConn and Tulane tied for ninth in the poll with 98 points each. The Huskies welcome first-year head coach Bob Diaco, the former Notre Dame defensive coordinator, who inherits a team that won its last three games of the 2013 season. Wide receiver Geremy Davis is a standout on offense following a season in which he registered 71 catches for 1,085 yards.

Tulane has 14 returning starters from last year’s team that went 7-6 as Curtis Johnson’s squad improved by five wins from the previous season. The Green Wave will christen the new Yulman Stadium this season as All-America cornerback Lorenzo Doss leads Tulane against seven teams that played in bowl games last season.

Tulsa was pegged for 11th in the poll with 94 points, but the Golden Hurricane was just 11 points away from the No. 8 spot in the ranking. Recent history suggests that Tulsa will outperform its projection – the Hurricane won the Conference USA title just two years ago and Bill Blankenship has 19 returning starters back from last year’s squad. Defensive back Michael Mudoh, who had 133 tackles last year, leads a group of 10 returning starters on defense.