Is the AAC Ready for Primetime?

It was a fairly quiet Wednesday morning in the world of social media. Then, suddenly, Twitter feeds starting filling up with news from AAC football programs, coaches, beat writers, and fans.

The conference announced days, times, and (most importantly) television information for about two dozen games in the 2016 season.

Thursday (9/29): UConn @ Houston will kickoff at 8PM on ESPN

— ThisIsUConnCountry (@UConnSN) June 15, 2016

Under the Lights! #USF 's 1st two games of 2016 – Towson (9.3), N. Illinois (9.10) – set for 7 p.m. kicks @RJStadium pic.twitter.com/4U8YRh8vLl

— USF Football (@USFFootball) June 15, 2016

In all the conference released details for 26 games that weren’t already scheduled (like the Houston/Oklahoma game). Take a look:

Notice any patterns? By my count there are 12 games on that list getting picked up by ESPN or ESPN2. We’re not talking about having to get out your phones to watch games on ESPN3 (although there are several like that on the list), we’re talking about nationwide and primetime exposure coming to the AAC.

For example, the Louisville at Houston game will be under the lights at TDECU Stadium for a nationwide ESPN audience. Last year the game, at Louisville, was an 11:00 AM kickoff. Houston, UConn, Cincinnati, SMU, Temple, USF, Navy, Tulsa, UCF… that’s 75 percent of the conference getting at least one game in primetime on the ESPN family of networks.

So that’s what happens when your conference has three teams ranked in the top 25, has a quarterback drafted to (someday) replace Peyton Manning, and have a team slated to be in the top 15 of most (if not all) 2016 preseason polls. And they may not be done. The rest of the schedule will be determined by the conference’s “12-day window” – allowing networks to decide during the season if they want to pick up games.

The AAC had a banner year in 2015, and this schedule is certainly a reflection of that success. The conference put itself out there as the premiere “group of 5” conference, and to the victor(s) go the spoils.

But, to borrow an old “Saturday Night Live” phrase, is the AAC a ready for primetime player?

There is no doubt Houston is poised to have another historic season. The Cougars have the coach, the quarterback, and the swagger of a top team the nation won’t want to ignore. But then what?

Cincinnati will have Gunner Kiel back, but he’s not guaranteed the starting job. Paxton Lynch is gone. Keenan Reynolds will be serving our country if he doesn’t make it in the NFL. 17 members of the all-conference team were seniors while two juniors jumped into the draft. The point is, this conference doesn’t have a lot of known star power left from the 2015 campaign.

That isn’t to say there won’t be great story lines. How will Memphis fare without Lynch and with a new head coach? Speaking of new coaches, Scott Frost brings a new level of intrigue to UCF. Will we see a team like USF burst onto the national scene like Temple did a year ago? Is UConn playing for a possible spot in the Big 12?

These questions will be incredibly important as the AAC tries to not become a one-year wonder. This is the type of television exposure you want every year, not just an anomaly following a buzz-worthy season.

The AAC and its teams have earned this position and will have the opportunity to prove to the networks, and the country, this is just the beginning. Will they take advantage?