American Conference Honors: Our Proper End of Season Conference Awards
Back in early November, we made our bold way-too-early predictions in regards to how the conference would turn out. How close were we? Let's find out.
The AAC MVP
If there was one thing we got right in November, it was our choice for the American Conference MVP. Our pick of North Texas quarterback Drew Mestemaker still holds true. At the time of writing the previous article, Mestemaker had an impressive 2468-yards, 21 TDs, and 4 interceptions on 68.2% completion percentage.
Where does he stand now? Well, he has climbed higher to a staggering 4129-yards, 31 TDs, and only 7 interceptions and an even higher 70.2% completion rate. Mestemaker managed to surpass even our expectations, reaching incredible heights this season.
Mestemaker only threw one interception across all 11 wins this season, with his other six coming in the Mean Green’s two losses on the season, including the AAC Championship game.
His individual accomplishments are not the only things worth mentioning though, as he lead his team to an 11-1 regular season and its first AAC Championship Game appearance. However, they would fall to Tulane, 34-21 in Yulman Stadium.
Starting the Climb
Continuing what we got right, the base of the mountain is home to the Charlotte 49ers.
The niners finished the season at 1-11, with their one win coming against Monmouth back in September.
It’s been a disappointing season for the niners; they finished with the worst offense in the conference, only averaging 285.8-yards a game. Their defense wasn’t much better, finishing third from the bottom of the conference.
Halfway There…
Halfway up our mountain lies our first incorrect prediction. In November, we said that the South Florida Bulls would finish as the “middle of the pack” team. However, we couldn’t be more wrong.
In regards to the Bulls, they’d finish fourth in the conference, which is slightly better than we predicted. What lies in the middle of the conference is actually our pick to be at the top of the conference this year, Memphis.
The Tigers would start 6-0 before a mighty collapse befell them. Memphis would go on to finish the rest of the season 2-4, including losing their last three games. The teams they’d lose to included UAB, Tulane, ECU, and Navy, with the latter three coming in their last games of the season.
We don’t think anybody could’ve predicted the outcome of Memphis’ season. The Tigers were the only team that had been ranked in the AP Top 25 when we released the previous article, and while they had dropped a game to UAB, they would win the following two games against South Florida and Rice.
We Made It!
Here at the top of the conference sits the Tulane Green Wave.
The Wave got out to a tough start, playing three Power Four opponents. They’d go 2-1, getting wins against Northwestern and the ACC champion Duke, while dropping one game to now sixth ranked Ole Miss.
The Wave would hit another wall when they lost to UTSA, 48-26. However, the Wave would win the rest of their games this season, including a massive win against then-22nd ranked Memphis when it was all on the line for the Green Wave.
The Wave would round out their season at 10-2, with an AAC Championship win over aforementioned 11-1 North Texas, birthing their first ever playoff appearance. Tulane is set to have a rematch with Ole Miss on December 20th in the first round of the College Football Playoffs.
Tulane has come a long way this season, and when all hope seemed lost after a brutal loss to UTSA, but the Wave wouldn’t let that stop them from having the season they desired. That season ended with a satisfying AAC conference win after losing the last two conference title bouts. A playoff rematch with Ole Miss awaits them on next Saturday, so the Wave still have a bit to go before they call it quits. Nevertheless, it’s a satisfying way to not just end the season, but to send off Jon Sumrall three states over to Florida.
Colin has been following football for over a decade. Growing up supporting LSU naturally led him to be a massive Saints fan. He is a regular guest on the Ball Don’t Lie podcast on WBOK-AM in New Orleans as well as Apple Podcasts, where they discuss the NFL, College Football, and the NBA.