| 2022 American Athletic Conference football season | |
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| League: | NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision |
| Sport: | Football |
| Duration: | September 1, 2022 - January 31, 2023 |
| No Of Teams: | 11 |
| Tv: | ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, and CBS Sports Network |
| Draft: | 2023 NFL draft |
| Draft Link: | 2023 NFL draft |
| Top Pick: | WR Rashee Rice, SMU |
| Picked By: | Kansas City Chiefs, 55th overall |
| Season: | Regular season |
| Season Champs: | Tulane |
| Second Place: | UCF |
| Mvp Link: | American Athletic Conference football individual awards |
| Finals: | American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game |
| Finals Link: | 2022 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game |
| Finals Champ: | Tulane |
| Finals Runner-Up: | UCF |
| Finals Mvp: | Michael Pratt, QB, Tulane |
| Prevseason Link: | 2021 American Athletic Conference football season |
| Prevseason Year: | 2021 |
| Nextseason Link: | 2023 American Athletic Conference football season |
| Nextseason Year: | 2023 |
The 2022 American Athletic Conference football season is the 31st NCAA Division I FBS Football season of the American Athletic Conference (The American). The season is the tenth since the former Big East Conference dissolved and became the American Athletic Conference and the ninth season of the College Football Playoff in place. The American is considered a member of the Group of Five (G5) together with Conference USA, the MAC, Mountain West Conference and the Sun Belt Conference. In September 2021, Cincinnati, Houston, and UCF accepted invitations to join the Big 12 Conference.[1] The three schools had been contractually required to remain with The American through 2024, but the conference and its departing members reached a buyout agreement that allowed those schools to leave in 2023.[2]
Cincinnati finished with a 13 - 1 (8 - 0 AAC) record, winning the AAC Championship Game against Houston. It was the second consecutive AAC championship and third consecutive AAC Championship game appearance in program history. The Bearcats were ranked fourth in the final College Football Playoff rankings, thus becoming the first Group of Five team to make the playoffs.[3] After the Bearcats loss to Alabama in the Cotton Bowl, Cincinnati finished fourth in the final AP Poll marking the best finish in program history.
Seven AAC teams participated in bowl games during the 2021 season; the league finished 4 - 1.
Tulsa defeated Old Dominion 30 - 17 in the Myrtle Beach Bowl. With the win, Tulsa concluded their season with an 7 - 6 record.[4] With the win, Tulsa achieved their first bowl win since the 2016 Miami Beach Bowl[5] In the 2021 Gasparilla Bowl, UCF defeated Florida 29 - 17, behind standout performances by wide receiver, and game MVP, Ryan O'Keefe and running back Isiah Bowser.[6] In the Birmingham Bowl, No. 20 Houston defeated Auburn 17 - 13.[7] Cincinnati was selected to participate in the Cotton Bowl as part of the College Football Playoff against Alabama. The Bearcats lost to the Crimson Tide 27 - 6.[8]
Three bowl games involving American teams were cancelled due to COVID-19: Memphis was slated to play in the Hawaii Bowl versus Hawaii. Hawaii had to withdraw from the bowl due to a shortage of available players, stemming from a combination of a COVID-19 outbreak within the team, players already out with injury, and players who transferred away from the school at the conclusion of the regular season.[9] East Carolina was slated to play in the Military Bowl versus Boston College, the game was cancelled after Boston College said it did not have enough players to field a team because of coronavirus issues, season-ending injuries, opt-outs and transfers.[10] SMU was originally slated to play in the Fenway Bowl versus Virginia. Virginia had to withdraw from the game due to a number of COVID cases impacting its roster.[11]
| Cincinnati | 41 | 42 | ||
| East Carolina | 78 | 84 | ||
| Houston | 52 | 49 | ||
| Memphis | 47 | 62 | ||
| Navy | 92 | 104 | ||
| SMU | 85 | 80 | ||
| South Florida | 83 | 87 | ||
| Temple | 108 | |||
| Tulane | 68 | 74 | ||
| Tulsa | 111 | |||
| UCF | 53 | 52 |
The 2022 American Media day was held virtually on July 28, 2022[15]
The American Athletic Conference preseason media poll was released at AAC Media Day on July 28, 2022.[16]
| Media poll | |||
| 1 | Houston | 243 (7) | |
| 2 | Cincinnati | 242 (10) | |
| 3 | UCF | 225 (7) | |
| 4 | SMU | 187 | |
| 5 | Memphis | 162 | |
| 6 | East Carolina | 157 | |
| 7 | Tulane | 115 | |
| 8 | Tulsa | 93 | |
| 9 | South Florida | 71 | |
| 10 | Navy | 61 | |
| 11 | Temple | 28 | |
| Lott Trophy | none | [17] | ||
| Dodd Trophy | Luke Fickell | Cincinnati | HC | [18] |
| Maxwell Award | Keaton Mitchell | East Carolina | RB | [19] |
| Clayton Tune | Houston | QB | ||
| Nathaniel Dell | Houston | WR | ||
| Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | ||
| Michael Pratt | Tulane | QB | ||
| Davey O'Brien Award | Gerry Bohanon | South Florida | QB | [20] |
| Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | ||
| Clayton Tune | Houston | QB | ||
| Doak Walker Award | Isaiah Bowser | UCF | RB | [21] |
| Keaton Mitchell | East Carolina | RB | ||
| Johnny Richardson | UCF | RB | ||
| Tyjae Spears | Tulane | RB | ||
| Biletnikoff Award | Nathaniel Dell | Houston | WR | [22] |
| Nick Mardner | Cincinnati | WR | ||
| Ryan O'Keefe | UCF | WR | ||
| Xavier Weaver | South Florida | WR | ||
| John Mackey Award | Christian Trahan | Houston | TE | [23] |
| James Tyrick | Tulane | TE | ||
| Josh Whyle | Cincinnati | TE | ||
| Ryan Jones | East Carolina | TE | ||
| Leonard Taylor | Cincinnati | TE | ||
| KeMore Gamble | UCF | TE | ||
| Rimington Trophy | Jacob Likes | Memphis | C | [24] |
| Sincere Haynesworth | Tulane | C | ||
| Matt Lee | UCF | C | ||
| Butkus Award | Donavan Mutin | Houston | LB | [25] |
| Deshawn Pace | Cincinnati | LB | ||
| Ivan Pace | Cincinnati | LB | ||
| Isaac Slade-Matautia | SMU | LB | ||
| Dorian Williams | Tulane | LB | ||
| Jim Thorpe Award | Davonte Brown | UCF | CB | [26] |
| Quindell Johnson | Memphis | S | ||
| Gervarrius Owens | Houston | S | ||
| Bronko Nagurski Trophy | Elijah Chatman | SMU | DT | [27] |
| Antonio Grier | South Florida | LB | ||
| Quindell Johnson | Memphis | S | ||
| Gervarrius Owens | Houston | S | ||
| Deshawn Pace | Cincinnati | LB | ||
| Ivan Pace | Cincinnati | LB | ||
| Divaad Wilson | UCF | S | ||
| Outland Trophy | Elijah Chatman | SMU | DT | [28] |
| Sincere Haynesworth | Tulane | C | ||
| Dylan O'Quinn | Cincinnati | OT | ||
| Patrick Paul | Houston | OT | ||
| Lokahi Pauole | UCF | G | ||
| Jake Renfro | Cincinnati | C | ||
| Lou Groza Award | Ryan Coe | Cincinnati | K | [29] |
| Owen Daffer | East Carolina | K | ||
| Zack Long | Tulsa | K | ||
| Spencer Shrader | South Florida | K | ||
| Ray Guy Award | Andrew Osteen | UCF | P | [30] |
| Brendan Hall | SMU | P | ||
| Joe Doyle | Memphis | P | ||
| Lachlan Wilson | Tulsa | P | ||
| Laine Wilkins | Houston | P | ||
| Paul Hornung Award | Amad Anderson | Temple | WR | [31] |
| Brian Battie | South Florida | RB | ||
| Maquel Haywood | Navy | RB | ||
| Jha'Quan Jackson | Tulane | WR | ||
| Bryan Massey | SMU | S | ||
| Ryan Montgomery | Cincinnati | RB | ||
| Ryan O'Keefe | UCF | WR | ||
| Wuerffel Trophy | Wilson Huber | Cincinnati | LB | [32] |
| Holton Ahlers | East Carolina | QB | ||
| Donavan Mutin | Houston | LB | ||
| Quindell Johnson | Memphis | S | ||
| Bijan Nichols | Navy | K | ||
| Terrance Newman | SMU | DT | ||
| Isaac Moore | Temple | OT | ||
| Nick Anderson | Tulane | LB | ||
| Davis Brin | Tulsa | QB | ||
| Isaiah Bowser | UCF | RB | ||
| Antonio Grier | South Florida | LB | ||
| Walter Camp Award | Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | [33] |
| Bednarik Award | Deshawn Pace | Cincinnati | LB | [34] |
| Gervarrius Owens | Houston | S | ||
| Quindell Johnson | Memphis | S | ||
| Rotary Lombardi Award | Dwayne Boyles | South Florida | LB | [35] |
| Elijah Chatman | SMU | DT | ||
| Lorenz Metz | Cincinnati | G | ||
| Patrick Paul | Houston | OT | ||
| Patrick Mannelly Award | Alex Ward | UCF | LS | [36] |
| Ethan Hudak | Tulane | LS | ||
| Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award | Davis Brin | Tulsa | QB | |
| Sincere Haynesworth | Tulane | C | ||
| Seth Henigan | Memphis | QB | ||
| Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | ||
| Ryan O'Keefe | UCF | RB | ||
| Rashee Rice | SMU | WR | ||
| JuanCarlos Santana | Tulsa | WR | ||
| Clayton Tune | Houston | QB | ||
| Manning Award | Seth Henigan | Memphis | QB | [37] |
| Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | ||
| Clayton Tune | Houston | QB | ||
| Polynesian College Football Player Of The Year Award | Tai Lavatai | Navy | QB | [38] |
| Lokahi Pauole | UCF | OL | ||
| Isaac Slade-Matautia | SMU | LB | ||
| Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award | Holton Ahlers | East Carolina | QB | [39] |
| Gerry Bohanon | South Florida | QB | ||
| Davis Brin | Tulsa | QB | ||
| D'Wan Mathis | Temple | QB | ||
| Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | ||
| Michael Pratt | Tulane | QB | ||
| Clayton Tune | Houston | QB | ||
| Ted Hendricks Award | ||||
The American will enter the 2022 season with two new head football coaches:
| Team | Head coach | Years at school | Overall record | Record at school | AAC Record | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | Luke Fickell | 6 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| East Carolina | Mike Houston | 4 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| Houston | Dana Holgorsen | 4 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| Memphis | Ryan Silverfield | 3 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| Navy | Ken Niumatalolo | 15 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| SMU | Rhett Lashlee | 0 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| South Florida | Jeff Scott | 3 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| Temple | Stan Drayton | 0 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| Tulane | Willie Fritz | 7 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| Tulsa | Philip Montgomery | 8 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | ||||
| UCF | Gus Malzahn | 2 | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= | data-sort-value= |
Note:
Source:[44]
See also: 2022 NCAA Division I FBS football rankings.
| Improvement in ranking | ||
| Drop in ranking | ||
| Not ranked previous week | ||
| No change in ranking from previous week | ||
| RV | Received votes but were not ranked in Top 25 of poll | |
| т | Tied with team above or below also with this symbol | |
| Pre | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 6 | Wk 7 | Wk 8 | Wk 9 | Wk 10 | Wk 11 | Wk 12 | Wk 13 | Wk 14 | Wk 15 | Final | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cincinnati | AP | 23 | RV | RV | RV | RV | 24 | 21 | 21 | 20 | RV | RV | 22 | 21 | RV | RV | RV |
| C | 22 | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 21 | 19 | 19 | RV | RV | 21 | 21 | RV | RV | RV | |
| CFP | Not released | 25 | 24 | ||||||||||||||
| East Carolina | AP | RV | |||||||||||||||
| C | RV | ||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| Houston | AP | 24 | 25 | ||||||||||||||
| C | 25 | RV | RV | ||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| Memphis | AP | ||||||||||||||||
| C | |||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| Navy | AP | ||||||||||||||||
| C | |||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| SMU | AP | ||||||||||||||||
| C | RV | ||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| South Florida | AP | ||||||||||||||||
| C | |||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| Temple | AP | ||||||||||||||||
| C | |||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| Tulane | AP | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 23 | 19 | 16 | 21 | 19 | 18 | 14 | 9 | ||||
| C | RV | RV | 25 | 24 | 21 | 17 | 22 | 20 | 18 | 17 | 9 | ||||||
| CFP | Not released | 19 | 17 | 21 | 19 | 18 | 16 | ||||||||||
| Tulsa | AP | ||||||||||||||||
| C | |||||||||||||||||
| CFP | Not released | ||||||||||||||||
| UCF | AP | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 22 | 17 | 25 | 22 | RV | |||||||
| C | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 21 | 18 | RV | 23 | RV | RV | ||||
| CFP | Not released | 25 | 22 | 20 | 22 | 22 | |||||||||||
The 2022 American Athletic Conference football schedule was released on February 17, 2022.[52] The regular season begins on Thursday September 1, 2022 and will end on Saturday December 15, 2022. The American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game is scheduled to be played on Saturday December 3, 2022 at the site of the regular season champion.
| Index to colors and formatting | |
|---|---|
| AAC member won | |
| AAC member lost | |
| AAC teams in bold |
The following games include AAC teams competing against Power Five conferences teams from the (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12, BYU/Notre Dame, Pac-12, and SEC). All rankings are from the AP Poll at the time of the game.
| Date | Conference | Visitor | Home | Site | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 2 | ACC | Temple | Duke | Wallace Wade Stadium • Durham, NC | L 0–30 |
| September 3 | SEC | No. 23 Cincinnati | No. 19 Arkansas | Donald W. Reynolds Stadium • Fayetteville, AR | L 24–31 |
| September 3 | ACC | No. 13 NC State | East Carolina | Dowdy-Ficklin Stadium • Greenville, NC | L 20–21 |
| September 3 | SEC | Memphis | Mississippi State | Davis Wade Stadium • Starkville, MS | L 23–49 |
| September 3 | Independent | No. 25 BYU | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | L 21–50 |
| September 9 | ACC | Louisville | UCF | FBC Mortgage Stadium • Orlando, FL | L 14–20 |
| September 10 | Big 12 | No. 25 Houston | Texas Tech | Jones AT&T Stadium • Lubbock, TX | L 30–33 |
| September 17 | Big 12 | Kansas | Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | L 30–48 |
| September 17 | Big Ten | SMU | Maryland | Maryland Stadium • College Park, MD | L 27–34 |
| September 17 | SEC | South Florida | Florida | Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, FL | L 28–31 |
| September 17 | Big Ten | Rutgers | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | L 14–16 |
| September 17 | Big 12 | Tulane | Kansas State | Bill Snyder Family Football Stadium • Manhattan, KS | W 17–10 |
| September 24 | Big Ten | Indiana | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | W 45–24 |
| September 24 | Big 12 | TCU | SMU | Gerald R. Ford Stadium • University Park, TX | L 34–42 |
| September 24 | ACC | South Florida | Louisville | Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY | L 3–41 |
| September 24 | SEC | Tulsa | No. 16 Ole Miss | Vaught–Hemingway Stadium • Oxford, MS | L 27–35 |
| September 24 | ACC | Georgia Tech | UCF | FBC Mortgage Stadium • Orlando, FL | W 27–10 |
| October 29 | Independent | East Carolina | BYU | LaVell Edwards Stadium • Provo, UT | W 27–24 |
| November 12 | Independent | Notre Dame | Navy | M&T Bank Stadium • Baltimore, MD† | L 32–35 |
The following games include AAC teams competing against "Group of Five" teams from C-USA, MAC, Mountain West and Sun Belt.
| Date | Conference | Visitor | Home | Site | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 3 | C-USA | No. 24 Houston | UTSA | Alamodome • San Antonio, TX | W 37–35 |
| September 3 | C-USA | SMU | North Texas | Apogee Stadium • Denton, TX | W 48–10 |
| September 3 | Mountain West | Tulsa | Wyoming | War Memorial Stadium • Laramie, WY | L 37–40 |
| September 10 | C-USA | Old Dominion | East Carolina | Dowdy-Ficklin Stadium • Greenville, NC | W 39–21 |
| September 10 | MAC | Northern Illinois | Tulsa | H.A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | W 38–35 |
| September 17 | MAC | Cincinnati | Miami (OH) | Paul Brown Stadium† • Cincinnati, OH | W 38–17 |
| September 17 | Sun Belt | Arkansas State | Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | W 44–32 |
| September 17 | C-USA | UCF | Florida Atlantic | FAU Stadium • Boca Raton, FL | W 40–14 |
| September 24 | C-USA | Rice | Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | W 34–27 |
| September 24 | C-USA | North Texas | Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | W 44–34 |
| September 24 | C-USA | Southern Miss | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | L 24–27 |
| October 1 | Mountain West | Navy | Air Force | Falcon Stadium • Colorado Springs, CO | L 10–13 |
The following games include AAC teams competing against FBS Independents, which includes Army, Liberty, New Mexico State, UConn and UMass.
| Date | Visitor | Home | Site | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 3 | UMass | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | W 42–10 |
| September 24 | UMass | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | W 28–0 |
| December 10 | Navy | Army | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA† | L 17–20 |
The following games include AAC teams competing against Football Championship Subdivision teams, which comprises 14 conferences and two independent programs.
| Date | Visitor | Home | Site | Score |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| September 1 | South Carolina State | UCF | FBC Mortgage Stadium • Orlando, FL | W 56–10 |
| September 3 | Delaware | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | L 7–14 |
| September 10 | Kennesaw State | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | W 63–10 |
| September 10 | Lamar | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • University Park, TX | W 45–16 |
| September 10 | Howard | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | W 42–20 |
| September 10 | Lafayette | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | W 30–14 |
| September 10 | Alcorn State | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | W 52–0 |
| September 17 | Campbell | East Carolina | Dowdy-Ficklin Stadium • Greenville, NC | W 49–10 |
| September 17 | Jacksonville State | Tulsa | H.A. Champman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | W 54–17 |
| November 19 | North Alabama | Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | W 59–0 |
2022–2023 records against non-conference foes:
Regular season
| Power 5 Conferences | Record | |
|---|---|---|
| ACC | 1–4 | |
| Big 12 | 1–3 | |
| Big Ten | 1–2 | |
| BYU/Notre Dame | 1–2 | |
| Pac-12 | 0–0 | |
| SEC | 0–4 | |
| Power 5 Total | 4–15 | |
| Other FBS Conferences | Record | |
| C-USA | 6–1 | |
| Independents (Excluding BYU/Notre Dame) | 2–1 | |
| MAC | 2–0 | |
| Mountain West | 0–2 | |
| Sun Belt | 1–0 | |
| Other FBS Total | 11–4 | |
| FCS Opponents | Record | |
| Football Championship Subdivision | 9–1 | |
| Total Non-Conference Record | 24–20 | |
Postseason
| Power 5 Conferences | Record | |
|---|---|---|
| ACC | 0–2 | |
| Big Ten | 0–0 | |
| Big 12 | 0–0 | |
| BYU/Notre Dame | 0–1 | |
| Pac-12 | 1–0 | |
| SEC | 0–0 | |
| Power 5 Total | 1–3 | |
| Other FBS Conferences | Record | |
| C-USA | 0–0 | |
| Independents (Excluding BYU/Notre Dame) | 0–0 | |
| MAC | 0–0 | |
| Mountain West | 1–0 | |
| Sun Belt | 2–0 | |
| Other FBS Total | 3–0 | |
| Total Bowl Record | 4–3 | |
Bowl games will begin on December 17, 2022, and will end with the College Football Playoff National Championship on January 9, 2023.
For the 2020–2025 bowl cycle, The American will annually send teams to the Military Bowl, Fenway Bowl, and a third annual spot alternating between the Armed Forces Bowl and Hawaii Bowl annually. The American will have annually four appearances in the following bowls: Birmingham Bowl, Gasparilla Bowl, Boca Raton Bowl, Frisco Bowl, Cure Bowl, First Responder Bowl, Myrtle Beach Bowl and New Mexico Bowl. The American champion will go to a New Year's Six bowl if a team finishes higher than the champions of Group of Five conferences in the final College Football Playoff rankings, American teams are also eligible for the College Football Playoff if they're among the top four teams in the final CFP ranking.[53]
See also: 2022–23 NCAA football bowl games.
| Legend | ||
|---|---|---|
| AAC win | ||
| AAC loss | ||
| Bowl game | Date | Site | Television | Time (EST) | AAC team | Opponent | Score | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Fenway Bowl | December 17 | Fenway Park • Boston, MA | ESPN | 11:00 a.m. | Cincinnati | Louisville | L 7–24 | 15,000 |
| New Mexico Bowl | December 17 | University Stadium • Albuquerque, NM | ESPN | 7:30 p.m. | SMU | BYU | L 23–24 | 22,209 |
| Independence Bowl | December 23 | Independence Stadium • Shreveport, LA | ESPN | 3:00 p.m. | Houston | Louisiana | W 23–16 | 23,410 |
| First Responder Bowl | December 27 | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPN | 3:15 p.m. | Memphis | Utah State | W 38–10 | |
| Birmingham Bowl | December 27 | Protective Stadium • Birmingham, AL | ESPN | 6:45 p.m. | East Carolina | Coastal Carolina | W 53–29 | 15,901 |
| Military Bowl | December 28 | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | ESPN | 2:00 p.m. | UCF | Duke | L 13–30 | 17,974 |
| New Year's Six Bowl | ||||||||
| Cotton Bowl Classic | January 2, 2023 | AT&T Stadium • Arlington, TX | ESPN | 1:00 p.m. | No. 16 Tulane | No. 10 USC | W 46–45 | 55,329 |
| Week | Offensive | Defensive | Specialist | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Player | Team | Position | Player | Team | Position | Player | Team | Position | |||||
| Week 1[54] | Clayton Tune | Houston | QB | Macon Clark | Tulane | S | Bubba Baxa | Houston | K | ||||
| Week 2[55] | Davis Brin | Tulsa | QB | Derek Parish | Houston | DE | De'Von Fox | Temple | WR | ||||
| Week 3[56] | John Rhys Plumlee | UCF | QB | Nick Anderson | Tulane | LB | Mason Fletcher | Cincinnati | P | ||||
| Week 4[57] | Tyler Scott | Cincinnati | WR | Ivan Pace Jr. | Cincinnati | LB | Daniel Davies | Navy | K | ||||
| Week 5[58] | Holton Ahlers | East Carolina | QB | Nick Anderson (2) | Tulane | LB | Joe Doyle | Memphis | P | ||||
| Week 6[59] | Clayton Tune (2) | Houston | QB | Macon Clark (2) | Tulane | S | Jayce Rogers | Houston | DB | ||||
| Week 7[60] | John Rhys Plumlee (2) | UCF | QB | Julius Wood | East Carolina | S | Chris Howard | Memphis | K | ||||
| Week 8[61] | Clayton Tune (3) | Houston | QB | Jireh Wilson | East Carolina | S | Mason Fletcher (2) | Cincinnati | P | ||||
| Week 9[62] | Clayton Tune (4) | Houston | QB | Josh Celiscar | UCF | DE | Andrew Conrad | East Carolina | K | ||||
| Week 10[63] | Tanner Mordecai | SMU | QB | Dorian Williams | Tulane | LB | Camden Price | Temple | K | ||||
| Week 11[64] | John Rhys Plumlee (3) | UCF | QB | Justin Wright | Tulsa | LB | Chris Howard (2) | Memphis | K | ||||
| Week 12[65] | Michael Pratt | Tulane | QB | John Marshall | Navy | LB/S | Ryan Coe | Cincinnati | K | ||||
| Week 13[66] | Tyjae Spears | Tulane | RB | Brandon Crossley | SMU | S | Jsi Hatfield | East Carolina | WR | ||||
The following individuals received postseason honors as chosen by the league's head coaches.[67]
| Offensive Player of the Year | Tyjae Spears | Tulane |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Ivan Pace Jr. | Cincinnati |
| Special Teams Player of the Year | Mason Fletcher | Cincinnati |
| Rookie of the Year | E. J. Warner | Temple |
| Coach of the Year | Willie Fritz | Tulane |
The following players were selected part of the All-Conference teams.
| Position | Player | Team | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Team Offense | ||||
| WR | Nathaniel Dell | style= | Houston | |
| WR | Rashee Rice | style= | SMU | |
| WR | Keylon Stokes | style= | Tulsa | |
| OT | Ryan Swoboda | style= | UCF | |
| OT | Patrick Paul | style= | Houston | |
| OG | Lokahi Pauole | style= | UCF | |
| OG | Cam'Ron Johnson | style= | Houston | |
| OG | Prince Pines | style= | Tulane | |
| C | Sincere Haynesworth | style= | Tulane | |
| TE | Josh Whyle | style= | Cincinnati | |
| QB | Clayton Tune | style= | Houston | |
| RB | Keaton Mitchell | style= | East Carolina | |
| RB | Tyjae Spears | style= | Tulane | |
| First Team Defense | ||||
| DL | Ricky Barber | style= | UCF | |
| DL | Tre'Mon Morris-Brash | style= | UCF | |
| DL | Jowon Briggs | style= | Cincinnati | |
| DL | Dontay Corleone | style= | Cincinnati | |
| DL | D'Anthony Jones | style= | Houston | |
| DL | Darian Varner | style= | Temple | |
| LB | Jason Johnson | style= | UCF | |
| LB | Ivan Pace Jr. | style= | Cincinnati | |
| LB | John Marshall* | style= | Navy | |
| LB | Dorian Williams | style= | Tulane | |
| CB | Ja'Quan Sheppard | style= | Cincinnati | |
| CB | Jarius Monroe | style= | Tulane | |
| S | Quindell Johnson | style= | Memphis | |
| S | Macon Clark | style= | Tulane | |
| First Team Special Teams | ||||
| K | Chris Howard | style= | Memphis | |
| P | Mason Fletcher | style= | Cincinnati | |
| RS | Jimmy Horn Jr. | style= | South Florida | |
| Position | Player | Team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Second Team Offense | |||
| WR | Ryan O'Keefe | style= | UCF |
| WR | Tyler Scott | style= | Cincinnati |
| WR | C.J. Johnson | style= | East Carolina |
| WR | Xavier Weaver | style= | South Florida |
| OT | James Tunstall | style= | Cincinnati |
| OT | Joey Claybrook | style= | Tulane |
| OG | Sam Jackson | style= | UCF |
| OG | Justin Osborne | style= | SMU |
| C | Matt Lee | style= | UCF |
| TE | Caden Prieskorn | style= | Memphis |
| QB | Michael Pratt | style= | Tulane |
| RB | Isaiah Bowser | style= | UCF |
| RB | Brian Battie | style= | South Florida |
| Second Team Defense | |||
| DL | Elijah Chatman | style= | SMU |
| DL | Darius Hodges | style= | Tulane |
| DL | Patrick Jenkins | style= | Tulane |
| DL | Anthony Goodlow | style= | Tulsa |
| LB | Xavier Cullens | style= | Memphis |
| LB | Layton Jordan | style= | Temple |
| LB | Nick Anderson | style= | Tulane |
| LB | Justin Wright | style= | Tulsa |
| CB | Malik Fleming | style= | East Carolina |
| CB | Art Green | style= | Houston |
| S | Ja'Von Hicks | style= | Cincinnati |
| S | Gervarrius Owens | style= | Houston |
| Second Team Special Teams | |||
| K | Ryan Coe | style= | Cincinnati |
| P | Casey Glover | style= | Tulane |
| RS | Jha'Quan Jackson | style= | Tulane |
All Conference Honorable Mentions:
The 2022 College Football All-America Team is composed of the following College Football All-American first teams chosen by the following selector organizations: Associated Press (AP), Football Writers Association of America (FWAA), American Football Coaches Association (AFCA), Walter Camp Foundation (WCFF), Sporting News (TSN, from its historic name of The Sporting News), Sports Illustrated (SI), The Athletic (Athletic), USA Today (USAT) ESPN, CBS Sports (CBS), College Football News (CFN), Athlon Sports, Phil Steele, and Fox Sports (FOX).
Currently, the NCAA compiles consensus all-America teams using a point system computed from All-America teams named by coaches associations or media sources. Players are chosen against other players playing at their position only. To be selected a consensus All-American, players must be chosen to the first team on at least half of the five official selectors as recognized by the NCAA. Second- and third-team honors are used to break ties. Players named first-team by all five selectors are deemed unanimous All-Americans. Currently, the NCAA recognizes All-Americans selected by the AP, AFCA, FWAA, TSN, and the WCFF to determine consensus and unanimous All-Americans.[68]
| Position | Player | School | Selector | Unanimous | Consensus | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Team All-Americans | |||||||
| LB | Ivan Pace Jr. | style= | Cincinnati | (AFCA, AP, CBS, ESPN, FWAA, The Athletic, TSN, USAT, WCFF) | |||
| Position | Player | School | Selector | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Second Team All-Americans | ||||
| WR | Nathaniel Dell | style= | Houston | (AFCA, The Athletic, TSN, USAT, WCFF) |
| WR | Rashee Rice | style= | SMU | (AP, FWAA, WCFF) |
| Position | Player | School | Selector | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Third Team All-Americans | ||||
| WR | Nathaniel Dell | style= | Houston | (AP) |
| DT | Dontay Corleone | style= | Cincinnati | (AP) |
| P | Mason Fletcher | style= | Cincinnati | (AP) |
The following list includes all AAC players who were drafted in the 2023 NFL draft.
| Player | Position | School | Draft Round | Round Pick | Overall Pick | Team |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rashee Rice | WR | SMU | 2 | 24 | 55 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Nathaniel Dell | WR | Houston | 3 | 6 | 69 | Houston Texans |
| Tyjae Spears | RB | Tulane | 3 | 18 | 81 | Tennessee Titans |
| Dorian Williams | LB | Tulane | 3 | 28 | 91 | Buffalo Bills |
| Tre Tucker | WR | Cincinnati | 3 | 37 | 100 | Las Vegas Raiders |
| Tyler Scott | WR | Cincinnati | 4 | 31 | 133 | Chicago Bears |
| Clayton Tune | QB | Houston | 5 | 4 | 139 | Arizona Cardinals |
| Josh Whyle | TE | Cincinnati | 5 | 12 | 147 | Tennessee Titans |
| Derek Parish | FB | Houston | 7 | 23 | 240 | Jacksonville Jaguars |
| Gervarrius Owens | S | Houston | 7 | 37 | 254 | New York Giants |