# 2015 American Athletic Conference football season

The 2015 American Athletic Conference football season is the 25th NCAA Division I FBS football season of the American Athletic Conference (The American). The season is the third since the breakup of the former Big East Conference, and the second season with the new College Football Playoff in place. Under the playoff system, The American is no longer an Automatic Qualifying conference (AQ), and is considered a member of the "Group of Five" (G5) with Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, Mountain West Conference, and the Sun Belt Conference. Whereas under the previous system the champion of the conference was guaranteed an automatic berth to a BCS bowl game, now the highest-ranked member of the G5 will receive a bid to one of the six major bowls.
The American consists of 12 members: Cincinnati, East Carolina, Houston, Memphis, SMU, South Florida, Temple, Tulane, Tulsa, UCF, UConn, and new member Navy. In June 2015, the Collegiate Commissioner's Association announced that it will postpone final rankings until after the annual Army–Navy Game if Navy or Army are in contention for a spot in the semifinals or a New Years Six bowl. If Navy is the highest-ranked Group of 5 champion and loses to Army, it would be replaced by next highest-ranked Group of 5 champion in the New Years Six Bowl.

## Previous season

Memphis, Cincinnati, and UCF were declared co-champions for the 2014 season, with each team having a conference record of 7–1. Memphis finished the season ranked 25th after defeating BYU 55–48 in 2OT in the Miami Beach Bowl. UCF was defeated by NC State in the St. Petersburg Bowl, and Virginia Tech defeated Cincinnati in the Military Bowl. With less than 11 minutes left on the game clock in the Armed Forces Bowl, Houston trailed Pittsburgh by 25 points, but the Cougars went on to win by a score of 35–34. It was the biggest fourth quarter comeback in bowl history. Florida defeated East Carolina 28–20 in the Birmingham Bowl.

### American Athletic Conference Media Day

The 2015 American Athletic Conference Media Day was held at the Hyatt Regency Newport in Newport, Rhode Island on August 3, 2015.

### Preseason poll
#### East Division

* Cincinnati (29) 179
* UCF (1) 135
* Temple 116
* East Carolina 105
* South Florida 53
* Connecticut 42

#### West Division

* Memphis (13) 153
* Houston (10) 149
* Navy (7) 148
* Tulane 74
* SMU 59
* Tulsa 47
* (First-Place Votes) Points

### Predicted American Championship Game Winner

* Cincinnati 22
* Memphis 5
* Houston 2
* UCF 1
* Points

## Head coaches
### Coaching changes
#### Changes after 2014 season

* On December 1, 2014, Chad Morris (formerly Offensive Coordinator at Clemson) was hired by SMU as its new head football coach, replacing June Jones, who resigned on September 8, 2014, citing "personal issues".
* On December 11, 2014, Philip Montgomery (previously Offensive Coordinator at Baylor) was hired by Tulsa as its new head football coach, replacing Bill Blankenship, who was fired December 2, 2014.
* On December 15, 2014, Tom Herman (formerly Offensive Coordinator at Ohio State) was hired by Houston as its new head football coach, to replace Tony Levine, who was fired after three seasons on December 8, 2014.

#### Changes during 2015 season

* George O'Leary resigned as UCF's head football coach after twelve seasons. Quarterbacks coach Danny Barrett was named interim head coach for the remainder of the season.

## Rankings

Legend :
| | 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 |
| | | 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 | RV | RV | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Cincinnati | C | RV | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Cincinnati | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| Connecticut | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Connecticut | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Connecticut | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| East Carolina | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| East Carolina | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| East Carolina | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| Houston | AP | | | RV | RV | RV | RV | 24 | 21 | 18 | 18 | 16 | 13 | 21 | 17 | 14 | 8 |
| Houston | C | | | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 22 | 19 | 18 | 16 | 14 | 21 | 18 | 16 | 8 |
| Houston | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 25 | 24 | 19 | | 19 | 18 |
| Memphis | AP | | | | RV | RV | RV | RV | 18 | 16 | 15 | 25 | RV | | RV | RV | |
| Memphis | C | | RV | RV | RV | RV | 25 | 22 | 17 | 16 | 16 | 25 | RV | | RV | RV | RV |
| Memphis | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 13 | 21 | 21 | | | |
| Navy | AP | | | | | RV | RV | RV | | | RV | 22 | 19 | 16 | 22 | 21 | 18 |
| Navy | C | | | | | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 23 | 19 | 15 | 22 | 22 | 18 |
| Navy | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | 20 | 16 | 15 | 23 | 21 |
| SMU | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| SMU | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| SMU | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| South Florida | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | RV | RV | RV | |
| South Florida | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| South Florida | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| Temple | AP | | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 22 | 21 | 23 | 21 | RV | 25 | 20 | 24 | RV |
| Temple | C | | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | RV | 24 | 22 | 23 | 21 | RV | 24 | 21 | 24 | RV |
| Temple | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | 22 | 22 | | 25 | 22 | 24 |
| Tulane | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Tulane | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Tulane | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| Tulsa | AP | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Tulsa | C | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| Tulsa | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |
| UCF | AP | RV | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| UCF | C | RV | | | | | | | | | | | | | | | |
| UCF | CFP | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | Not released | | | | | | |

## Schedule

* Index to colors and formatting
* The American member won
* The American member lost
* The American teams in bold

### Week 1

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 3 | 6:00 p.m. | FIU | UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, FL | CBSSN | L 14–15 | 39,184 |
| September 3 | 7:30 p.m. | Villanova | Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT | SNY | W 20–15 | 26,113 |
| September 3 | 9:30 p.m. | Duke | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | CBSSN | L 7–37 | 25,470 |
| September 4 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 4 Baylor | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPN | L 21–56 | 32,047 |
| September 5 | 12:00 p.m. | Colgate | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | CBSSN | W 48–10 | 28,015 |
| September 5 | 3:30 p.m. | Penn State | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | ESPN | W 27–10 | 69,176 |
| September 5 | 3:30 p.m. | Florida Atlantic | Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | CBSSN | W 47–44 $^{OT}$ | 24,001 |
| September 5 | 6:00 p.m. | Towson | East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC | ESPN3 | W 28–20 | 40,712 |
| September 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Alabama A&M | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | ESPN3 | W 52–10 | 39,095 |
| September 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Missouri State | Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | ESPN3 | W 63–7 | 41,730 |
| September 5 | 7:00 p.m. | Florida A&M | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | ESPN3 | W 51–3 | 30,434 |
| September 5 | 8:00 p.m. | Tennessee Tech | Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | ESPN3 | W 52–24 | 30,479 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 2

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 12 | 11:30 a.m. | South Florida | Florida State | Doak Campbell Stadium • Tallahassee, FL | ESPN | L 14–34 | 72,811 |
| September 12 | 12:00 p.m. | Army | Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT | CBSSN | W 22–17 | 28,260 |
| September 12 | 3:30 p.m. | Houston | Louisville | Papa John's Cardinal Stadium • Louisville, KY | RSN | W 34–31 | 50,019 |
| September 12 | 3:30 p.m. | Tulane | No. 15 Georgia Tech | Bobby Dodd Stadium • Atlanta, GA | RSN | L 10–65 | 50,435 |
| September 12 | 7:00 p.m. | East Carolina | Florida | Ben Hill Griffin Stadium • Gainesville, FL | ESPN2 | L 24–31 | 88,034 |
| September 12 | 7:00 p.m. | Memphis | Kansas | Memorial Stadium • Lawrence, KS | | W 55–23 | 37,798 |
| September 12 | 7:00 p.m. | North Texas | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX (Safeway Bowl) | ESPN3 | W 31–13 | 25,401 |
| September 12 | 8:00 p.m. | Temple | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | ESPNews | TEMP 34–26 | 38,112 |
| September 12 | 8:00 p.m. | Tulsa | New Mexico | University Stadium • Albuquerque, NM | ESPN3 | W 40–21 | 24,167 |
| September 12 | 10:30 p.m. | UCF | Stanford | Stanford Stadium • Stanford, CA | FS1 | L 7–31 | 50,420 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
| Date | Bye Week |
| September 12 | Navy |

### Week 3

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 19 | 12:00 p.m. | Connecticut | No. 20 Missouri | Faurot Field • Columbia, MO | ESPNU | L 6–9 | 70,079 |
| September 19 | 12:00 p.m. | South Florida | Maryland | Byrd Stadium • College Park, MD | ESPNews | L 17–35 | 36,827 |
| September 19 | 12:00 p.m. | Temple | Massachusetts | Gillette Stadium • Foxborough, MA | ESPN3 | W 25–23 | 10,141 |
| September 19 | 12:00 p.m. | Tulsa | No. 16 Oklahoma | Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium • Norman, OK | FS1 | L 38–52 | 85,657 |
| September 19 | 3:00 p.m. | Memphis | Bowling Green | Doyt Perry Stadium • Bowling Green, OH | ASN | W 44–41 | 21,178 |
| September 19 | 3:30 p.m. | East Carolina | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | CBSSN | NAVY 45–21 | 34,717 |
| September 19 | 3:30 p.m. | Cincinnati | Miami (OH) | Yager Stadium • Oxford, OH (120th Battle for the Victory Bell) | ESPN3 | W 37–33 | 18,484 |
| September 19 | 6:00 p.m. | Furman | UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, FL | ESPN3 | L 15–16 | 36,484 |
| September 19 | 8:00 p.m. | SMU | No. 3 TCU | Amon G. Carter Stadium • Fort Worth, TX (Battle for the Iron Skillet) | FSN | L 37–56 | 48,127 |
| September 19 | 8:00 p.m. | Maine | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | ESPN3 | W 38–7 | 21,114 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
| Date | Bye Week |
| September 19 | Houston |

### Week 4

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| September 24 | 7:30 p.m. | Cincinnati | Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | ESPN | MEM 53–46 | 45,172 |
| September 26 | 12:00 p.m. | Navy | Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT | CBSSN | NAVY 28–18 | 33,204 |
| September 26 | 12:00 p.m. | UCF | South Carolina | Williams-Brice Stadium • Columbia, SC | ESPNU | L 14–31 | 78,411 |
| September 26 | 3:30 p.m. | Virginia Tech | East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC | ABC/ESPN2 | W 35–28 | 50,514 |
| September 26 | 7:00 p.m. | James Madison | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPN3 | L 45–48 | 22,314 |
| September 26 | 8:00 p.m. | Texas State | Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | ESPN3 | W 59–14 | 35,257 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
| Date | Bye Week | Bye Week | Bye Week | Bye Week |
| September 26 | South Florida | Temple | Tulane | Tulsa |

### Week 5

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| October 1 | 7:30 p.m. | Miami (FL) | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | ESPN | W 34–23 | 40,101 |
| October 2 | 7:00 p.m. | Memphis | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | ESPN2 | MEM 24–17 | 22,546 |
| October 2 | 7:00 p.m. | Temple | Charlotte | Jerry Richardson Stadium • Charlotte, NC | CBSSN | W 37–3 | 13,105 |
| October 2 | 10:15 p.m. | Connecticut | BYU | LaVell Edwards Stadium • Provo, UT | ESPN2 | L 13–30 | 56,393 |
| October 3 | 12:00 p.m. | UCF | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | ESPNews | TULN 45–31 | 20,024 |
| October 3 | 12:00 p.m. | Houston | Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | CBSSN | HOU 38–24 | 17,146 |
| October 3 | 3:30 p.m. | Air Force | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD (Commander-in-Chief's Trophy) | CBSSN | W 33–11 | 32,705 |
| October 3 | 4:00 p.m. | East Carolina | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPNews | ECU 49–23 | 17,136 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 6

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| October 8 | 8:00 p.m. | SMU | Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX (rivalry) | ESPN2 | HOU 49–28 | 25,204 |
| October 10 | 12:00 p.m. | Tulane | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | ESPNU | TEMP 49–10 | 35,179 |
| October 10 | 3:30 p.m. | Navy | No. 15 Notre Dame | Notre Dame Stadium • South Bend, IN (rivalry) | NBC | L 24–41 | 80,795 |
| October 10 | 3:30 p.m. | Syracuse | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | CBSSN | W 45–24 | 27,235 |
| October 10 | 3:45 p.m. | Connecticut | UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, FL | ESPNews | CONN 40–13 | 26,669 |
| October 10 | 6:00 p.m. | Louisiana–Monroe | Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | ESPN3 | W 34–24 | 17,490 |
| October 10 | 7:30 p.m. | East Carolina | BYU | LaVell Edwards Stadium • Provo, UT | ESPNU | L 38–45 | 60,186 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
| Date | Bye Week | Bye Week |
| October 10 | Cincinnati | Memphis |

### Week 7

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| October 16 | 8:00 p.m. | Cincinnati | BYU | LaVell Edwards Stadium • Provo, UT | ESPN | L 24–38 | 57,612 |
| October 16 | 9:00 p.m. | No. 24 Houston | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | ESPNU | HOU 42–7 | 21,522 |
| October 17 | 12:00 p.m. | South Florida | Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT | ESPNU | USF 28–20 | 31,719 |
| October 17 | 12:00 p.m. | Tulsa | East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC | ESPNews | ECU 30–17 | 43,065 |
| October 17 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 13 Ole Miss | Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | ABC | W 37–24 | 60,241 |
| October 17 | 7:30 p.m. | UCF | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | CBSSN | TEM 30–16 | 31,372 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
| Date | Bye Week | Bye Week |
| October 17 | Navy | SMU |

### Week 8

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| October 22 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 22 Temple | East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC | ESPN2 | TEM 24–14 | 39,417 |
| October 23 | 8:00 p.m. | No. 18 Memphis | Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | ESPN | MEM 66–42 | 20,216 |
| October 24 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 21 Houston | UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, FL | ESPNews | HOU 59–10 | 28,350 |
| October 24 | 1:00 p.m. | Tulane | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | CBSSN | NAVY 31–14 | 32,033 |
| October 24 | 4:00 p.m. | SMU | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | ESPNews | USF 38–14 | 24,338 |
| October 24 | 4:30 p.m. | Connecticut | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | CBSSN | CIN 37–13 | 40,124 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 9

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| October 30 | 7:00 p.m. | East Carolina | Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT | ESPNU | CONN 31–10 | 23,168 |
| October 31 | 12:00 p.m. | UCF | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | ESPNews | CIN 52–7 | 30,131 |
| October 31 | 12:00 p.m. | South Florida | Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | CBSSN | NAVY 29–17 | 26,766 |
| October 31 | 4:00 p.m. | Tulsa | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPNews | TUL 40–10 | 18,217 |
| October 31 | 7:00 p.m. | Tulane | No. 16 Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | CBSSN | MEM 41–10 | 30,381 |
| October 31 | 7:00 p.m. | Vanderbilt | No. 18 Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | ESPN2 | W 34–0 | 29,565 |
| October 31 | 8:00 p.m. | No. 9 Notre Dame | No. 21 Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | ABC | L 20–24 | 69,280 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 10

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| November 6 | 8:00 p.m. | No. 22 Temple | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPN2 | TEM 60–40 | 17,232 |
| November 7 | 12:00 p.m. | UCF | Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | ESPNews | TUL 45–30 | 16,128 |
| November 7 | 3:30 p.m. | Cincinnati | No. 25 Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | ESPN2 | HOU 33–30 | 32,889 |
| November 7 | 4:00 p.m. | Connecticut | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | ESPNews | CONN 7–3 | 26,775 |
| November 7 | 7:00 p.m. | Navy | No. 13 Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | ESPN2 | NAVY 45–20 | 55,212 |
| November 7 | 7:30 p.m. | South Florida | East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC | CBSSN | USF 22–17 | 45,194 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 11

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| November 14 | 12:00 p.m. | Tulane | Army | Michie Stadium • West Point, NY | CBSSN | W 34–31 | 31,217 |
| November 14 | 3:30 p.m. | SMU | No. 20 Navy | Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD (Gansz Trophy) | CBSSN | NAVY 55–14 | 35,778 |
| November 14 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 21 Memphis | No. 24 Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | ESPN2 | HOU 35–34 | 42,159 |
| November 14 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 22 Temple | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | CBSSN | USF 44–23 | 28,393 |
| November 14 | 7:30 p.m. | Tulsa | Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium • Cincinnati, OH | ESPNews | CIN 49–38 | 35,015 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
| Date | Bye Week | Bye Week | Bye Week |
| November 14 | UCF | Connecticut | East Carolina |

### Week 12

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| November 19 | 7:30 p.m. | East Carolina | UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, FL (rivalry) | ESPN | ECU 44–7 | 23,734 |
| November 20 | 8:00 p.m. | Cincinnati | South Florida | Raymond James Stadium • Tampa, FL | CBSSN | USF 65–27 | 26,522 |
| November 21 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 21 Memphis | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA | ESPNU | TEM 31–12 | 31,708 |
| November 21 | 3:30 p.m. | No. 19 Houston | Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field • East Hartford, CT | ESPNU | CONN 20–17 | 26,879 |
| November 21 | 7:00 p.m. | No. 16 Navy | Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium • Tulsa, OK | CBSSN | NAVY 44–21 | 22,749 |
| November 21 | 8:00 p.m. | Tulane | SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, TX | ESPNews | SMU 49–21 | 30,075 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 13

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance |
| November 26 | 7:30 p.m. | South Florida | UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium • Orlando, FL (War on I–4) | ESPN | USF 44–3 | 25,967 |
| November 27 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 16 Navy | No. 19 Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX | ABC | HOU 52–31 | 40,562 |
| November 27 | 8:00 p.m. | Tulsa | Tulane | Yulman Stadium • New Orleans, LA | ESPNU | TULSA 45–34 | 22,672 |
| November 28 | 12:00 p.m. | Cincinnati | East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium • Greenville, NC | CBSSN | CIN 19–16 | 40,743 |
| November 28 | 12:00 p.m. | SMU | No. 21 Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium • Memphis, TN | ESPNews | MEM 63–0 | 30,075 |
| November 28 | 7:00 p.m. | Connecticut | Temple | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA (7:05 p.m.) | ESPNU | TEMP 27–3 | 28,236 |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### The American Championship

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Ref. |
| December 5 | 12:00 p.m. | No. 20 Temple | No. 17 Houston | TDECU Stadium • Houston, TX (The American Championship) | ABC | HOU 24–13 | 35,721 | |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||

### Week 15

| Date | Time | Visiting team | Home team | Site | TV | Result | Attendance | Ref. |
| December 12 | 3:00 p.m. | Army | No. 21 Navy | Lincoln Financial Field • Philadelphia, PA (116th Army–Navy Game/Commander-in-Chief's Trophy) | CBS | W 21–17 | 69,722 | |
| $^#$Rankings from AP Poll released prior to game. All times are in Eastern Time. |||||||||
Rankings are from AP Poll. All times Eastern Time Zone.

## Bowl games

Legend :
* The American win
* The American loss
| Bowl game | Date | Site | Television | Time | American team | Opponent | Score | Attendance |
| Miami Beach Bowl | December 21 | Marlins Park • Miami, FL | ESPN | 2:30 p.m. | South Florida | WKU | 35–45 | 21,712 |
| Boca Raton Bowl | December 22 | FAU Stadium • Boca Raton, FL | ESPN | 7:00 p.m. | #24 Temple | Toledo | 17–32 | 25,908 |
| Hawaiʻi Bowl | December 24 | Aloha Stadium • Honolulu, HI | ESPN | 8:00 p.m. | Cincinnati | San Diego State | 7–42 | 22,793 |
| St. Petersburg Bowl | December 26 | Tropicana Field • St. Petersburg, FL | ESPN | 11:00 a.m. | UConn | Marshall | 10–16 | 14,652 |
| Independence Bowl | December 26 | Independence Stadium • Shreveport, LA | ESPN | 5:45 p.m. | Tulsa | Virginia Tech | 52–55 | 31,289 |
| Military Bowl | December 28 | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium • Annapolis, MD | ESPN | 2:30 p.m. | #21 Navy | Pittsburgh | 44–28 | 36,352 |
| Birmingham Bowl | December 30 | Legion Field • Birmingham, AL | ESPN | 12:00 p.m. | Memphis | Auburn | 10–31 | 59,430 |
| New Years Six bowl games |||||||||
| Peach Bowl | December 31 | Georgia Dome • Atlanta, GA | ESPN | 12:00 p.m. | #18 Houston | #9 Florida State | 38–24 | 71,007 |
(Rankings from final CFP Poll; All times Eastern)

## Selection of teams

* Bowl eligible
Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Memphis, Navy, South Florida, Temple, Tulsa
* Bowl-ineligible
East Carolina, SMU, Tulane, UCF

## Records against FBS conferences

2015 records against FBS conferences:
| Conference | Record |
| ACC | 6–4 |
| Big Ten | 1–1 |
| Big 12 | 1–3 |
| C-USA | 3–3 |
| Independents | 3–5 |
| MAC | 3–1 |
| Mountain West | 2–1 |
| Pac-12 | 0–1 |
| SEC | 2–4 |
| Sun Belt | 2–0 |
| Total | 22–23 |

### The American vs. Power Conferences

Legend :
* The American win
* The American loss
| Date | Visitor | Home | Winning Team | Opponent Conference |
| September 3 | Duke | Tulane | Duke | ACC |
| September 4 | Baylor | SMU | Baylor | Big 12 |
| September 5 | Penn State | Temple | Temple | Big Ten |
| September 12 | USF | Florida State | Florida State | ACC |
| September 12 | Houston | Louisville | Houston | ACC |
| September 12 | Tulane | Georgia Tech | Georgia Tech | ACC |
| September 12 | Memphis | Kansas | Memphis | Big 12 |
| September 12 | UCF | Stanford | Stanford | Pac 12 |
| September 12 | East Carolina | Florida | Florida | SEC |
| September 19 | Tulsa | Oklahoma | Oklahoma | Big 12 |
| September 19 | SMU | TCU | TCU | Big 12 |
| September 19 | UConn | Missouri | Missouri | SEC |
| September 19 | USF | Maryland | Maryland | Big Ten |
| September 26 | East Carolina | Virginia Tech | East Carolina | ACC |
| September 26 | UCF | South Carolina | South Carolina | SEC |
| October 1 | Miami (FL) | Cincinnati | Cincinnati | ACC |
| October 10 | Navy | Notre Dame | Notre Dame | IND |
| October 10 | Syracuse | USF | USF | ACC |
| October 17 | Ole Miss | Memphis | Memphis | SEC |
| October 31 | Vanderbilt | Houston | Houston | SEC |
| October 31 | Notre Dame | Temple | Notre Dame | IND |
| December 26‡ | Virginia Tech | Tulsa | Virginia Tech | ACC |
| December 28‡ | Pittsburgh | Navy | Navy | ACC |
| December 30‡ | Auburn | Memphis | Auburn | SEC |
| December 31‡ | Florida State | Houston | Houston | ACC |
‡This game was played at a neutral site.

## Players of the Week

| Week | Offensive | Offensive | Offensive | Defensive | Defensive | Defensive | Special teams | Special teams | Special teams |
| Week | Player | Position | Team | Player | Position | Team | Player | Position | Team |
| Week 1 | Keevan Lucas | WR | TUL | Tyler Matakevich | LB | TEM | Roderick Proctor | WR | MEM |
| Week 2 | Greg Ward Jr. | QB | HOU | Tyler Matakevich | LB | TEM | Brandon Wilson Jahad Thomas | CB RB | HOU TEM |
| Week 3 | Keenan Reynolds | QB | NAVY | Eric Wilson | LB | CIN | Jake Elliott | K | MEM |
| Week 4 | Keenan Reynolds | QB | NAVY | William Jackson III | CB | HOU | Spencer Smith | P | MEM |
| Week 5 | Greg Ward Jr. | QB | HOU | Montese Overton | LB | E CAR | Nick Jacobs | P | MEM |
| Week 6 | Greg Ward Jr. | QB | HOU | Steven Taylor | LB | HOU | Arkeel Newsome | RB | CONN |
| Week 7 | Paxton Lynch | QB | MEM | Josh Hawkins | CB | E CAR | Demarcus Ayers | WR | HOU |
| Week 8 | Gunner Kiel | QB | CIN | Steven Taylor | LB | HOU | Jake Elliott | K | MEM |
| Week 9 | Chris Swain | FB | NAVY | Jamar Summers | CB | CONN | Alex Barta | P | NAVY |
| Week 10 | Marlon Mack | RB | USF | Elandon Roberts | LB | HOU | Andrew DiRocco | K | TUL |
| Week 11 | Noel Thomas | WR | CONN | Deatrick Nichols | CB | USF | Davis Plowman | K | ECU |
| Week 12 | Paxton Lynch | QB | MEM | Tyler Matakevich | LB | TEMP | Andrew Gantz | K | CIN |

## Awards and honors
### Conference awards

The following individuals received postseason honors as voted by the American Athletic Conference football coaches at the end of the season
2015 American Athletic Conference Individual Awards :
| Award | Recipient(s) |
| Offensive Player of the Year | Keenan Reynolds, QB, Navy |
| Defensive Player of the Year | Tyler Matakevich, LB, Temple |
| Special Teams Player of the Year | Jake Elliott, K, Memphis |
| Rookie of the Year | Tre'Quan Smith, WR, UCF |
| Coach of the Year | Tom Herman, Houston Ken Niumatalolo, Navy |
2015 All-American Athletic Conference Football Teams :
| First Team | First Team | Second Team | Second Team |
| Offense | Defense | Offense | Defense |
| WR – Demarcus Ayers, HOU WR – Keyarris Garrett, TUL OT – Parker Ehinger, CIN OT – Taylor Fallin, MEM OG – E.K. Binns, NAVY OG – Eric Lofton, TEMP C – Kyle Friend, TEMP TE – Bryce Williams, ECU QB – Paxton Lynch, MEM QB – Keenan Reynolds, NAVY RB – Marlon Mack, USF RB – Jahad Thomas, TEMP K – Jake Elliott, MEM RS – Demarcus Ayers, HOU | DL – Will Anthony, NAVY DL – Matt Ioannidis, TEMP DL – Nate D. Smith, TEMP DL – Tanzel Smart, TULN LB – Zeek Bigger, ECU LB – Elandon Roberts, HOU LB – Tyler Matakevich$^^$, TEMP LB – Nico Marley, TULN CB – Jamar Summers, CONN CB – Deatrick Nichols, USF S – Trevon Stewart, HOU S – Alex Wells, TEMP P – Spencer Smith, MEM | WR – Shaq Washington, CIN WR – Zay Jones, ECU OT – Alex Cooper, HOU OT – Dion Dawkins, TEMP OG – Ryan Leahy, CIN OG – Thor Jozwiak, USF C – Deyshawn Bond, CIN TE – Sean Price, USF QB – Greg Ward, HOU RB – Kenneth Farrow, HOU RB – Chris Swain, NAVY K – Andrew Gantz, CIN RS – Rodney Adams, USF | DL – Silverberry Mouhon, CIN DL – Julian Campenni, CONN DL – B.J. Singleton, HOU DL – Eric Lee, USF DL – Eric Wilson, CIN LB – Montese Overton, ECU LB – Steven Taylor, HOU LB – Auggie Sanchez, USF CB – William Jackson III, HOU CB – Sean Chandler, TEMP S – Andrew Adams, CONN S – Adrian McDonald, HOU P – Caleb Houston, UCF P – Mattias Ciabatti, USF |
| $^^$ - denotes unanimous selection Additional players added to the All-American teams due to ties in the voting ||||

## NFL Draft

The following list includes all AAC players who were drafted in the 2016 NFL draft.
| Player | Position | School | Draft Round | Round Pick | Overall Pick | Team |
| William Jackson III | CB | Houston | 1 | 24 | 24 | Cincinnati Bengals |
| Paxton Lynch | QB | Memphis | 1 | 26 | 26 | Denver Broncos |
| Tavon Young | CB | Temple | 4 | 6 | 104 | Baltimore Ravens |
| Parker Ehinger | OG | Cincinnati | 4 | 7 | 105 | Kansas City Chiefs |
| Chris Moore | WR | Cincinnati | 4 | 9 | 107 | Baltimore Ravens |
| Matt Ioannidis | DT | Temple | 5 | 13 | 152 | Washington Redskins |
| Keenan Reynolds | RB | Navy | 6 | 7 | 182 | Baltimore Ravens |
| Elandon Roberts | ILB | Houston | 6 | 39 | 214 | New England Patriots |
| DeMarcus Ayers | WR | Houston | 7 | 8 | 229 | Pittsburgh Steelers |
| Tyler Matakevich | OLB | Temple | 7 | 25 | 246 | Pittsburgh Steelers |

## Attendance

| Team | Stadium | Capacity | Game 1 | Game 2 | Game 3 | Game 4 | Game 5 | Game 6 | Game 7 | Total | Average | % of Capacity |
| Cincinnati | Nippert Stadium | 40,000 | 39,095 | 38,112 | 40,101 | 40,124 | 30,131 | 35,015 | — | 222,578 | 37,096 | 92.74% |
| Connecticut | Pratt & Whitney Stadium at Rentschler Field | 40,642 | 26,113 | 28,260 | 33,204 | 31,719 | 23,168 | 26,879 | — | 169,343 | 28,224 | 69.44% |
| East Carolina | Dowdy–Ficklen Stadium | 50,000 | 40,712 | 50,514 | 43,065 | 39,417 | 45,194 | 40,743 | — | 218,902 | 43,780 | 87.56% |
| Houston | TDECU Stadium | 40,000 | 30,749 | 35,257 | 25,204 | 29,565 | 32,889 | 42,159 | 40,562 | 195,553 | 32,592 | 81.48% |
| Memphis | Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium | 59,308 | 41,740 | 45,172 | 60,241 | 30,381 | 55,212 | 30,075 | — | 232,736 | 46,547 | 78.48% |
| Navy | Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium | 34,000 | 28,015 | 34,717 | 32,705 | 32,033 | 26,766 | 35,778 | — | 190,014 | 31,669 | 93.14% |
| SMU | Gerald J. Ford Stadium | 32,000 | 32,047 | 25,401 | 22,314 | 17,136 | 18,217 | 17,232 | 14,954 | 147,301 | 21,043 | 65.76% |
| South Florida | Raymond James Stadium | 65,890 | 30,034 | 22,546 | 27,235 | 39,417 | 28,393 | 26,522 | — | 159,468 | 26,578 | 40.34% |
| Temple | Lincoln Financial Field | 69,176 | 69,176 | 35,179 | 31,372 | 69,280 | 31,708 | 28,236 | — | 236,715 | 47,343 | 68.44% |
| Tulane | Yulman Stadium | 30,000 | 25,470 | 21,114 | 20,024 | 21,522 | 26,775 | 22,672 | — | 137,577 | 22,930 | 76.43% |
| Tulsa | Skelly Field at H. A. Chapman Stadium | 30,000 | 24,001 | 17,146 | 17,490 | 20,216 | 16,128 | 22,749 | — | 117,730 | 19,622 | 65.41% |
| UCF | Bright House Networks Stadium | 44,206 | 39,184 | 36,484 | 26,669 | 28,350 | 23,734 | 25,967 | — | 180,388 | 30,065 | 68.01% |
^* Games highlighted in green were sell-outs.