East Carolina was a perfect 4-0 outside the league with two victories each over Big East and Atlantic Conference foes. Memphis played Southeastern Conference teams tougher than it did teams in its own league. There's more, much more, but you get the idea. But there's also a problem, a big one, where C-USA is concerned. Conference USA is gaining more notoriety nationally than it is at home.
Attendance still lags far behind the more established leagues.
Seems to me, C-USA suffers somewhat of an identity crisis. That is, many C-USA fans or potential fans identify more with SEC competition than with teams within their own league. Cincinnati is shadowed by the Big 10, East Carolina by the Atlantic Coast Conference. There's another conference's shadow over every C-USA member's stadium. In Memphis, fans pack the house for Ole Miss and Tennessee, but not for Southern Miss and Louisville.