American Week Five Preview
UCF (3-0) hosts No. 13 South Carolina (2-1, 1-1 SEC) for the first time in school history. The Knights have not started 4-0 since 1988, when they called the Citrus Bowl their home stadium. A win would give UCF its second-ever win over a ranked squad, and its first win over South Carolina in four tries. Both teams had byes in week four.
South Florida (0-3) welcomes No. 15 Miami (3-0) to Tampa for the third time in five seasons. Miami took care of business in week four, scoring a school-record 77 points against Savannah State, while USF was idle following a loss to Florida Atlantic. Miami has won four-of-five all-time meetings against the Bulls, with the lone loss coming at home in 2010.
In-state rivals SMU (1-2) and TCU (1-2, 0-1 Big 12) meet for the 91st time on the gridiron. The Mustangs defeated TCU the last time the teams met in Fort Worth in 2011, but the Horned Frogs have claimed five of the last six, overall. SMU and TCU have both lost to Texas Tech in the early weeks of the season with the Mustangs falling 41-23 at home in week one, and TCU suffering a 20-10 setback on the road in week three.
Connecticut (0-3) makes its first road trip of the season, traveling to face MAC-foe Buffalo (1-2). UConn played its best game of the season in week four, but suffered a tough defeat at home against No. 15 Michigan, while Buffalo has had two weeks to recover from a five-overtime win to Stony Brook. The Huskies have won eight-straight over the Bulls dating back to 2001.
Houston (3-0, 1-0 AAC) travels west to face UTSA (2-2, 1-0 C-USA) at the Alamodome. The Cougars have used a balanced offensive attack to remain one of three undefeated teams in The American heading into week five. Houston ranks in the top 25 in the FBS in both passing yards (296.3/game) and rushing yards (252.0/game). Saturday’s matchup will mark the first meeting between the Cougars and Roadrunners.
Temple (0-3, 0-1 AAC) heads across the country for a matchup with Idaho (0-4). The Owls are coming off a bye week after a one-point home loss to Fordham in week three. Temple faces an Idaho squad that has allowed more than 40 points in every game this season.