The AAC is performing tremendously on the field, with Houston, Memphis and Temple remaining undefeated and likely to stay that way at least another week thanks to the Owls' fourth-quarter comeback against East Carolina last night.
But the Rivals recruiting rankings don't bear out Mike Aresco's contention that the AAC is closer to the Power Five conferences than the other Group of Five leagues are to the AAC. I understand the rankings can be skewed to the power programs, whose individual sites have the most subscribers and whose publishers have the most clout, but they are still relevant.
At this point, Houston, which is ranked 42, is the only AAC program with a four-star commitment (it has two). The Cougars also have eight 3-star commitments.
SMU is ranked 50th based on quantity rather than quality. The Mustangs have 23 commitments, but 19 of them are 2-star guys and the other four are 3-star guys.
Tulane is third in a tie for 74th with 18 commitments and two 3-star guys, followed by USF (77th), Cincinnati (78th), Memphis (87th), East Carolina and Navy (tie for 89th), Temple (92nd), Tulsa (94th), UConn (100th) and UCF (106th). USF has seven 3-star guys in its 10 commitments, but no one else other than Houston has more than SMU's four 3-star recruits.
With classes being completed earlier every year, the low ratings are surprising to me. Any thoughts?
But the Rivals recruiting rankings don't bear out Mike Aresco's contention that the AAC is closer to the Power Five conferences than the other Group of Five leagues are to the AAC. I understand the rankings can be skewed to the power programs, whose individual sites have the most subscribers and whose publishers have the most clout, but they are still relevant.
At this point, Houston, which is ranked 42, is the only AAC program with a four-star commitment (it has two). The Cougars also have eight 3-star commitments.
SMU is ranked 50th based on quantity rather than quality. The Mustangs have 23 commitments, but 19 of them are 2-star guys and the other four are 3-star guys.
Tulane is third in a tie for 74th with 18 commitments and two 3-star guys, followed by USF (77th), Cincinnati (78th), Memphis (87th), East Carolina and Navy (tie for 89th), Temple (92nd), Tulsa (94th), UConn (100th) and UCF (106th). USF has seven 3-star guys in its 10 commitments, but no one else other than Houston has more than SMU's four 3-star recruits.
With classes being completed earlier every year, the low ratings are surprising to me. Any thoughts?