2013 American Athletic Conference football season
The 2013 American Athletic Conference football season was the 23rd NCAA Division I FBS football season of the American Athletic Conference (The American). The season was the first after the breakup of the former Big East Conference, which lasted in its original form from its creation in 1979 until July 2013. The charter of the former Big East was retained by The American, henceforth the legal status as the 23rd season overall.
| 2013 American Athletic Conference football season | |
|---|---|
| League | NCAA Division I FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) |
| Sport | Football |
| Duration | August 29, 2013 through January 1, 2014 |
| Number of teams | 10 |
| TV partner(s) | ESPN |
| 2014 NFL Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Blake Bortles (UCF) |
| Picked by | Jacksonville Jaguars, 3rd overall |
| Regular season | |
| Champion | UCF |
| Conf | Overall | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Team | W | L | W | L | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 10 UCF $ | 8 | – | 0 | 12 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| No. 15 Louisville | 7 | – | 1 | 12 | – | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cincinnati | 6 | – | 2 | 9 | – | 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Houston | 5 | – | 3 | 8 | – | 5 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| SMU | 4 | – | 4 | 5 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Rutgers | 3 | – | 5 | 6 | – | 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| UConn | 3 | – | 5 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| South Florida | 2 | – | 6 | 2 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Memphis | 1 | – | 7 | 3 | – | 9 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Temple | 1 | – | 7 | 2 | – | 10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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UCF as The American's Champion earned the league's last automatic berth for a BCS Bowl Game. Following the 2013 college football season, the BCS (1998–2013) will be replaced by a four team playoff system. Starting in 2014, The American will lose its Automatic Qualifier (AQ) status, and fall into the "Group of Five" with Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference, Mountain West Conference, and the Sun Belt Conference.
In its first year, the conference consisted of 10 football members: Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Louisville, Memphis, Rutgers, SMU, South Florida, Temple, and UCF. Conference members began regular-season play on August 29 when UCF hosted Akron. Conference play started on September 7 when Temple hosted Houston. The regular season concluded on December 7. The following match-ups were not seen in conference play in 2013: Cincinnati–UCF, Connecticut–Houston, Louisville–SMU, Memphis–Rutgers, and South Florida–Temple. Louisville–SMU and Memphis–Rutgers will not be seen in any year in The American play as Louisville and Rutgers are leaving for the ACC and Big Ten, respectively, in 2014.