The Athletic wrote a story last week, predicting how a Big Ten-SEC college football challenge might fare. I’m shamelessly stealing the idea, looking at the AAC vs. the Sun Belt instead. 

Why’d I go with the AAC over the Mountain West to square off with the Sun Belt? 

Even though there’s a good case going into the year that the MWC and SBC are the two best Group of Five conferences, the AAC isn’t far behind, if it’s behind at all. All three have worthy College Football Playoff contenders, and the top of the AAC is just as good (if not better) than every G5 league.

Also, I wanted to include all 14 teams from the SBC in the hypothetical cross-conference challenge. The AAC has 14 teams, and the MWC does not. There’s a little more geographic proximity between the two leagues as well, making a cross-conference challenge slightly more likely. 

I assumed (for the sake of fairness) that these games were played at neutral sites. Matchups were determined by preseason conference predictions. 

Memphis vs. App State

Two of the top candidates to earn the Group of Five’s 2024 College Football Playoff berth square off in our first matchup. This game screams shootout, with arguably two of the best Group of Five quarterbacks on each side. Seth Henigan has over 10,000 career passing yards for Memphis, and App State’s Joey Aguilar exploded for 33 passing touchdowns and 3,700 yards last fall. 

Defensively, both teams have some questions. I’m slightly more bullish on Memphis defensively, given the returning production and a few incredible transfer additions. Memphis added Elijah Herring at linebacker, who led Tennessee in tackles with 80 last season. Elon defensive back Jaidyn Denis is a nice addition, too. Both of these teams are really good. 

Memphis 38, App State 34

UTSA vs. Texas State

The Roadrunners and Texas State will play at Texas State on Sept. 7 in a pseudo-playoff elimination game of sorts. Fortunately, not all of these cross-conference matchups are hypothetical!

Texas State’s defense is a major question mark, but good lord, the offense should hum. GJ Kinne’s squad has three First-Team All-Sun Belt players, including quarterback Jordan McCloud and running back Ismail Mahdi. 

UTSA loses Frank Harris at quarterback, but the Roadrunners are 39-14 under Jeff Traylor. There are questions at quarterback, but it’s hard not to like just about every other position group. 

UTSA 41, Texas State 31

Tulane vs. JMU

I love Jon Sumrall, who joins Tulane after a successful stint at Troy. Tulane should be immediately competitive in 2024, although they lose Michael Pratt at quarterback and much of the secondary, they did well in the portal. Oregon transfer Ty Thompson could be a standout at quarterback, and the defensive backfield now includes a boatload of transfers with game. 

Bob Chesney comes to JMU after historic success at Holy Cross. Like Sumrall, he inherits a top-tier G5 program replacing a lot of talent. Fortunately, he also had a successful transfer portal haul. 

The Dukes added notable Power Five talent at quarterback (Dylan Morris, Washington), running back (George Pettaway), and defensive line (Terry Lockett, Syracuse). A number of well-respected G5 and FCS transfers, including Holy Cross linebacker Jacob Dobbs, should have the Dukes competing atop the Sun Belt East yet again in 2024.

Both these teams might be a year away from College Football Playoff contention, but the Dukes have a slight edge in 2024, in my eyes.

JMU 27, Tulane 21

South Florida vs. Troy

Losing Sumrall is a massive blow for Troy, which returns just a handful of starters. There’s a good case that the Trojans were overrated in the preseason Sun Belt poll, leading to this matchup. 

South Florida, on the other hand, is a dark-horse AAC title contender after posting seven wins in Alex Golesh’s first season at the helm. South Florida quarterback Byrum Brown is a matchup nightmare. 

South Florida 38, Troy 17

Army vs. Coastal Carolina

We’ve seen this game in 2022 (Coastal win) and 2023 (Army win), so it’s only fitting that these two squads meet again in our hypothetical. I’ll keep this one simple: I think both teams are possible bowl programs in 2024, but neither roster looks good enough to contend for a conference title. 

I like Jeff Monken as a head coach more than Tim Beck, so I’ll take Army in a close game. 

Army 24, Coastal Carolina 21

Florida Atlantic vs. Louisiana

I like Louisiana’s roster this fall, with the Ragin’ Cajuns returning a balanced group. Texas State is the sexy pick to win the Sun Belt West given the offensive firepower, but Louisiana looks solid on both sides of the ball. 

As for Florida Atlantic, I’d only expect the Owls to improve after going 4-8 in Tom Herman’s first season. I’m not sold on Marshall transfer Cam Fancher at quarterback, though. 

Louisiana 28, FAU 17

East Carolina vs. Arkansas State

Maybe my favorite AAC-SBC matchup outside the top few games, both of these teams enter 2024 with seemingly unbridled optimism. 

East Carolina needs minor offensive improvement to lean on its elite defense and make a bowl game. Arkansas State quarterback Jaylon Raynor has wild talent for a sophomore and could make the Red Wolves a legit Sun Belt West threat. 

Arkansas State 24, ECU 17

Rice vs. South Alabama

Both of these teams are flying under-the-radar entering 2024. South Alabama could develop into a surprise success after struggling in close games last year, but coaching turnover is a question. Can Major Applewhite succeed as the program’s head coach?

Rice has been respectable in recent seasons, and I like that Mike Bloomgren has the program making minor strides forward every season. 

Rice 31, South Alabama 28

North Texas vs. Georgia Southern

Points, points, points! Chandler Morris comes to North Texas from TCU, and he should be fine running this high-powered offensive system. 

Clay Helton returns a bunch of All-Sun Belt talent, but has questions at quarterback for Georgia Southern. If one of the quarterbacks turns out to be decent, Georgia Southern will contend for the Sun Belt East this fall. Both of these teams have entertaining offensive philosophies.

Georgia Southern 52, North Texas 31

UAB vs. Marshall

UAB could make a bowl game in Year 2 with Trent Dilfer, as the offense could be strong with Jacob Zeno back at quarterback. I’m not sold on the defense. 

Marshall is desperately seeking improved offense, going to an Air Raid system this season. Still, the Thundering Herd’s talent level is among the best in the Sun Belt, especially on defense. I love the Thundering Herd’s defensive front, including edge rusher Mike Green. 

Marshall 24, UAB 20

Navy vs. Old Dominion

I love this clash of offensive styles, and I’m excited about Navy’s potential with Drew Cronic as offensive coordinator. Navy might start throwing the ball more! 

Old Dominion has a few standout individuals, including linebacker Jason Henderson. But do the Monarchs have enough team depth to regularly beat good teams?

Navy 34, ODU 24

Tulsa vs. Southern Miss

We’ve reached, “Do I need to watch this game?” territory. 

Southern Miss 21, Tulsa 17

Charlotte vs. Georgia State

Stop me if you’ve heard this before: Biff Poggi brought in a lot of Power Five transfers. Let’s see if it pays off this time around. As for Georgia State, just about everyone in the college football landscape expects a rebuild after a strong 2023 followed by massive coaching and roster turnover. 

Charlotte 20, Georgia State 17

Temple vs. ULM

Avert your eyes! 

Temple 24, ULM 10

Final record: AAC wins the 14-team challenge 8-6. 

Takeaways: I love the top of the AAC, with UTSA and Memphis among the most promising Group of Five teams in the country. As for the Sun Belt, the top is strong, but the middle of the conference is what could make this season so intriguing. Teams like Arkansas State, Marshall, and Georgia Southern could turn out to be some of the better squads in the G5. 

The bottom of each league has clear weaknesses. If this challenge ever happened, it’d lead to a week of great football.