2018 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game

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DateDecember 1, 2018
Season2018
LocationOrlando, FL
2018 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game
4th AAC Championship Game
Championship Game Logo
1234 Total
Memphis 241430 41
UCF 7141421 56
DateDecember 1, 2018
Season2018
StadiumSpectrum Stadium
LocationOrlando, FL
MVPDarriel Mack Jr., QB, UCF
FavoriteUCF by 1
Attendance45,176
United States TV coverage
NetworkABC
AnnouncersBob Wischusen (Play-By-Play)
Brock Huard (Analyst)
Allison Williams (Sidelines)
American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game
 < 2017  2019 > 
2018 American Athletic Conference football standings
Conf.Overall
Team W L  W L 
East Division
No. 11 UCF x$  8 0   12 1  
Temple  7 1   8 5  
No. 24 Cincinnati  6 2   11 2  
South Florida  3 5   7 6  
East Carolina  1 7   3 9  
UConn  0 8   1 11  
West Division
Memphis xy  5 3   8 6  
Houston x  5 3   8 5  
Tulane x  5 3   7 6  
SMU  4 4   5 7  
Navy  2 6   3 10  
Tulsa  2 6   3 9  
Championship: UCF 56, Memphis 41
  • $ Conference champion
  • x Division champion/co-champions
  • y Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2018 American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game was an NCAA Division I college football conference championship game for the American Athletic Conference (AAC) played on December 1, 2018.[1] It was the 4th American Athletic Conference Championship, and was played at Spectrum Stadium in Orlando, Florida.[2]

UCF hosted Memphis, the second consecutive year the Knights hosted the Tigers in the American Athletic Conference Football Championship Game, and fourth meeting between the two schools in the past two seasons. With starting quarterback McKenzie Milton out for the season, the Knights rallied from a 17-point halftime deficit behind back-up quarterback Darriel Mack Jr. and won the conference championship for the second year in a row, and fourth time overall.

Memphis

Under the leadership of third-year head coach Mike Norvell, the Memphis Tigers entered the American Championship with a record of 8–4, 5–3 in conference play. They started the season 3–2, with both losses in-conference (at Navy, at Tulane). They rebounded by annihilating Connecticut at home, but then lost to No. 10 UCF. Following a non-conference loss the following week, the Tigers improved on their 4–4 record by winning all four of their remaining games, giving them a four-game win streak coming into their American title game rematch with the Knights.

UCF

With first-year head coach Josh Heupel at the helm, the No. 7 Knights entered the American title game riding a 24-game win streak dating back to the start of their 2017 season. Prior to the contest, their record stood at 11–0, 8–0 in conference play. The Knights opened the season ranked 21st in the AP poll, but steadily improved with wins over Connecticut, Pittsburgh, Memphis, Temple, No. 19 Cincinnati, and South Florida. The Knights entered the AAC Championship with a 12–1 record all-time against the Tigers; Memphis won their first meeting in 1990 and UCF took every matchup since. However, they faced a potentially devastating blow when the quarterback who had led them through their ongoing winning streak, McKenzie Milton, suffered a catastrophic knee injury in the South Florida game.

Game summary

Scoring summary

References

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