The football staff is taking a final break this week before preseason camp gets underway. Players will report on Sunday, July 27, and workouts are scheduled to commence the following day.

The American Athletic Conference will be holding its annual football media days at the Charlotte Convention Center on Thursday and Friday, July 24-25. There will be live coverage of the event on Friday from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on ESPN+.

East Carolina coach Blake Harrell will be accompanied by defensive lineman Ryheem Craig and quarterback Katin Houser for the event. Both had productive seasons for the Pirates in 2024 after transferring.

Craig came from Louisville and started all 13 games in ECU’s 8-5 season.  He played 502 snaps, including 25 on special teams. He was in on 53 tackles, including 18 solo stops with six tackles for loss.

Houser arrived from Michigan State and became the starter at midseason. He helped the Pirates to a 5-1 record when Harrell was promoted from defensive coordinator to head coach.

The AAC preseason poll likely will be announced in conjunction with the media kickoff.

Here’s what my ballot looks like:

1, South Florida … The Bulls were 7-6 last season with a 41-39 Hawaii Bowl win over San Jose State. There are two senior quarterbacks with experience among six returners on each side of the ball. Byrum Brown is back after a knee injury sidelined him last year.  His back-up, Bryce Archie, helped USF to a 5-3 finish. Martin Gramatica had three field goals over 50 yards last season, including a 58 yarder so the offensive will have scoring range. Punter Andrew Stokes had a 45.4-yard average so he can impact field position. Five starters are back in the offensive front. Cartevious Norton, who ran for 88 yards on 10 carries with two touchdowns in Charlotte’s 55-24 win over the Pirates, has transferred to USF. An aggressive defense ranked sixth nationally in tackles for losses last year. The Bulls have an opportunity to prove themselves early with trips to Florida and Miami but will not meet ECU in the regular season.

2, Navy … Eight starters are back on offense, including quarterback Blake Horvath, and four on defense. The Midshipmen will get South Florida at home on Nov.15 but that will be after trips to North Texas and Notre Dame while the Bulls will have a 9-day break after a Thursday nighter at home against Texas San Antonio. There are voids to fill on a defense that allowed just 22.2 points per game, but the portal isn’t an option because Navy doesn’t take transfers. Navy started 6-0 last season before getting bounced by Notre Dame, 51-14. This year’s schedule doesn’t have an opponent with a winning record in 2024 until the Fighting Irish on Nov. 8. The Army game in Baltimore on Dec. 13 won’t count in the AAC standings.

3, East Carolina … It will be a while before the Pirates’ focus narrows to league play. Obviously, there’s the Military Bowl rematch at N.C. State in the opener. Campbell is a dangerous second game in a position to be taken for granted, particularly after the emotion that goes into playing the Wolfpack. If the ensuing trip to Coastal Carolina is anything like the budding rivalry in baseball, that contest will surely be a challenge. Then Brigham Young comes to Greenville after an 11-2 season. Then Army at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium, following a 12-2 campaign that included the AAC championship. The good news as far as ECU is concerned, regarding BYU and Army, is that neither will return its starting quarterback.  The Pirates don’t play Navy, which has become a nemesis, in the regular season. The schedule relents, it would appear, after an AAC week two trip to Tulane. Houser appears to have capable targets and there is potential in the running game although Rahjai Harris is gone. Some talented defense linemen have exited as well with Craig the exception. The end of the 2024 season seemed to restore confidence within the program and fan base.

4, Tulane … The Green Wave is rated higher in some publications but there are red flags like the departure of All-AAC running back Makhi Hughes to Oregon and the exit of quarterback Darian Mensah to Duke. Ironically, Tulane will host the Blue Devils on Sept. 13. The Wave opens the season at home against Northwestern and there is a steep test at Ole Miss on Sept. 20. There are only two starters back on offense and just three on defense from a 9-5 team that dropped its last three. The portal has been the source of replacements including running back Maurice Turner from Louisville,

5, Army … Bryson Daily set a Football Bowl Subdivision record with 32 rushing touchdowns, which creates a sizeable void. There are four starters back on offense and five on defense with a Sept. 8 challenge at Kansas State before the AAC opener at home against North Texas on Sept. 20 before a Thursday night game at ECU on Sept. 25. The key for the Cadets will be to continue controlling the clock, which helps the defense. Dewayne Coleman started one game last season when Daily was sidelined and the Black Knights won, 20-3, at Air Force. So there is hooe that recent success under Jeff Monken can be sustained.

6, Memphis … The Tigers have a high degree of winning tradition but the cupboard is extremely bare in terms of returning experience with two starters on offense and one on defense from an 11-2 team. Nevada transfer Brendon Lewis projects as the leader at quarterback. Running back Sutton Sandy never got going in 2024 due to a knee injury and the receiving corps is new to the program. There is a Sept. 20 matchup at home against Arkansas before embarking on an AAC schedule that includes USF, Tulane, ECU and Navy over the last five games.

7, Texas San Antonio … The Roadrunners are one of the most decimated programs in the country when it comes to returning starters on defense with zero. That’s quite a contrast with the offense, which has 11 starters back, including Owen McCown at quarterback. Texas A&M will be a huge measuring stick in the first game on Aug. 30 in College Station. UTSA won four of its last five with a 44-15 win over Coastal Carolina to finish 7-6.

8, North Texas … The Mean Green did a 180 after a 5-1 start to finish 6-7 with a 40-28 Senior Day loss to the Pirates and a 30-28 First Responder Bowl loss to Texas State, Reese Poffenbarger has transferred in after serving as back-up to Cam Ward at Miami. He will compete with Drew Mestremaker, who had 448 yards of total offense in the bowl game. The defense has three starters back from a unit that was 128th nationally in yards allowed (460.5) per game. The nonconference slate is highlighted by a home game with Washington State on Sept. 13.

The AAC was a league of have and have nots in 2024 and that looks like it will be the case this season. The teams above made bowl games. The teams below did not and have work to do to be involved in the postseason in 2025.

9, Charlotte … New coach Tim Albin has just one starter back in each side of the ball with a nonconference schedule that includes Appalachian State at home on Aug. 29, North Carolina at home on Sept. 6 and a trip to Georgia on Nov. 22. The competition at quarterback includes transfers Grayson Loftis from Duke and Conner Harrell from UNC. The 49ers will bring a 2-0 series record to ECU on Nov. 8.

10, Florida Atlantic … There is one starter back for new coach Zach Kittley, who will count on Western Kentucky transfer Caden Veltkamp at quarterback.

11, Temple … First-year coach K.C. Keeler inherits returning starter Evan Simon at quarterback.

12, Alabama Birmingham … Trent Dilfer has Jalen Kitna returning at quarterback from a 3-9 team. The  Blazers go to Tennessee on Sept. 20.

13, Tulsa, … Another new coach, Tre Lamb, working to get things turned around from a losing season (3-9) but with a more manageable nonconference schedule.