2017 American Athletic Conference Leaders First Downs - Games in August/September Only through 01/08/2018
| Name | G | Rush | Pass | Penalty | Total | Total/G | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | South Florida | 5 | 81 | 42 | 12 | 135 | 27.0 |
| 2 | SMU | 5 | 50 | 59 | 14 | 123 | 24.6 |
| 3 | Tulsa | 5 | 68 | 35 | 12 | 115 | 23.0 |
| 4 | East Carolina | 5 | 29 | 68 | 17 | 114 | 22.8 |
| 5 | Navy | 4 | 80 | 9 | 4 | 93 | 23.3 |
| 6 | Cincinnati | 5 | 28 | 51 | 13 | 92 | 18.4 |
| 7 | Memphis | 4 | 29 | 48 | 14 | 91 | 22.8 |
| 8 | Houston | 4 | 29 | 51 | 8 | 88 | 22.0 |
| 9 | Connecticut | 4 | 27 | 48 | 11 | 86 | 21.5 |
| 10 | Temple | 5 | 27 | 50 | 6 | 83 | 16.6 |
| 11 | UCF | 3 | 33 | 32 | 11 | 76 | 25.3 |
| 12 | Tulane | 4 | 49 | 18 | 5 | 72 | 18.0 |