Newport, R.I. - Commissioner Mike Aresco believes the American Athletic Conference, based on its accomplishments in its first year, belongs among the power conferences.

And a defiant Aresco drove home his point during his State of the AAC address at the conference's football media day Tuesday at the Hyatt Regency in Newport.

The NCAA is strongly considering a new governance structure that would give the five major conferences - Atlantic Coast, Big Ten, Big 12, Southeastern and Pac-12 - more power and autonomy.

"We all hear a lot about Power 5 conferences, the Equity 5, the High Resource 5, the Group of 5, the Autonomy 5, whatever you choose to call them, and we consider ourselves a power conference as well," Aresco said. "We're not going to take a backseat to anyone.

"We see the landscape as five plus one and we're knocking on the door. Our goal is to be in the conversation as the sixth power conference. I believe by virtue of our performance that we already are.

"… We hear that the new NCAA governance system which allows autonomy in limited areas to the Equity 5 Conferences will cause us somehow to be left behind, that resources of those conferences are simply too great. That we will not be able to keep up and compete.

"I don't buy that for a minute and what we did this year proves it."

The AAC made a statement in its first season. Central Florida won the Fiesta Bowl, beating Big 12 champion Baylor. UConn won national championships in men's and women's basketball while the Huskies also captured a national title in field hockey.

Twenty-one AAC teams in all sports produced a combined 34 NCAA postseason bids.

"We're now a strong and nationally admired conference," Aresco said. "I won't be using the term 'reinvented' anymore. Although we are now established and have had significant early triumphs, our work is just beginning.

"… If I sounded defiant at times today, it is because I was and I am. I scoff at the term 'non power conference' applied to us. Our student athletes are powerful, they've proven it, they've competed and they've won. They're going to continue to do so."

AAC football programs are conscious about the need to play competitive non-conference schedules in order for the conference to continue to make its case.

Cincinnati, for example, is visiting both Ohio State and Miami this fall. Central Florida opens the season against Penn State in Ireland.

"We're kind of on the outside looking in in terms of the BCS," Cincinnati coach Tommy Tuberville said. "Not that we can't get there. Not that any of us are locked out.

"We have to understand that we have to make a statement not only with our schedules but how we play our schedules, how we play in the games and as a group, as a whole, not just one or two teams."

"…. We can compete with everybody. I've looked and studied the athletes in our conference. The only difference in our conference and a lot of other conferences is the name of the conference. Anybody in our conference can beat anybody in any other conference year in and year out."

Cochran fighting for starting job

Red-shirt sophomore Casey Cochran, a former New London High School standout, is entering preseason camp in great condition and in the fight for a starting job. Practice begins on Saturday.

He's lost about 30 pounds, checking in at 217.

"Casey is your quintessential leader," coach Bob Diaco said. "He's the moxie. He's the swagger, the guts guys that's going to will the group down the field. But he's got to work on his foot speed. He had to work on his body composition.

"… He's working on his liabilities - arm strength, foot speed, change of direction."

Last season, Cochran appeared more games than any other quarterback in the rotation, throwing for 1,293 yards and 11 touchdowns in eight games. Tim Boyle played in five games, throwing for 621 yards without any touchdown passes, while Chandler Whitmer threw for 896 yards and five touchdowns in four games.

Diaco said he wouldn't rule out using two quarterbacks on a regular basis.

"We're going to have an open competition for the next two weeks," Diaco said.

Preseason poll

Cincinnati enters the season as the favorite, receiving 17 first place votes in preseason football media poll. The Bearcats went 9-4 overall and earned a bowl berth in Tuberville's first season.

Tuberville pointed out that the media selected Louisville last year to win the conference. Central Florida won the regular season title.

UCF had seven first place votes and Houston six to place second and third, respectively. East Carolina is fourth and SMU fifth.

USF is sixth, Memphis seventh, Temple eighth, UConn and Tulane tied for ninth and Tulsa 11th.

Tulane, East Carolina and Tulsa are AAC newcomers. Louisville and Rutgers moved to the Atlantic Coast Conference and Big Ten, respectively.

g.keefe@theday.com