For the past two years, Conference USA officials have been working behind the scenes to put together a conference championship game. They're in the midst of debating expansion, and they already have a television contract to broadcast the event.

But this season, the football teams at Louisville and East Carolina have done the job for them. They are the only unbeaten teams left in C-USA, two games ahead of the rest of the league in the loss column with just two games left to play.

And they will meet in Greenville, N.C. Thursday (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN) to decide the de facto league championship. While both teams have a game after Thursday's monster matchup, the winner will hold the upper hand for the league's top bowl berth -- the AXA Liberty Bowl on Dec. 31.

	John L. Smith and Louisville are ranked in the top-20, but still an underdog to East Carolina.

"This is what we've worked a year for," Louisville coach John L. Smith said, recalling last season's 28-25 loss to East Carolina in Louisville. "How rare is it that you get a chance to play one game for a championship, and have that game be on national television. It's a huge game for us, and a huge game for our league."

At 9-1 overall and 5-0 in C-USA, Louisville hasn't lost a conference game since last Nov. 14 when East Carolina beat the Cardinals. In fact, that game is the only C-USA game that Louisville junior quarterback Dave Ragone has lost as a starter -- and it also is the only game he hasn't finished, having been knocked out with a shoulder injury in the first half.

The Cardinals are ranked 19th nationally, but still go into Greenville a slight underdog. That's a testament to East Carolina's toughness. The Pirates (6-3, 5-0) three losses this season came to respectable opponents -- Wake Forest, North Carolina and Syracuse. In between those, they have become the most potent offensive team in C-USA, blending big-play potential with the powerful running of senior running back Leonard Henry, the nation's No. 3 rusher at 142 yards per game.

"My take on this whole deal is that there's another game next week that is absolutely huge against a team (Southern Mississippi) that's just as good as Louisville," Logan said. "We've got to stay real linear in our thinking, and we have to stay on the dot, and the dot is Louisville."

The dot may be Louisville, but the goal is a conference championship. ECU has had one of the best programs in C-USA the past three seasons, but has not won a C-USA title. Last season, Louisville took the championship that was to have been the Pirates' when ECU lost 16-13 to UAB after time ran out following a play that got them to the UAB 16-yard line.

"We felt like we were one play short of a conference championship," Logan said. Louisville, meanwhile, has a chance to establish itself as the league's new dominant force. The Cardinals appear to be peaking at the right time -- albeit against opponents in their past two games (Tulane and Houston) that have made most of their opponents look like powerhouses this season.

The Cardinals have the best conference record of any team in C-USA the past four seasons (19-5) and Ragone is 11-1 in C-USA play as a starter.

The last time Louisville went to ECU, it came away with a 63-45 victory. This time, it is the ECU offense that comes into the game with a reputation. Louisville's challenge will be to stop a big-play machine that looks to throw deep or run long at least once on every possession, and has been devastatingly effective doing it. Louisville, meanwhile, will hope its defense will continue the roll that has seen it allow just five touchdowns over the past five games to climb to the No. 7 national ranking in scoring defense. The Cardinals also will hope to use their speedy and talented receivers to give their defense some breathing room.

ECU has jumped out to 20-point-plus leads in each of its past two games, only to have to hold off last-drive rallies by opponents that could have been game-winners if successful. That's exactly how the Pirates beat Louisville last season.

"We can't let them get the big play, and we can't let them get off to the big start," Smith said. "We need to make them work for everything. Hopefully, it will be a good ball game."

Either way, it's a game C-USA has been waiting for.

Around Conference USA

Army
After some promising performances, Army let one get away in falling to Buffalo on Saturday, 26-19, and head coach Todd Berry was livid. "I've never been so frustrated as what I was today," Berry said. "I've never been upset in my coaching career as I am right now because this shouldn't happen. We finally had a game in two years that we were favored in and we couldn't handle the pressure, bottom line." ... On Saturday, Army visits Memphis for just the second time in its history. ... Senior TE Clint Dodson's six receptions gave him 77 career catches to move into fifth place on the Academy's all-time list. Dodson has a team-high and career-high 39 receptions this year, which is the 10th-highest single season total in Army history. ... Senior QB Curtis Zervic replaced the injured Chad Jenkins in the third quarter and completed 16-of-24 passes for 186 yards and a touchdown. ... With 89 all-purpose yards on Saturday, senior Omari Thompson has 3,157 in his career, just 30 yards shy of moving into fourth place on the Black Knights' all-time chart. ... Junior DT Clarence Holmes recorded a pair of sacks against Buffalo, giving him six on the season. The six sacks are the third-best single season total at Army, one sack shy of the mark held by Jim Slomka (1993) and Zac Hurst (1999).

Cincinnati
A second-half rally fell just short as Groza Award-winning kicker Jonathan Ruffin's 52-yard field goal try in the closing seconds didn't have the distance as the Bearcats lost to East Carolina on Saturday, 28-26. ... Cincinnati had rallied from a 28-3 halftime deficit. ... True freshman QB George Murray played the second half in place of fellow freshman Gino Guidugli (injured shoulder) and went 6-of-9 for 86 yards, while rushing 21 times for 54 yards and a pair of touchdowns. ... With the Bearcats off this week, coach Rick Minter hopes Guidugli will be able to return for a Nov. 24 game against Memphis. ... Junior RB DeMarco McCleskey gained 97 yards on 18 carries to increase his career total to 1,988 yards, ninth-best total in school history. ... With 124 career catches, junior WR LaDaris Vann needs just one more to tie Marlon Pearce (1990-92) for the school's all-time lead. His 1,639 receiving yards moves him into fifth place. ... Ruffin hit two field goals ! on Saturday, giving him 40 in his career, one shy of the school record held by Eric Richards (1994-97). ... With 8.5 sacks this season and 17 in his career, junior DE Antwan Peek needs just one sack to break the school record for both categories.

Houston
There still isn't much good news for Houston, which extended its losing streak to 13 games dating back to last season with a 34-10 blowout loss at Louisville on Saturday in which the Cardinals pulled their starters after three quarters. ... One bright spot was the return of junior QB Kelly Robertson, who had missed the previous four games with an injured wrist. He returned to complete 16 of 30 passes for 157 yards. ... Another positive was junior RB Joffrey Reynolds, who surpassed 100 yards rushing for the fourth time this season with 19 carries for 114 yards. ... Senior WR Orlando Iglesias had a pair of receptions on Saturday and needs just four more to move into second place on UH's all-time reception list. Iglesias has caught at least one pass in 41 consecutive games, the fourth-longest current streak in Division I-A. ... Houston plays host to UAB Saturday in its final home game of the season. The Cougars still must travel to Georgia for their season finale.

Memphis
The Tigers, known for throwing scares into cross-state rival Tennessee, were never a threat on Saturday, losing to the No. 6 Vols 49-28 in Knoxville. ... Tennessee jumped to a 49-7 lead, then Memphis coach Tommy West lifted starting quarterback Neil Suber for redshirt freshman Danny Wimprine, who led the Tigers to three consecutive touchdown drives in the fourth quarter. ... Memphis lost at No. 6 Tennessee on Saturday, 49-28. ... Junior S Glenn Sumter picked off his fifth pass of the season, which moved him into fourth place on the school's career interception list with 12. He also registered a career high 18 tackles (11 solo) and a pair of pass breakups. ... Sophomore transfer DE Albert Means returned to action after missing the previous two games with a mild case of pneumonia. ... Travis Anglin's 10-yard TD reception with 3:59 to play was the first career touchdown reception for the former Tiger quarterback. ... Memphis finishes its season with a pair of conference home games, beginning Saturday with Army.

Southern Miss
Southern Miss, uncharacteristically, is out of the C-USA championship picture. But the Golden Eagles still are very much in the hunt for a bowl bid with four games still remaining and a 4-3 record. ... The Eagles were idle last week, and host Tulane this week. ... Southern Miss has won its past two games against the Green Wave by an average of 31 points and has won six of the past seven in the series. ... In their 38-20 loss at Penn State on Nov. 3, senior QB Jeff Kelly (26-of-47 for 252 yards) moved into second place on the school's all-time completion list with 474, moving past Lee Roberts (1996-98). Kelly now trails only Brett Favre (613) on that list. ... The Golden Eagles defense has allowed just 15 rushing touchdowns over the last 85 quarters, less than one per game over the last 21 games. ... Senior K Brant Hanna has made 62 consecutive PAT's and needs just eight more to tie the school record for total PAT's (90), held by Steve Clark.

TCU
UAB dealt the Horned Frogs' bowl hopes a serious setback with a 38-17 victory on Saturday. ... TCU finishes with conference games at home against Louisville and on the road against Southern Miss, needing to win both to finish the season with a winning record. ... The Frogs are idle this week before facing Louisville on Nov. 23. ... At UAB, junior QB Casey Printers recorded his second straight 300-yard passing day, completing 22-of-36 passes for 310 yards and two touchdowns. ... TCU had five turnovers on the day, including a Printers interception and four fumbles, two of which were lost by senior LaTerance Dunbar, who had 172 all-purpose yards, catching four passes for 66 yards and returning six kickoffs for 106 yards. ... Senior LB Chad Bayer had a team-high 11 tackles (eight solo), including a pair of tackles for loss.

Tulane
Tulane got its offense moving again in a 42-28 win at Navy on Saturday, rolling up 579 yards of total offense. ... Sophomore RB Mewelde Moore became the first player in school history to post 100 yards rushing and receiving in the same game. He carried 22 times for 131 yards, had nine receptions for 130 yards and scored a pair of touchdowns. Moore's 131 yards rushing lifted his season total to 1,293, establishing new Conference USA and Tulane records. His 14 touchdowns this year ties him for second on the school's single-season list. ... Senior QB Patrick Ramsey completed 36-of-49 passes for 442 yards, his fourth career 400-yard passing day. He threw three TD passes to give him 22 on the season and 72 in his career, the most-ever at Tulane and second-most in C-USA history. ... Junior S Adrian Mitchell led the Wave in tackles for the sixth time this season, registering 17 (eight solo, nine assisted) against Navy. His 128 stops this season ranks 10th in Tulane history. ... Tulane visits Southern Miss on Saturday.

UAB
Its conference title hopes dashed but its bowl hopes still alive, UAB has begun to play with some urgency and turned in its most balanced effort of the season on Saturday, beating TCU 38-17 to win its third straight. ... Junior QB Thomas Cox has been at the helm of all three victories and is now 5-0 as a starter in his career. ... On Saturday, Cox was 9-of-18 for a career-high 223 yards and two touchdowns, his first multi-TD game as a Blazer. ... Junior WR Willie Quinnie had four receptions for 109 yards, including a 23-yard touchdown reception. ... Senior RB Jegil Dugger rushed for 86 yards and a score, his 13th career rushing TD (second all-time at UAB). ... UAB held the Tigers to just 20 net rushing yards, the eighth time in nine games that the Blazers opponent has failed to reach 100 rushing yards as a team. The defensive unit leads the nation in rushing defense, allowing just 58.3 yards per game on the ground. ... Sophomore CB Dio Hill recorded his second career interception and returned it 45 yards for a touchdown, UAB's first INT return for a score this season. ... UAB will attempt to secure its second straight winning season when it travels to Houston on Saturday.

Eric Crawford covers Conference USA for the Louisville Courier-Journal.