The American Athletic Conference has gone and done it now.

No, the league didnt reverse the replay reversal that never should have been reversed and award Joey Magnifico a catch. It didnt force Memphis and Temple to replay the final two minutes of Saturdays football game to figure out who actually would have won had the AACs replay official done his job correctly and realized indisputable evidence means a play is actually indisputable.

No, the AAC didnt fix that outrageous decision. It created another one.

Seven of its mens basketball coaches picked Houston, not Memphis and its No. 1 recruiting class, to win the AAC this year. Only four tabbed the Tigers as the conference favorites. The two teams were tied for first atop the AACs preseason poll.

Even though Memphis is ranked as high as No. 6 in the country in some preseason polls by national media. Even though Memphis is the only AAC team ranked in every single one of those national preseason polls.

Normally, you dont lose four starters and get picked first in the conference, Houston coach Kelvin Sampson told reporters Monday morning at AAC media day in Philadelphia.

He, apparently, was just as shocked as everyone here in Memphis.

But this slight might be just what the Tigers needed at just the right moment.

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They wanted all the smoke, and plenty was being sent their way of late.

Locally, nobody can imagine anything but a magical season. Elsewhere, ESPN and national college basketball reporters are flocking to town to talk to coach Penny Hardaway and share with the country how hes turned this program back into a title contender again so quickly. Hardaway told The Athletic he thought this team would win a national championship this year.

Whatever doubts Hardaway subsequently mentioned, like last week when he called Memphis the hunters instead of the hunted in the AAC, seemed like transparent attempts to motivate his team, to take the focus off the lofty expectations.

But not anymore.

Now, with one preseason poll, Hardaway has the motivating tool every coach desires. He can use this as fuel all year long.

He can tell his players nobody believes in them, and do it with a straight face. He can tell them nobody believes in him, because how else would you interpret Memphis receiving only four first-place votes given the talent disparity between the Tigers and the rest of the league this year.

"The hate for Penny is real," Stadium's Jeff Goodman tweeted in reaction to the poll.

Which, by the way, brings us to the most ridiculous part in all this.

James Wiseman is the only Memphis player listed on the preseason AAC first team. No Tigers player made the second team. And yet, South Florida, picked to finish fifth in the league, had three players listed. UConn, picked to finish sixth on its way to the Big East next season, had two players listed.

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It would be more forgivable if these picks were made by the media.

Maybe some of the reporters covering the league just dont know much about Precious Achiuwa or Boogie Ellis or Lester Quinones or Damion Baugh or D.J. Jeffries and the rest of this new-look Memphis roster. Perhaps all they heard about was the recruiting class being ranked No. 1, not who specifically made up that class.

But this preseason poll and the preseason all-conference teams are chosen by the American Athletic Conferences coaches.

They should know better.

They should know better than to give Hardaway the ammunition he needs to shove this right back in their faces.

Because heres another prediction: Thats exactly what Memphis basketball is going to do this season.

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You can reach Commercial Appeal columnist Mark Giannotto via email at mgiannotto@gannett.com and follow him on Twitter:@mgiannotto.

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AAC coaches just gave Penny Hardaway, Memphis basketball exactly the motivation they needed - Commercial Appeal