I personally think the conference is well on its way to P6, the only thing missing is revenue and a shot at playoff. Sure the conference is being held up by 5-6 teams, but outside of the SEC and BIG 10 that's true everywhere. Competitively this season I would put the American on par with PAC12 and BIG12. Hopefully with increased revenue the top tier of American teams can further push the narrative and the middling teams slowly improve the foundation.