Category: Tiger Blue

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Tigers 56, SFA 14

CREDIT: Joe Murphy

The Memphis Tigers secured their annual victory over FCS competition Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Bowl with a drubbing of Stephen F. Austin. (SFA replaced UT-Martin on the U of M schedule when the latter canceled its visit to the Liberty Bowl amid coronavirus concerns before the season.) The game featured a degree of tension for the small home crowd, as the Tigers’ lead was merely six points (20-14) late in the third quarter. But Memphis scored five touchdowns over the game’s final 18 minutes to extend its home winning streak to 14 games, a record for the program’s 56 years at the Liberty Bowl. Among current home winning streaks, the Tigers’ is the fifth-longest in the country. Memphis improved to 5-2 for the season while SFA’s six-game winning streak ended, dropping the Lumberjacks’ record to 6-4.

Joe Murphy

The Lumberjacks’ Brevin Randle picked off a Brady White pass and returned it 30 yards early in the second quarter to cut an early 14-0 Tiger lead in half. SFA scored again in the final minute before halftime — a seven-yard pass from Trae Self to Xavier Gipson — to make the score 20-14, Tigers, at halftime.

White snuck the ball in from a yard out with 2:55 to play in the third quarter and with a two-point conversion, Memphis led 28-14. Less than two minutes later, Calvin Austin returned a punt 64 yards to essentially put the game out of reach. Asa Martin (six yards), Marquavius Weaver (four yards), and Tim Taylor (47 yards) each had fourth-quarter touchdown runs to give Memphis its largest margin of victory this season.

White completed 18 of 31 passes for 269 yards and established a new Tiger record with his 82nd career touchdown pass, a 48-yard connection with Tahj Washington in the first quarter. (White now needs 293 yards to become the second Memphis quarterback to top 10,000 yards for his career.)

Kylan Watkins rushed for 100 yards on 11 carries to lead a Tiger ground attack that put up a total of 305 yards. Weaver added 94 yards on eight carries. Austin caught a total of 10 passes for 173 yards and now has 820 yards for the season.

The Memphis defense held the Lumberjacks to 55 yards on the ground and a total of 224 for the game.

The Tigers’ three remaining regular-season games have all been rescheduled since the opener in September. Memphis plays at Navy next Saturday, at Tulane on December 5th, and hosts Houston on December 12th. Two more wins would give Memphis seven victories in seven consecutive seasons, an unprecedented stretch in the program’s 108-year history.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Tigers 34, USF 33

CREDIT: Joe Murphy

The Memphis Tigers erased a 13-point deficit in the final five minutes of their game Saturday at the Liberty Bowl to beat the USF Bulls and earn their 13th-straight home win, a record in the stadium where they’ve played since 1965. Tiger quarterback Brady White threw four touchdown passes — including the game-winner to Calvin Austin with just over a minute to play – to tie Danny Wimprine’s career record (81) and set a new mark for wins by a Memphis quarterback (24). The victory improves the Tigers’ record to 4-2 (3-2 in the American Athletic Conference) while USF falls to 1-6 (0-5).

Joe Murphy

Brady White

Playing in front of a pandemic-reduced crowd of just over 10,000, the Tigers struggled throughout the first half, with three series ending on downs and USF’s Daquan Evans returning an interception of White 51 yards for an early 13-6 Bulls lead. The only Memphis touchdown before halftime came on a White-to-Austin 65-yard pass connection. But USF scored touchdowns on each of its next two possessions to take a 27-13 lead at the break.

White found tight end Sean Dykes for a five-yard touchdown strike on the Tigers’ first possession of the third quarter to reduce the USF lead to 27-20, but the U of M’s next two possessions ended with punts. A Spencer Shrader field goal (his fourth of the game) from 46 yards gave USF a 33-20 lead with just 4:36 left in the game.

Memphis marched 72 yards in just over a minute and reduced the deficit to 33-27 when White connected with Dykes again, this time from 10 yards with 3:19 left on the clock. A maligned Memphis defense then managed to stop the Bulls, forcing a punt that set up what proved to be the game-winning drive. White completed six straight passes (after an incompletion) to complete the comeback, finding Kylan Watkins (three times), Tahj Washington, and Kameron Wilson before hitting Austin for the decisive score.

White completed 30 of 50 passes for 437 yards, his favorite target being Dykes (7 catches for 147 yards). Austin caught five passes for 102 yards.

The Memphis defense held USF to 330 yards, considerably lower than the average for Tiger opponents this season. Memphis gained a total of 535 yards.

The Tigers are scheduled to travel to Annapolis, Maryland, next week to face Navy. (The Midshipmen are 3-4 and had their game against Tulsa today postponed because of Covid cases at the Naval Academy.) Memphis returns to the Liberty Bowl on November 21st when Stephen F. Austin comes to town.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Three Thoughts on Tiger Football

CREDIT: Jason Whitman/Memphis Athletics

• The Tigers are better than they looked at Cincinnati. They couldn’t have looked much worse, particularly after the no-call on what appeared to be pass interference in the Bearcat end zone early in the second half. (A Memphis touchdown would have closed the Cincinnati lead to four points.) You’re forgiven if you suffered a “Larry Porter flashback” on Halloween, 39-point losses once being more customary in these parts. But this ain’t 2011, Ryan Silverfield isn’t Larry Porter, and there’s too much talent on the Tiger roster for last weekend’s result to suggest anything more than a very good team (Cincinnati is now ranked 6th in the country), motivated to the shoulder pads (Memphis beat the Bearcats twice last season, including for the conference championship) finding its groove on home turf.
Jason Whitman/Memphis Athletics

Few football teams win without a ground game, and the Cincinnati defense eliminated half of the Tiger attack, allowing merely five yards(!) on 29 carries by Memphis running backs. It’s easy to miss Kenneth Gainwell (the sophomore opted out of the season instead of attempting to repeat his 1,000-yard 2019 campaign). But it’s a good time to look carefully at the Tiger offensive line and measure its strengths (and weaknesses) with half a season yet to play. Right tackle Dylan Parham is an all-conference candidate and left tackle Obinna Eze was one of Mike Norvell’s highest-ranked recruits. Sophomore guards Isaac Ellis and Evan Fields have fewer than 10 career starts, and center Manuel Orona-Lopez was among those helping Brady White back to his feet after six sacks. These are the five players to watch this Saturday against USF. Cincinnati is the seventh-ranked defense (based on points allowed) in the country. USF is 77th. Should be a different story for the Tigers’ O-line when they square off against the Bulls.

• We’ll learn a lot about Ryan Silverfield’s motivating skills over the next five weeks. For the first time since 2016 — Norvell’s first season as the Tigers’ head coach — Memphis isn’t playing for the American Athletic Conference championship. Saddled with two league losses, it’s highly improbable the Tigers can secure one of the league’s top two spots in the standings. (Four teams have fewer than two losses, and another pair also have two in the loss column.) But an 8-2 record beats 7-3, and the Tigers have wins in reach. Their next two opponents (USF and Navy) have been outscored by more than 100 points each. Stephen F. Austin (November 21st) should be an FCS walkover. Then it’s Tulane (currently 3-4) Thanksgiving weekend and the season finale at home against Houston (2-2). Memphis won’t play in a New Year’s Six bowl game this season. It’s again the name on the front of their jerseys that should make the difference.

• The Tiger D is . . . disheartening. For years now, Memphis has been able to get away with allowing 30 points, sometimes 40, because the program has featured one of the country’s top-scoring offenses. We saw Saturday how things might look if the Tiger offensive machine blows a piston. With half the season behind us, Memphis ranks 101st in total defense (556.8 yards per game). That’s out of 103 teams, and the two teams behind them (Minnesota and New Mexico) have played a combined three games. The case could be made that, right now, Memphis has the worst defense in the country. No one has more to gain (or perhaps lose) over the season’s second half than defensive coordinator Mike MacIntyre. His unit hasn’t been good enough, not without the Memphis offense in highest gear. Personnel, scheme, play calls, whatever. Changes must be made.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

#7 Cincinnati 49, Memphis 10

CREDIT: Jason Whitman/Memphis Athletics

In a rematch of last year’s American Athletic Conference championship game, the Cincinnati Bearcats handed Memphis its worst loss in nine seasons to all but eliminate the Tigers from contention for a fourth consecutive appearance in the title game. Bearcat quarterback Desmond Ridder passed for three touchdowns and ran for a pair to help 7th-ranked Cincinnati improve to 5-0 (3-0 in the AAC) and end a five-game losing streak against Memphis. One of the top defenses in college football put the clamps on the Tiger attack, holding the U of M to just five yards rushing. The loss drops Memphis to 3-2 for the season (2-2 in the AAC). The Tigers were seeking the program’s first win over a top-10 opponent since beating Tennessee in 1996.
Jason Whitman/Memphis Athletics

Tahj Washington

Freshman receiver Tahj Washington took a short Brady White pass and broke loose for a 92-yard touchdown late in the first quarter to tie the score at 7-7, but it was the last true highlight for the Tiger offense. A 13-yard run by Ridder and a 6-yard pass from Ridder to Michael Young made the score 21-7 before Riley Patterson connected on a 42-yard field goal just before halftime.

The Tigers’ opening drive of the third quarter ended on a fourth-and-two play from the Cincinnati 10-yard line when a White pass to Sean Dykes in the end zone fell incomplete. It appeared Dykes was held by a Bearcat defender, but no flag was thrown, giving the Bearcats possession. Their ensuing drive ended with Ridder’s second touchdown jaunt, putting the game out of reach midway through the third quarter.

In passing for 316 yards, White became only the second Memphis quarterback (after Danny Wimprine) to top 9,000 yards for his career. Both Washington (104 yards) and Calvin Austin (121) topped 100 yards receiving.

The Tigers return to the Liberty Bowl next Saturday when USF (0-4) comes to town. The Tigers handled the Bulls last season in Florida by the same score (49-10) as today’s loss in southern Ohio.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Three Thoughts on Tiger Football

CREDIT: Joe Murphy/Memphis Athletics

• Ryan Silverfield is a balanced coach. It should be no surprise that the Memphis offense is putting up 40 points regularly, even in this disjointed season, under a new head coach. Silverfield served as Mike Norvell’s right hand for four seasons, so no man on the planet knows more about what’s worked at Memphis than the rookie now calling the shots. Particularly with a familiar quarterback (Brady White) climbing the program’s passing charts, Silverfield’s prime task has been to maximize his “skill position” players across the depth chart. Through four games, Memphis has run the ball 172 times and passed 164. The only game with a discrepancy of more than five between run and pass plays was the season-opening blowout of Arkansas State (48 runs, 36 passes).

Offensive coordinator Kevin Johns is in a luxurious position, knowing his team can attack both on the ground and through the air. Would departed tailback Kenneth Gainwell have rushed for 650 yards through four games? Perhaps. But Dreke Clark and Kylan Watkins have combined for that total, each averaging more than five yards per carry. More than enough to balance the Tigers’ passing attack, which brings me to my second thought.
Joe Murphy/Memphis Athletics

Tahj Washington

• Damonte who? In pure “next man up” fashion, Memphis claims one of the finest pass-catching trios in the country. I was convinced the Tiger offense would suffer when senior Damonte Coxie announced before the UCF game that he was stepping aside to prepare for the NFL draft. That’s because I hadn’t seen Calvin Austin’s speed split a secondary, or Tahj Washington’s hands in traffic. I wasn’t sure tight end Sean Dykes could be a weekly threat. Well, Austin has topped 150 yards receiving in each of the last two games and is on pace for a 1,000-yard season (424 through four games). Washington is averaging 15.1 yards per catch and stands the most to gain from Coxie’s departure. And Dykes is second on the team with four touchdowns despite only one reception in the win over Temple.

For the Tigers to have so many skilled receivers within target range of a veteran quarterback, all they really need is some time in the pocket for White, and smart decisions by White to avoid turnovers. If the above-mentioned run-pass balance can be retained, gaps down field will be exploited by the Tiger passing game. And one glaring absence on the roster won’t be nearly as glaring.

• When the Tigers take the field at 7th-ranked Cincinnati, they’ll be seeking only the fourth upset of a Top-10 team in the history of the program. Memphis fans of a certain age vividly remember the stunning win over 6th-ranked Tennessee (quarterbacked by Peyton Manning) at the Liberty Bowl in 1996. The Tigers knocked off 7th-ranked Auburn in 1975 and 10th-ranked Mississippi State in 1965. And that’s it. Memphis has played 30 other games against Top-10 opponents and the best the Tigers can claim are ties against 2nd-ranked Ole Miss (a 0-0 affair in 1963) and 6th-ranked Florida State (in 1984). Saturday’s game will be only the Tigers’ seventh against a Top-10 team since the upset of UT 24 years ago, and only the second such program they’ll face from the American Athletic Conference (the Tigers fell twice against UCF in 2018). History is there to be made, against a team Memphis beat twice a year ago (including the AAC championship game at the Liberty Bowl). Better yet, the Bearcats and Tigers go back well before the formation of the AAC, having played 36 times since first meeting in 1966. (Memphis leads the series, 23-13.) Halloween is gonna be some scary fun for a pair of teams still in the running for a conference title.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Tigers 41, Temple 29

CREDIT: Joe Murphy/Memphis Athletics

Brady White threw four touchdown passes and Rodney Owens intercepted a pair of passes by Temple quarterback Anthony Russo Saturday afternoon at the Liberty Bowl to help the Memphis Tigers avenge their only regular-season loss of 2019. Playing in conditions more common to Philadelphia this time of year, the Tigers overcame a pair of first-half turnovers and came from behind twice on the scoreboard to improve to 3-1 for the season and 2-1 in American Athletic Conference play. The Owls fall to 1-2 with the loss.
Joe Murphy/Memphis Athletics

Brady White

White connected with Tahj Washington to finish an 80-yard drive with 5:29 left in the first quarter to give Memphis a 7-0 lead. But fumbles on the Tigers’ next two possessions gave the ball to Temple and Owls capitalized, taking a 9-7 lead midway through the second quarter on a touchdown pass from Russo to Jadan Blue (Blue’s first of three scores in the game). Memphis linebacker Xavier Cullens blocked the extra-point attempt.

Senior kicker Riley Patterson connected on a 42-yard field goal to regain the lead for Memphis (10-9) with 3:34 left in the second quarter, but Temple responded with another touchdown drive, capped by a 10-yard pass from Russo to Branden Mack for a 15-10 Owls lead at the half.

The Tigers scored 17 points in the first nine minutes of the third quarter, White hitting Calvin Austin for a 65-yard touchdown then finding Washington again (for 26 yards) for a 27-15 lead. Russo found Blue for a 32-yard scoring strike to close the Tiger advantage to 27-22 late in the third quarter.

Following Owens’s second interception early in the fourth quarter, the Tigers converted a fourth-and-six attempt with a completion from White to Austin. White then found freshman Javon Ivory for a seven-yard touchdown and a 34-22 lead. Blue’s third touchdown of the contest closed the lead to five points (34-29), but the Memphis defense forced punts on consecutive Temple possessions. When Kylan Watkins dashed 15 yards to the end zone with just over two minutes to play, the Tigers clinched their second consecutive win in the first back-to-back weekends of play they’ve enjoyed this season.

White completed 17 of 36 passes for 313 yards and now has 76 touchdown passes for his Tiger career, five shy of Danny Wimprine’s program record. Austin compiled 184 yards on his six catches and sophomore tailback Dreke Clark rushed for 106 yards on 22 carries. Washington caught five passes for 77 yards.

The Tigers face perhaps their biggest test of the season next Saturday when they travel to Cincinnati to face the 9th-ranked Bearcats. (Cincinnati plays at SMU Saturday night.) The game will be a rematch of last season’s AAC championship, a battle won by Memphis at the Liberty Bowl.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Three Thoughts on Tiger Football

CREDIT: Joe Murphy

• Five minutes into the third quarter of last Saturday’s game at the Liberty Bowl, it appeared stories about the event would focus more on what was missing for Memphis — star receiver Damonte Coxie and a pass defense — than anything the Tigers actually did well on the field. Turns out, we saw the first huge win of the Ryan Silverfield era. In erasing a 35-14 deficit over the game’s final 20 minutes, the Tigers established themselves as legitimate rivals to the UCF Knights (winners of the team’s previous 13 meetings) and kept alive hopes of a fourth straight appearance in the American Athletic Conference championship game.
Joe Murphy

Minus Coxie, Tiger quarterback Brady White merely earned Walter Camp National Offensive Player of the Week honors by passing for 486 yards and six touchdowns. The Ph.D. candidate made stars of Coxie’s replacements, Calvin Austin hauling in nine passes for 151 yards and two touchdowns, Tahj Washington catching seven passes for 131 yards. With 217 yards on the ground (112 courtesy Dreke Clark), Memphis managed to outscore an opponent the Tiger defense couldn’t contain, that final, misdirected field-goal attempt by UCF’s Daniel Obarski a rare 2020 blessing. An early-season comeback win does wonders for the collective psyche of a football team. When the Tigers find themselves down this Saturday, or the next Saturday, or the one after that … remember the UCF game.

• The Temple game is one best served cold. It’s hard to come up with a “revenge game”  following a 12-2 season like Memphis enjoyed in 2019. But had a late reception by Tiger tight end Joey Magnifico in Philadelphia last year not been ruled incomplete (after a dubious video review), Memphis may have pulled off an undefeated regular season. Instead the Tigers absorbed a two-point loss to the Owls and are now 2-3 against Temple since the programs became AAC rivals in 2013.

It seems silly, this being each team’s third conference game of the season, but it’s essentially a play-in game for the AAC championship. Each team is already saddled with a league loss (Temple fell to Navy), and it’s highly unlikely that a two-loss team will play for the league title. The Owls can light up a scoreboard, but no more so than the UCF Knights. Another winnable home game for Memphis, with the trip to 9th-ranked Cincinnati looming. And yes, the Tigers have the revenge factor. Should be fun.

• The Tigers will miss Damonte Coxie the rest of this season, but his decision to leave the program is understandable. Brady White’s favorite target leaves the program with 185 career receptions (third in Memphis history) and 2,948 yards (also third). No team loses a playmaker like that without feeling some sting. But in the year 2020, fans (and columnists) require a form of empathy when it comes to prominent athletes that hasn’t been called upon before. From major-league stars like Buster Posey to prominent college athletes like Coxie and Kansas running back Pooka Williams, athletes are “opting out” for reasons more personal than even they could have envisioned a year ago. And under pandemic conditions, it’s really not anyone’s business why a person feels called to priorities larger than a playing field.

I haven’t had the chance to visit with Coxie about his decision. I know he and White have a friendship that runs deeper than football, one that will last, hopefully, the rest of their lives. Coxie emphasized, via social media, that he intends to earn his degree at the University of Memphis, not an incidental decision even for a man likely to put away some cash as an NFL receiver. Coxie was part of the greatest season in Tiger history and should be saluted for the impact he made for what is now one of the most prolific offenses in college football. As for the months ahead, in navigating his life with the coronavirus still running rampant, we must wish Coxie and his family all the best. And look forward to the next time we see him on a football field.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Three Thoughts on Memphis Tiger Football

CREDIT: George Walker/University of Memphis

• When Memphis takes the field this Saturday at the Liberty Bowl, the Tigers will have played one football game in six weeks. The program hasn’t had a “season” as much as a pair of one-off teasers to open the months of September (a win over Arkansas State) and October (a loss at SMU). Few sports are structured more rhythmically than football, with each day of “Game Week” devoted to different components of preparation, be it film review, injury treatment, or the institution of a game plan. With the exception of injury treatment — a single game in six weeks does wonders for sprains, bruises, and such — the Tigers will play what amounts to a third opening game of their 2020 season when UCF comes to town.
George Walker/University of Memphis

Dreke Clark

But the fun starts Saturday. At least if Memphis and eight other programs can keep the coronavirus outside the room. The Tigers will play eight games in eight weeks, all conference affairs with the exception of Stephen F. Austin on November 21st (an FCS opponent that replaced UT-Martin on the schedule). Three of the next four will be at the Liberty Bowl (the only road game being at Cincinnati on Halloween). With more fans gradually allowed to attend games (12,500 are expected this Saturday), that feel for football season may finally arrive in the Mid-South. Just mask up and keep your distance till game day, fellas. After all, teams face two opponents every week in 2020.

• Memphis has to get over the UCF hump. The Tigers have played the Knights 13 times since 2005, and lost 13 times. They’ve faced UCF in the American Athletic Conference championship game twice, and lost both times. Memphis has lost to UCF in one-win seasons (2010) and Memphis has lost to UCF in 10-win seasons (twice in 2017). In other words, the Tiger program has reached new heights over the last decade . . . but still has a daddy.

Josh Heupel’s team will visit Memphis already saddled with a league loss (to Tulsa), so the game has enormous implications as teams jockey for the top two spots in the AAC (no divisions this year to determine combatants for the championship game). The Knights scored 49 points in a win over Georgia Tech and 51 in beating East Carolina. (The Golden Hurricane held them to 26, and in Orlando.) McKenzie Milton may not be quarterbacking the UCF attack (sophomore Dillon Gabriel is now behind center), but the Tiger defense will be tasked with forcing just enough punts or turnovers for the Memphis offense to outscore this longtime nemesis. Even in an abbreviated, interrupted season, a Tiger victory this weekend would be historic.

• Everywhere you look on NFL Sundays, you see Memphis Tigers. There’s no greater validation for the rise of the Tiger program than to see former stars in blue-and-gray now making an impact with “the shield” on their jerseys. Anthony Miller is catching passes for the Chicago Bears while Antonio Gibson is scoring touchdowns for Washington’s team. Bobby McCain is starting at safety in his sixth season with the Miami Dolphins while Chris Claybrooks is finding his way onto the field as a rookie with the Jacksonville Jaguars. Tony Pollard is returning kicks and taking handoffs for the Dallas Cowboys while Dontari Poe plays defensive tackle in Big D. Darrell Henderson leads the L.A. Rams with 260 rushing yards while Jake Elliott (Philadelphia Eagles) and Stephen Gostkowski (Tennessee Titans) have each won Super Bowls kicking field goals, the latter now 12th on the NFL’s all-time scoring chart. Recruiting is the lifeblood of college football, and top recruits have their sights set on playing beyond their college years. Memphis has developed an NFL highlight reel few programs outside the “Power Five” can offer these days. Bodes well for both future Saturdays and Sundays in Tiger Nation.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

SMU 30, #25 Tigers 27

CREDIT: U of M Athletics

What a difference 336 days make. Especially the last 28.

Eleven months after beating SMU in one of the most scintillating games in the program’s history, the Memphis Tigers took the field in Dallas for the rematch . . . their first game in four weeks due to a Covid-19 outbreak that shut down operations for much of September. Playing in front of a small, scattered audience in Gerald J. Ford Stadium, the Tigers erased a 21-point deficit with a scoring frenzy that bridged the second and third quarters. But shortly after a fumble by Tiger quarterback Brady White gave the Mustangs possession, SMU kicker Chris Naggar drilled a 43-yard field goal to help his team improve to 4-0 for the season and end a six-game losing streak to Memphis. The Tigers are now 1-1 (0-1 in the American Athletic Conference) and will have another semi-extended break before hosting UCF at the Liberty Bowl on October 17th.
U of M Athletics

Marquavius Weaver takes a handoff from Brady White.

SMU won despite losing a pair of impact offensive players. Running back T.J. McDaniel had to be helped off the field after violently twisting his lower left leg on the Mustangs’ first play from scrimmage. Then late in the third quarter — after making a lengthy pass reception — senior receiver Reggie Roberson left the game on a cart after injuring his left knee. Roberson’s play was decisive, though, as he scored on plays that covered 70 and 85 yards on his way to 243 yards for the game.

Down 24-3 after Roberson’s second touchdown, the Tigers began their climb back with a White-to-Calvin Austin touchdown pass covering eight yards midway through the second quarter. White found Sean Dykes for a touchdown less than four minutes later and senior kicker Riley Patterson connected on a 56-yard field goal on the last play before halftime to make the score 24-20, SMU, at the break.

Naggar connected on a 25-yard field goal early in the third quarter, but Memphis answered with a 92-yard drive, capped by a five-yard touchdown pass from White to freshman Tahj Washington. The score remained tied for the remainder of the game, until Naggar’s game-winning kick with nine seconds on the clock. The Tigers’ three fourth-quarter possessions resulted in two punts and White’s fumble.

White completed 29 of 42 passes for 380 yards and three touchdowns, but tossed a pair of interceptions in addition to his late fumble. Dreke Clark gained 98 yards on 16 carries, while Damonte Coxie starred in the passing game, hauling in eight passes for 169 yards. Dykes caught six passes for 85 yards.

Just like their 2019 shootout at the Liberty Bowl — a 54-48 Memphis win that followed ESPN’s GameDay presentation from Beale Street — both teams topped 500 yards in total offense (Memphis 585, SMU 549). The Tiger defense allowed 474 of those yards through the air.

Categories
Sports Tiger Blue

Three Thoughts on Memphis Tiger Football

CREDIT: Joe Murphy

• No Norvell, No Gainwell, No Crowd . . . No Problem.

The Memphis Tigers won their season-opener. It’s what they do — seven straight years now, after losing nine consecutive openers from 2005 to 2013. Star tailback Kenneth Gainwell shook up the roster by announcing his opt-out a week before kick-off, so sophomore Rodrigues Clark rushes for 109 yards and a touchdown on 20 carries. Offensive wizard Mike Norvell departed for Florida State, so Ryan Silverfield takes command of a team that tops 500 yards (yet again), converts nine of 17 third-down snaps and a fourth down via fake punt, defensive lineman Joseph Dorceus (?!?) scampering 25 yards to retain possession . . . with Memphis up 17 points.
Joe Murphy

Rodrigues Clark takes the ball from Brady White.

Oh, and the Tigers’ passing game seems to be in capable hands. Senior Ph.D. candidate Brady White completed 26 of 36 passes and tossed four touchdowns, in so doing becoming only the third Memphis quarterback with 60 touchdown connections. Damonte Coxie caught eight passes for 90 yards (ho-hum), but tight end Sean Dykes did his best Travis Kelce impression, hauling in 10 passes for 137 yards and a pair of scores. It all felt normal, formulaic even. A primetime win on national TV for the University of Memphis? We’ve been here before.

• Pandemic football stinks . . . but it’s the best we’ve got.

Football was made for television. From the dimensions of the field to the contrast and collision of uniform colors, the sport provides an aesthetic — if such can exist in a game so violent — unlike any other. But there’s a sadness to football in 2020, starting with the virtually empty parking lots as kickoff nears. And no sound system can replicate the noise of a crowd (even as “small” as 20,000) celebrating a big touchdown. The pandemic conditions are especially cruel for the Memphis program, which has seen nights when fewer than 10,000 people chose to attend a game. (The Larry Porter jokes were flying over social media last Saturday night.) Here’s hoping college football finds ways to safely and gradually welcome more fans to stadiums across the country. Seems like a long shot, and against the grain in a world where college students are studying as much from dorm rooms as lecture halls. But let’s hang on to hope. In the year we’ll remember as 2020, it’s the best and only approach.

• Arkansas State felt right . . . but the Tiger program can do better.

Not that long ago, it seemed like former Memphis coach Justin Fuente and I were the only men in town not interested in seeing an SEC program on the Tigers’ schedule. (The year was 2013.) It was nice to see the Red Wolves (merely a Sun Belt foe) back in town for the first time in seven years, but Tiger athletic director Laird Veatch should aim higher, and ambitiously. It’s a crime against Mid-South football culture that the Tigers haven’t played the Arkansas Razorbacks in 22 years. The programs will meet again, but not until we have a new U.S. president (one way or another), in the year 2025. Mississippi State will visit the Liberty Bowl next year, but Ole Miss has fallen off future Tiger schedules and Memphis hasn’t faced Tennessee in a decade. (Imagine what the Memphis winning streak might be against the Vols.) One of these four programs should meet Memphis every season. Could be an eight-year rotation (home and away for each). The marquee home game on this year’s Tiger schedule is UCF (October 17th), a legitimate conference rival for Memphis. But the kind of game that could fill the Liberty Bowl to capacity (remember those days)? Hardly.