• The “D” word. It’s been a while since disappointing was used in describing the University of Memphis football program. The Tigers have won too many games and too consistently over the last seven years for such a word to sneak into the community lexicon. But these 2021 Tigers should be undefeated as they prepare for Tulsa this Saturday. Were it not for four fumbles — two each against UTSA and Temple — a 3-2 record could well be a glowing 5-0, the kind that earns Top-25 votes, even from college football’s perceived kiddie pool we know as the “Group of Five.” Memphis has lost consecutive games for the first time since December 2018 (the second loss coming in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl) and is now tasked with avoiding the program’s first three-game skid since November 2015. “All three phases [offense, defense, special teams] have work to do,” said, yes, a disappointed coach Ryan Silverfield after last Saturday’s loss at Temple. “We have to go back to the drawing board and figure some things out, especially with ball security.”
• Fumblitis. Brandon Thomas has star power. The redshirt freshman from North Little Rock ran for 147 yards in the Tigers’ season-opening win, then sliced through Arkansas State for 191 the next week. He was solid (83 yards) in the huge Tiger win over Mississippi State. But Thomas was the culprit with two of those four key fumbles in losses to UTSA and Temple. He didn’t return to the field after the second-quarter mishap in Philadelphia. (One of his replacements, Kylan Watkins, also coughed up the ball, and merely inches from the Temple end zone.) This is the riddle Silverfield and his staff face: The Tigers are a much better team with Brandon Thomas on the field, carrying the football . . . but only if he doesn’t give the ball to Tiger opponents.
Years ago during a Tiger practice, I witnessed former coach Justin Fuente enter a rage that concerned me for the man’s health. And it was over a fumbled football. An utter professional in front of cameras (and in the Tiger football offices), Fuente had zero tolerance — tactically or emotionally — for the sacrifice of a possession. Those guilty of this crime seldom saw the field, often for weeks. It’s hard to envision the 2021 Tigers being the best they can be without Brandon Thomas — clearly their most talented running back — sidelined for punitive reasons. It’s also hard to envision an otherwise skilled and dangerous offense trusting precious possessions to someone with soapy hands. This will be the most interesting drama to follow the next few weeks. “We’ve got to own the football,” emphasized Silverfield in addressing the matter last Saturday. “It doesn’t matter how good a back [Thomas] is. If we can’t hold on to [the football], we don’t give ourselves a chance.”
• A stadium by any other name . . . The Tigers will soon play in Simmons Bank Memorial Stadium. After more than five decades as the Liberty Bowl, the city’s football headquarters will now carry the name of a financial institution headquartered in Little Rock. My first thought upon learning the news: Is it 1995? Why has it taken so long for the City of Memphis (owner of the stadium) or the University of Memphis (the stadium’s primary tenant) to tap into naming-rights revenue? Was this pursued or did a partner just finally show up with an offer to dance?
The timing is a bit odd, as there is a renewed (or continued) movement to consider a new stadium for the Tigers, perhaps one on the U of M campus. Whether or not it’s built on campus property, a new stadium would be healthy for Memphis football fans. The Liberty Bowl, er, Simmons Bank Memorial Stadium is a grand old lady, and has delivered countless memories since her debut in 1965. But don’t attend a Tennessee Titans game in Nashville and expect to swell with pride over our stadium here in Memphis. Arenas are built differently now, with comforts and sight lines that weren’t priorities a half-century ago. Perhaps the new name (and revenue it generates) will ironically mark the beginning of the end for one football stadium, and the beginning of something exciting and new (Power 5 conference?) for a program that has earned it.
