AP — Memphis used a night of big scoring plays to get its first win of the season.
Quarterback Martin Hankins threw for 289 yards and three touchdowns Saturday night to lead Memphis to a 35-14 victory over Jacksonville State. Hankins’ scoring throws came on plays of 48, 58 and 20 yards.
Memphis would add a 20-yard pass from Hankins to Greg Hinds and Malouf’s 38-yard run in the second half.
“We felt like if we stayed off of them, we were going to get a steady dose of the (short passes the Tigers threw against Mississippi),” Crowe said. “We just decided we were going to crowd them a little bit.”
Robinzine said the big plays help loosen up the defense where they couldn’t play as close, giving the Memphis wideouts room to maneuver. “It makes the defense respect you a ton more because they can’t have all the safeties in the box,” Robinzine said. “(West) says when we take our shots, we have to make them to keep the defense honest.”
The game also saw the first female official in a Bowl Subdivision football game in Sarah Thomas, a veteran high school official in Mississippi, who served as line judge.
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