DALLAS — The University of Memphis Tigers football team entered the season with high hopes of building on a floor-level expectation – keeping intact the program’s streak of playing in bowl games. They nailed the floor goal (now nine straight) and added on with a 38-10 win over Utah State in the First Responders’ Bowl in Dallas on Tuesday (Dec. 27) afternoon.
With the win, Memphis notched a 7-6 season and pushed the Aggies under .500 (6-7) in the game played on the campus of Southern Methodist University, where the Tigers fell short (34-31) with seconds remaining in a comeback bid against the SMU Mustangs on Nov. 26.
“It has been a wonderful season for us, filled with ups and downs,” said Memphis head coach Ryan Silverfield. “It (the win) was a great moment for our program. I am proud of our guys.
“We are going to gain from those wins and losses over the season. We are going to celebrate this and be proud of the moment, with our eyes looking forward to bigger and brighter things for the Memphis Tigers’ program.”
The start was slow – very – for the Tigers. On the team’s first three possessions, Memphis could not block the defenders in front of them. The Aggies were able to penetrate to get tackles for losses and early sacks of quarterback Seth Henigan.
All-conference kicker Chris Howard booted the Tigers in front (3-0) before the Aggies tied it on a 53-yard field goal by Conner Cole.
Memphis owned the second quarter, scoring 21 unanswered points as Henigan threw three touchdowns. The first two went to Eddie Lewis (15 and 22 yards) and the third to tight end Caden Prieskorn from three yards out. Henigan threw for 217 yards in the first half.
“I took a couple of sacks early that stalled out plays. We had a lot of penalties,” said Henigan. “Coming into the game, we were one of the least-penalized teams. We had a lot of flagged plays that stalled our drives. In the second quarter, the spark really helped us win the game. The rest of the game and second half, we just wanted to maintain clock management.”
Syvonte Oliver intercepted a pass less than two minutes into the second half but the offense did not capitalize on the turnover. And with 3:58 left in the third quarter, the Tigers made mistakes that opened the door for the Aggies. On three consecutive plays, the Tigers had a sack, a false start and another sack with a fumble lost by Henigan.
The defense held up and forced a punt.
With 11:04 left in the game, the Aggies scored their only touchdown when backup quarterback Bishop Davenport connected with Brian Cobbs from 44 yards out.
Up 24-10, the Tigers answered with a 47-yard drive capped by a 1-yard touchdown run by Jevyon Ducker. The drive was set up by an unsuccessful on-sides kick by the Aggies.
Ducker, who led the Tigers in rushing (83 yards), broke free for a 48-yard touchdown run that sealed the deal for Memphis.
The defense kept the Aggies under control all game. That effort included three interceptions. Oliver snared two and Joel Williams got his first. as a Memphis Tigers.
Quindell Johnson, one of the leaders of the defense, played his last game as a Tiger.
“When we played Mississippi State (at the beginning of the season) we had prepared and felt confident going into the game,” Johnson said, adding that the loss was a wake-up call.
“We knew we had a lot of work to do. Then going through the season, we had (times) where we were consistent and then times that we weren’t consistent.”
Silverfield amplified on the improvement of the defense.
“When we started the season with Mississippi State, you knew how tough of an opponent that would be. We did not (play) our best game. We have played 14 different guys in our secondary this season. That is way too many.”
Henigan was playing 35 miles from where he played high school football. He finished with 289 yards passing, three touchdowns and no interceptions. He was named the game’s Most Valuable Player.
It was quite a turnaround for Henigan. In the loss to SMU, his pass into the endzone with six seconds remaining was intercepted as the Tiger’s push for the win fell three points short.
“It is a tough pill to swallow, to come back home and play a conference opponent and end a game the way it did last time. That is a lot on his shoulder. I will ultimately put that on me,” said Silverfield.
“He is such a mentally tough young man. To come out and do what he did statistically today and lead the team to victory has been huge.”
Silverfield said the loss to SMU in the closing seconds on the same field was last-second lost to SMU on the same field was the “storyline of this season – would have, could have and should have. … I am proud to get a win today for what it meant to those guys in the locker room.”
Saying he could finally exhale, Silverfield added, “This season has been tough. No one is pleased with the final record. To get a bowl win and end as a champion, it is huge. There are only so many teams that can end as champions.”
