Preview 2019: Previewing and looking ahead to the Memphis Tigers season with what you need to know.
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– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– What Will Happen, Win Total Prediction
– Schedule Analysis
– Memphis Previews 2018 | 2017 | 2016 | 2015
2018 Record: 8-6 overall, 5-3 in American Athletic
Head Coach: Mike Norvell, 4th year, 26-14
– CFN Preview 2019: All The Team Previews
5. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MEMPHIS OFFENSE
– Is it all about the system? Memphis has been fun and exciting under head coach Mike Norvell with an O that puts up numbers in bunches. It led the AAC and finished fourth in the nation averaging 523 yards per game, and was seventh in the country in scoring averaging 43 points per pop. There’s enough there to be great again, but …
– Two of the three star running backs are gone. Darrell Henderson left early after averaging close to nine yards per carry with 1,909 yards and 22 scores, and do-it-all star Tony Pollard is done, too. However, 6-3, 233-pound Patrick Taylor is back after running for 1,122 yards and 16 scores as the new star of the show. Now the depth has to fill in, starting with redshirt freshman Kenny Gianwell and sophomore Timothy Taylor to add some options.
– Brady White was hardly along for the ride, The 6-3, 205-pound former Arizona State Sun Devil was a perfect quarterback fit for the attack, completing 63% of his throws for 3,296 yards and 26 scores with nine picks. He’s not much of a runner, but he’s accurate, doesn’t make a ton of mistakes, and he keeps the chains moving. Redshirt freshman Brady McBride adds more of a rushing element to go along with his efficient passing skills.
– The running backs are the stars in the offense, but the receivers are there, too, starting with 72-catch, 1,174-yard, seven score all-star Damonte Coxie. The 6-3, 200-pound junior is the No. 1 guy, and Joey Magnifico is a special tight end averaging over 17 yards per catch with five scores. Pop Williams is a smallish short range receiver coming off a 33-catch season, and the running backs all get involved.
– Just enough talent returns up front to make it all go. The Tiger line might not blast away with a ton of power, but it’s great at opening holes for the home run hitters to fly through, and it’s great at keeping White upright.
6-2, 285-pound senior Dustin Woodard can work at either guard or center. He’s the star of the front, but both tackles are done, hurt mostly by the loss of Trevon Tate on the left side. There isn’t a ton of size up front, but the group can move.
NEXT: What You Need To Know About the Defense, Top Players, Keys to the Season, What Will Happen
4. WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE MEMPHIS DEFENSE
– The defense did a great job against the mediocre teams, and struggled way, way too much against the good offenses that had to keep cranking to keep up the pace.
Memphis had a nice pass rush and was fourth in the conference against the run, but it allowed 31 points or more eight times in the last 12 games. With ten of the top 12 tacklers back, the experience is there to be even better.
– Where is star pass rusher Bryce Huff going to play? The 6-3, 245-pound all-star is a dream of an edge player and hybrid linebacker/end, but he’s a dangerous-quick matchup if he lines up on the inside of the line, too. 64-tackle Austin Hall and 60-stop junior Tim Hart are good outside linebacker veterans, and 210-pound junior JJ Russell can work inside or out.
– Along with wherever Huff lines up are enough veterans up front to not only create a good wall, but also have a nice rotation. The combination of 6-1, 300-pound junior O’Bryan Goodson and 6-4, 290-pound junior John Tate will work on the nose, and 280-pound senior Jonathan Wilson and 275-pound junior Joseph Dorceus are active defenders. They all have to get into the backfield, because …
– The secondary will once again be under constant attack. It’s not that the Tiger defensive backs aren’t good, it’s that teams have to keep firing away to keep up. Now there have to be more picks after the team came up with just nine.
Tito Windham is gone at one corner, but junior TJ Carter is back after finishing third on the team with 68 stops. Junior safety Tyrez Lindsey is the team’s leading returning tackler with 71 stops, and 205-pound Josh Perry will move around where needed at either safety or linebacker after coming up with 65 tackles.
NEXT: Top Players, Keys To the Season, What Will Happen
3. TOP MEMPHIS PLAYERS
Best Memphis Offensive Player
RB Patrick Taylor, Sr.
Is he ready to become a star? Darrell Henderson was the flash of lightning who made all the highlight reels, but Taylor wasn’t far behind. Even better, he brings the 6-3, 223-pound size to pound a little bit, too.
A workhorse in the bowl loss to Wake Forest, he carried the ball 30 times for a tough 110 yards and a score, closing out the season with four straight 100-yard dates and six in the last ten games. Smart as well as talented, the academic all-star will be one of the American Athletic Conference’s most dangerous players.
2. QB Brady White, Sr.
3. C/OG Dustin Woodard, Sr.
4. WR Damonte Coxie, Jr.
5. TE Joey Magnifico, Sr.
Best Memphis Defensive Player
DE/LB Bryce Huff, Sr.
The 6-3, 245-pound veteran is a defensive force no matter where he works. Part linebacker, part defensive lineman, he went from being a nice part of the rotation to a regular playmaker in the backfield with 49 tackles, 9.5 sacks and 19 tackles for loss. Already a statistical superstar, he’ll be turned loose in a variety of ways in what should be an even stronger season.
2. CB TJ Carter, Jr.
3. S Tyrez Lindsey, Jr.
4. DE Jonathan Wilson, Sr.
5. DT Joseph Dorceus, Jr.
NEXT: Keys to the Season, Prediction & What Will Happen
2. KEYS TO THE SEASON
Biggest Key To The Memphis Offense
Be able to throw against someone with a defense. The running game was dangerous and effective against almost everyone, but the difference against the stronger teams was a passing game that was way too inconsistent.
More to the point, the Tiger passing game went bum-slaying.
Oh sure, Brady White and company had a whole ton of fun against the Mercers, Georgia States and East Carolinas of the schedule, but it sputtered and coughed against the UCFs, Missouris and Wake Forests.
Memphis connected on just 14-of-30 passes in the loss to Tulane, and the next week it went 17-of-19 against UConn.
In the eight wins, the Tigers threw 22 touchdown passes, and threw for just six scores in the six losses.
More than that, though, it was about completion percentage and consistency. MU hit over 60% of its passes in seven of the eight wins, and was at 60% or under in all six of the losses.
Biggest Key To The Memphis Defense
Hold up against the run. The secondary has to pick off more passes and be a whole lot stronger overall after allowing 215 yards or more nine times in the last 11 games, but it deserves a wee bit of a break – teams had to bomb away to keep up the pace.
When the run defense failed, so did the team.
The Tigers allowed more than 200 rushing yards five times and went 0-5 – and they were bombed on in some of those games, too.
The experience is in place to go along with the rotation and production. Stop the run and hold serve a bit more, and there’s the difference between being very good and being the new star among Group of Five programs.
Key Player To A Successful Season
OT Obinna Eze, Soph.
The Tigers were terrific in pass protection throughout last season and did a decent job of keeping defenses from camping out in the backfield, and the line should be strong again around Dustin Woodard and Dylan Parham on the inside, but there’s work to do at tackle.
The 6-8, 315-pound Eze has the frame, the athleticism, and the upside to be a star, but now he has to do it for a full season. If he’s a rock at left tackle, the rest of the line should fall into place.
Key Game To The Memphis Season
at Houston, Nov. 16
The Tigers have owned the Cougars lately with three straight wins after losing six in a row. This time around, it’s a huge road moment against what should be a jacked up Dana Holgorsen squad with the AAC West likely on the line.
It’s going to be a tough run for Memphis with five road games in seven dates, and then it all finishes up with a home game against Cincinnati. Win, and considering Tulane, Navy and SMU are at home, there should be a third straight trip to the conference title game.
– Memphis Schedule Breakdown & Analysis
2018 Memphis Fun Stats
– Average Yards Per Carry: Memphis 6.4 – Opponents 4.1
– Fumbles: Opponents 27 (lost 12) – Memphis 16 (lost 7)
– Penalties: Memphis 101 for 833 yards – Opponents 88 for 776 yards
NEXT: What Will Happen
1. MEMPHIS WIN TOTAL PREDICTION: WHAT’S GOING TO HAPPEN
Is this finally the team to get over the hump under head coach Mike Norvell?
Okay, so he’s 0-3 in bowl games, and he can’t seem to solve UCF lately, but with 26 victories in three years with an exciting brand of offense, the program has been hovering around potential greatness.
This year’s team has the makings of another star, with QB Brady White, WR Damonte Coxie and TE Joey Magnifico leading a strong passing attack, Patrick Taylor set to keep the thrilling running game going, and with the line good enough to let everyone work.
The defense will never be a rock, but it’s good enough to stuff the mediocre teams on the slate. Its job will be to hold serve once in a while against the better teams, and fortunately, there aren’t a ton of those on the slate. Even so …
Set The Regular Season Win Total At … 8
There’s no UCF on the regular season schedule this time around, and the lone date against a Power Five program is at home against Ole Miss. The issue will be the home games – there aren’t a lot of them – with just three in a nine date stretch before closing out against a strong Cincinnati squad.
Facing USF and Temple on the road hurts, and going to Houston will be the big date in mid-November. Navy and Tulane aren’t going to be two-foot putts, and there can’t be an assumption of wins over the Rebels to kick things off or the Bearcats to close.
This is going to be a very, very good team with a whole lot of firepower and punch, but it should also be a third eight-win regular season in four seasons.
– What You Need To Know: Offense | Defense
– Top Players | Key Players, Games, Stats
– Schedule Analysis
