| GAME 8: TULSA (2-5, 0-3 American) vs. MEMPHIS (6-1, 2-1 American) | |
|---|---|
| Date/Time: | Saturday, Oct. 26, 6:02 p.m. (CT) |
| Site: | Tulsa, Oklahoma |
| Stadium: | Skelly Field at H.A. Chapman Stadium (30,000) |
| Coaches: | TULSA – Philip Montgomery (Tarleton State '95), 5th year MEMPHIS – Mike Norvell (Central Arkansas '05), 4th year |
| TV: | CBS Sports Network |
| Talent: | Rich Waltz (pxp), Aaron Murray (analyst), Ashley Holder (sidelines) |
| Tickets: | Purchase Tickets |
| Radio: | Big Country 99.5 FM or Online |
| Talent: | Bruce Howard (pxp), Rick Couri (analyst), Jeremie Poplin (sidelines) |
| Live Stats: | Live Stats |
| Series: | Memphis leads 18-11 |
| First Meeting: | Sept. 23, 1961 (Memphis 48, Tulsa 12), Tulsa, Okla. |
| Last Meeting: | Nov. 10, 2018 (Memphis 47, Tulsa 27), Memphis, Tenn. |
| Game Notes: | Tulsa I Memphis I American Athletic Conference |
For only the second time in school history the Tulsa Golden Hurricane will face its fourth top-25 ranked team in a single season. Tulsa has already squared off against #18 Michigan State, #24 SMU and #21 Cincinnati, and this week the Hurricane faces the 25th-ranked Memphis Tigers on Homecoming Weekend.
Memphis comes into Saturday's game with an overall 6-1 record and just moved into the Amway Coaches Poll top-25 after last week's 47-17 win over Tulane.
The game kicks off at 6:02 p.m. (CT) and will be carried live on CBS Sports Network as well as heard on the Hurricane Radio Network, 99.5 FM Big Country in Tulsa.
Tulsa has faced the 10th toughest schedule in the nation according to Cody Kellner's Points Index Strength of Schedule Ratings. Not only is Memphis the fourth ranked foe on the Tulsa schedule, but entering this eighth game of the year the combined record of Tulsa's opponents entering that particular game sits at 25-3.
Michigan State was 0-0, San Jose State 10-0, Oklahoma State 2-0, Wyoming 3-0, SMU 5-0, Navy 3-1, Cincinnati 5-1 and now Memphis at 6-1.
Memphis continues is high potency on offense this year under the leadership of head coach Mike Norvell. The Tigers' offense has been among the tops in the American Athletic Conference the last three years. The Tigers average 39.1 points and 466.7 yards of total offense, including 187.6 on the ground and 279.1 through the air.
The Tigers' junior quarterback Brady White leads the charge as he has completed 70.3 percent of his passes for 1,884 yards and 18 touchdowns.
Red-shirt freshman tailback Kenneth Gainwell has been a workhorse for the Tigers, running for a league-high 830 yards, which also ranks 6th nationally, and a 7.3 average. He is also Memphis' leading receiver with 440 yards on 34 receptions.
White has many more weapons to go to whether it's on the ground with Kylan Watkins or Patrick Taylor, totaling 383 rushing yards between them, or through the air with Damonte Cox, Kedarian Jones and Antonio Gibson on the outside, or tight end Joey Magnifico. Cox has 417 receiving yards and is followed by Magnifico's 298, Gibson's 272 and Jones' 250 yards.
The offensive front is led by senior three-year letterwinner at center Dustin Woodard.
Tulsa defensive end Trevis Gipson will lead the charge up front in trying to control Memphis' multiple offensive weapons. Gipson has totaled 26 tackles with 9.5 of those stops resulting in lost yardage. Joining is a contingent of players who keep the rotation fairly fresh. Tulsa's 3-3-5 defensive alignment also features Jason Player, who has 26 stops and 5 TFLs, starting tackle Shemarr Robinson, who has 21 stops. Juniors Tyarise Stevenson, Cullen Wick, Jajuan Blankenship and Cade Baumann, sophomore Deven Lamp and red-shirt freshman Anthony Goodlow all get playing time in the rotation.
The Tulsa linebacker corps is led by senior MIKE backer Cooper Edmiston, who has a team-leading and American Athletic Conference high of 65 tackles and went over 300 career tackles last week. Sophomore WILL linebacker Zaven Collins, a 2018 Freshman All-American, has tallied 57 stops this year, including 31 tackles in the last 3 games.
At the STAR linebacker position, senior Diamon Cannon and junior Yohance Burnett have both been effective in sharing playing time at that spot. Burnett has totaled 28 tackles and 2.5 TFLs, while Cannon has 25 stops and 2 TFLs on the season.
Tulsa's secondary is long, athletic and experienced – Reggie Robinson II and Allie Green –man the corners, while the safeties are seniors Manny Bunch and Brandon Johnson. Cristian Williams and Bryson Powers control the nickel position.
Johnson has 51 tackles to rank third on the team, including 34 solo stops, while Bunch has 44 stops, 2 PBUs, one forced fumble and one fumble recovery on the year. Green and Robinson have combined for 45 tackles and 8 pass break-ups.
The Memphis defensive unit has been as effective as its offense this year, ranking first in The American for pass defense, second for scoring defense and third for total defense. The Tigers allow only 20.4 points, 169 passing yards and 345 yards of total offense per game.
The Tigers' front four has combined for 63 tackles, 18 TFLs and 19 quarterback hurries, led by Joseph Dorceus' 22 stops and 7 TFLs. JJ Russell, Austin Hall and Thomas Pickens are active linebackers, as the trio has collected 35, 32 and 27 tackles, respectively.
It appears that safety Sanchez Blake, who has a team-leading 45 stops, will miss the Tulsa game. Fellow safety L'a'Andre Thomas has 32 tackles, while Carlito Gonzalez will step in for Blake. Corners Jacobi Francis and T.J. Carter have 8 pass break-ups and 40 tackles between them.
Tulsa's offense will need to eliminate turnovers and penalties against the Tigers. As a young offensive line and receiving corps has progressed throughout the season, so too has the entire Tulsa offense.
Zach Smith has settled into the role of starting quarterback. Smith ranks fourth in the American Athletic Conference for passing and total offense. He has thrown for 1,861 yards, an average of 265 yards per game, and 10 touchdowns.
Five different receivers have become key targets for Smith, with each totaling more than 200 yards. Junior Keylon Stokes has a team-leading 566 yards, 16.2 yards per game and 4 TDs. Sophomore Sam Crawford, Jr. has 426 yards and 2 touchdowns on 30 receptions, while senior Keenen Johnson has 284 yards, Josh Johnson 252 and JuanCarlos Santana with 214 yards.
The running game has not gotten into the rythym of what has become accustom the last three seasons of averaging over 200+ rushing yards a game. The rushing attack with have to put significant yards up against the Memphis defense.
Shamari Brooks leads the Hurricane with 532 yards and 4 TDs and has had over 100 yards in two games –– going for 140 yards at San Jose State and 107 yards against Oklahoma State. Corey Taylor II was slowed by injury in the first 3 games and has gained 216 yards on the year. Red-shirt freshman TK Wilkerson has also seen playing time in the backfield, gaining 152 yards for a 5.1 average per carry.
Tulsa's offensive front is made up of 3 sophomores, one red-shirt freshman and one senior. Tulsa came into the season with just 27 career starts from the offensive line after losing three players who started 128 games.
The lone senior Chris Ivy, Jr. leads the trenches at his left tackle spot, while he and sophomore left guard Chris Paul has combined for 34 of the entire starting offensive linemen's 53 career starts. Red-shirt freshman right tackle X'Zauvea Gadlin has started all 7 contests this season, while sophomore center Gerard Wheeler and sophomore right guard Dante Bivens has been entrenched as starters since the second game of the year.
It appears that the steady rain from Thursday and Friday will give way to clearer skies on Saturday afternoon which should make for a comfortable night of football on Tulsa's Homecoming Weekend.
