Tulsa Downs Memphis 35-29

Saturday, October 9

Tulsa, Okla.

8:00 PM

Tulsa

2-4 , 1-1

Memphis

3-3 , 0-2

Team	1st	2nd	3rd	4th	Final F
Memphis	0	13	0	16	29
Tulsa	7	7	7	14	35

Photo by: Mark Moore

Tulsa Downs Memphis 35-29

10/10/2021 2:04:00 AM | Football

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GAME BOOK I POST-GAME NOTES I POST-GAME QUOTES I PHOTO GALLERY I SEASON STATS

TULSA, Okla. –– Tulsa scored 21 second-half points and held off a late Memphis drive to claim a 35-29 victory Saturday night in front of a Homecoming crowd of 17,593 fans at H.A. Chapman Stadium.

Tulsa improved to 2-4 overall and 1-1 in American Athletic Conference play, while Memphis fell to 3-3 and 0-2 in the league.

Josh Johnson's 63-yard touchdown reception and Anthony Watkins' 44-yard scoring run in the fourth quarter and Tulsa's defense was enough to hold off the Tigers from mounting a final quarter comeback. Watkins' run came with 4:28 left on the game clock, but Memphis closed the gap to six points 1:17 later.

On what amounted to their final drive, Memphis received the ball at their own 11-yard line, converted on a big 4^th-and-11 play for 12 yards to get to their own 42-yard line. On the very next play, Tulsa's Travon Fuller tipped a pass that was intercepted by Bryson Powers, ending Memphis' chance for a comeback.

On the night, the Hurricane defense forced three turnovers had three sacks and six pass breakups. Justin Wright led the way with 14 tackles, two TFL for -8 yards and forced one fumble, while Fuller added four stops, three breakups and one pickoff.

Shamari Brooks had a game-high 126 rushing yards and two touchdowns, while Davis Brin completed 11-of-21 passes for 182 yards and two TDs. Josh Johnson had his third 100+ receiving game in the last four contests with 140 yards on eight receptions.

Memphis ran 99 plays for 614 yards, while the Hurricane had 417 total yards on 67 offensive snaps. The Tigers missed three field goals and one PAT on the night.

With Tulsa leading 21-13 heading into the fourth quarter, the final stanza proved to be a back-and-forth entertaining battle. Tulsa managed the only score in the third quarter for its eight-point lead, while the defense held Memphis to 86 yards on 17 plays in the third.

Twice early in the third period Memphis moved into Tulsa territory, first getting to the 11 and then to the 30-yard line, but Tulsa's defense stood strong. Tulsa held on 4^th-and-4 at the 11 and forced a field goal from 48 yards that went wide right on Memphis' second possession.

On Memphis third possession of the half, Justin Wright forced a fumble on a sack of Memphis' Seth Henigan as Joseph Anderson recovered his first career fumble recovery at the Memphis 20-yard line.

Five plays later, Brooks ran in from three yards out to put Tulsa ahead 21-13 after the PAT. Brooks carried four times on that drive for 14 yards. It was Brooks' second rushing touchdown of the game, giving the local product 26 career TDs for fifth place in school history for rushing touchdowns.

Then the fun began.

Brin connected with Johnson on a 63-yard catch and run that put the Hurricane ahead 28-13 with 9:54 left in the contest. The score capped a 78-yard, five-play drive. Tulsa's score didn't detour the visitors though, as the Tigers proceeded to march 75 yards in seven plays in just 1:43 to get within seven points, 28-21, with a TD and two-point conversion.

On Tulsa's subsequent possession, Watkins' 44-yard run put the Hurricane up by 14 with 4:28 left on the game clock, capping a seven-play, 78-yard drive for the 35-21 lead.

Memphis' Calvin Austin's 30-yard TD reception and the two-point conversion narrowed Tulsa's lead to six with 3:11 left in the game. After Tulsa was forced to punt, the Tigers went on their final drive that ended with Powers' interception.

At the start of the game, Memphis took the opening kickoff to the Tulsa 18-yard line, but the Hurricane defense forced a field goal, that went wide right, keeping the game scoreless. Brooks gave Tulsa a 7-0 lead on the subsequent Hurricane possession with a 13-yard scamper that capped a 13-play, 80-yard drive.

On that drive, Brooks became just the fifth player in school history to surpass the 3,000-yard career rushing plateau.

On the Memphis possession, Tulsa's Fuller intercepted the ball and returned it 44 yards to the Tiger 15-yard line, but the Hurricane couldn't push the ball over the goal line. Memphis attempt of 53-yard field goal missed, keeping the score at 7-0.

The Tigers knotted the score at 7-7 on their next possession with a Brandon Thomas five-yard run at the 7:36 mark that capped an 80-yard, 12-play drive.

Memphis took the lead with just 0:38 remaining in the first 30 minutes as Thomas added his second touchdown of the night with a two-yard run, capping a 93-yard, 15-play drive that took 5:18 off the clock. The PAT attempt clanked off the left upright keeping the score at 13-7.

It appeared as that would be the final score heading into halftime, but the Hurricane would hear none of that.

Tulsa marched 75 yards in three plays. Brin connected on three straight passes, two to Johnson totaling 47 yards and the final 32 yards to Sam Crawford for the touchdown. Zack Long's PAT gave Tulsa a 14-13 lead with just 0:11 remaining in the first half.

At halftime, Memphis held a more than a 10-minute advantage in possession time, 20:21 to 9:39. The Tigers out-gained the Hurricane 312 yards on 54 plays to 190 yards on 28 plays for Tulsa.

The Hurricane had an identical 95 yards rushing and passing, while Memphis threw for 186 yards and had 126 yards on the ground.

Tulsa travels to Tampa, Fla., next week to face the South Florida Bulls at Raymond James Stadium. Kickoff time is 11 a.m. (CT)/12 p.m. (ET). The Hurricane returns to H.A. Chapman Stadium on Friday night, Oct. 29, after a bye week, to face the Navy Midshipmen.

For tickets to Tulsa home games, go online at TulsaHurricane.com or call 918.631.4688.