4 Takeaways from Memphis Tigers in Week 1
1st (Thing we did not learn)
How will the Memphis defense stop Mississippi State? We still did not learn that. It was one of the top questions in the game preview and the doubts became a nightmarish reality. The preseason thoughts about Mississippi State were of strength and the “air raid” offense of Coach Mike Leech, and they brought it down upon the young Memphis defense the whole game, including a final drive with three minutes left.
2nd (Thing we did not learn)
How will the Memphis offense convert against a physically large and quick defense. The Mississippi State defense was ranked 30th in the country last year. Once again Coach Leech recruited well, and there’s another year in the Bulldog system. Late in the game we caught a glimmer of quick openers working to get into the open field. Even later in the game we saw quarterback Seth Henigan hit for a couple of good passes, including a TD pass to Lewis in the corner of the end zone. But next week will be the test of whether the late game awakening was because of the offense awakening, or the defense becoming lazy in the late game.
Some other Takeaways from the Memphis Tigers Week 1
3rd (Thing we did not Learn)
The 4 Takeaways from the Memphis Tigers in Week 1 were…. all bad.
The main hope for the future of this team is that Mississippi State was at home against a young developing Memphis Tiger squad. The Memphis Tigers looked promising late. QB Seth Henigan looked frustrated at times but never flustered. Despite being chased, hurried, bullied, and pressured, he threw no interceptions. Looking at the game film you’d be hard-pressed to even find a bad decision to lay blame on the young man. It was just truly a better opponent, who was motivated, at home, and almost mistake-free. And incredibly, it might not just be the best offense the Memphis Tigers face all year; once the year is over it may prove to be the best defense Memphis faces.