Memphis Tigers beat Arkansas State
44-32 in a loud and enthusiastic Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium Saturday night. Despite a defense that Arkansas State solved early and often, the defense plus a loud stadium helped stymie a late drive by Arkansas State. The Memphis Tigers beat Arkansas State, in part because Quarterback Seth Henigan finished with 19 completions in 28 attempts. His passing totaled 360 yards and 3 touchdowns, adding 1 more on a quarterback keeper (pictured above).
Arkansas State opened the scoring with a Seth Blackman 51-yard touchdown to Seydou Traore. Blackman was stellar all night, he threw for 275 yards, he was 25-34 overall. The Tigers responded later in the first quarter with a 16-yard touchdown catch by Caden Prieskorn. Memphis was put in position by a 42-yard reception to WR Eddie Lewis.
Quickly, Memphis answered the Arkansas St. score with a 72-yard drive. The big strike was a 56-yard beautiful pass to Gabriel Rogers. Caden Prieskorn added the touchdown on another middle strike, this time for 21 yards. The drive took only 4 plays.
Arkansas State responded with a season-long 46 yard field goal by kicker Dominic Zvada, Memphis took the lead on an 8-yard QB keeper by Henigan for a TD. This drive was highlighted by running by Asa Martin and Jevyon Ducker, and a 21-yard completion to WR Joseph Scates.
Memphis Tigers lead Arkansas State
21-17 going into the second half. Both teams struggled to score early. For Arkansas State, Jordan Carmouche and Melique Straker practically lived in the Memphis backfield. Carmouche had 13 tackles, and Straker had 12, 6 of them unassisted. Jaylon Allen led the Tiger defense with 9 tackles. The score did not change going into the fourth quarter.
Opening the fourth quarter Joseph Scates caught a pass down the left sideline. Evading 2 or 3 defenders, he cut back and overpowered Arkansas State defensive backs to complete a 51-yard touchdown reception. Arkansas State refused to relent, scoring on a Briad Sneed 7-yard run. The next Memphis drive led to a Chris Howard field goal, in position for this from a Roc Taylor 30-yard reception. Arkansas State took the lead late on a Blackman to Johnnie Lang 27-yard TD reception.
Down late, Memphis relied on Jevyon Ducker, as he had a 10-yard run in the drive, but also a 39-yard breakaway TD run down the right sideline. Memphis up late, they relayed on their defense and the crowd noise to cause two false start penalties. And their last try for the fourth down conversion resulted in a missed long snap to the QB. The ball was tapped, fought over, and eventually turned over on downs all the way back to the 9-yard line. Memphis finished the scoring on an 8-yard Brandon Thomas rush.
Memphis Tigers beat Arkansas State
on a combination of timely defense and effective passing. There were moments that showcased their running, but Arkansas State came and gave a battle that belied the final score of 44-32.
Fans impact games. Great job on the last possession Memphis fans!!!! Let’s keep it going next week📈 Ⓜ️
— Seth Henigan (@seth_henigan) September 18, 2022
Even the Memphis QB acknowledged the crowd post-game. The game was close all the way, and the Tigers came out of it with a Win.
(For more Memphis Tigers news follow me @ajayxemem on Twitter).
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