Memphis stunned the Arkansas Razorbacks 32-31 on Saturday, mounting the biggest comeback in FBS football this season to improve to 4-0 and earn their sixth consecutive regular season home win over a power conference opponent.
Memphis had scratched and clawed their way back into the game after being down 28-10 late in the first half. Through timely defensive plays and a relentless rushing attack, the Tigers somehow grabbed a 32-31 lead with 4:51 remaining in the game after Sutton Smith streaked down the field for a 64-yard touchdown.
After that, the Arkansas offense suddenly looked like it did in the first half, and ran the ball down the Tigers defense’s throat all the way to the Memphis 9-yard line with 1:18 left in the game. All the Razorbacks had to do was run out the clock and hit a chip shot field goal to escape Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium with a win.
Enter Chris Bracy, who punched the ball out of Mike Washington’s grasp, and fell on the football. Initially the runner was called down on the field, but after review, pandemonium ensued inside a sold out Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, as the Tigers, and 39,861 fans, knew the game had taken one final turn.
“They got good players, but we got good players too. And the way we work, we believed that we were going to win this game.” said defensive back Kamari Wilson, who got a massive redzone interception late in the third quarter. “It’s a shocker for most people, but it isn’t a shocker for us.”
It was a game with wild swings in momentum in the second half, but during the first stanza, Arkansas looked as advertised, scoring at will against Memphis and taking advantage of every Tiger mistake, most notably the 4 play, 52-yard touchdown drive that followed Memphis wide receiver CJ Smith’s interception on a trick play that put the Razorbacks up 28-10.
If not for an incredible 39-yard touchdown reception through defensive pass interference by Cortez Branham Jr., who finished the game with 102 yards on seven catches, the Tigers would have had an insurmountable deficit going into the second half.
“I told our guys we got them exactly where we want them,” head coach Ryan Silverfield said about his halftime message, when the Tigers entered the break down 28-17. “Even though our first drive (after halftime) stalled out, there’s a belief and a mindset that this game is ours and it’s going to be a fourth quarter battle.”
Coming out of the break, the Tigers defense hunkered down, holding a team that had averaged 47 points per game coming into the game to just three second half points. They held the best third down offense in the nation at 71.88% to a measly 3/11 on third down.
Whenever a play was needed to keep Memphis in the game, the Tigers defense came up with it.
“I think Coach Hankins says it best. ‘Sometimes the yardage may not be exactly what you want, and the stat sheet may not be exactly what you want, but it’s about finding a way,’” said Silverfield, quoting his defensive coordinator Jordan Hankins.
Offensively, Brendon Lewis struggled through the air, going 15/30 for 199 yards and a touchdown, but the running attack was potent, putting up 290 yards on the ground. Sutton Smith had a career high with 147 rushing yards on just 12 carries, while Lewis ran for 103 yards and two touchdowns himself.
“At Memphis, we pride ourselves on running the football,” said Smith, who had the game winning 64-yard touchdown run, a play that seemed doomed in the backfield before Smith broke the tackle with a stiff arm and raced past the Razorback defense.
That pride in running, opportunistic plays from surprising sources, and belief from the whole team wrapped itself in one package in the play that truly sealed the game.
After Brendon Lewis got his helmet knocked off, backup quarterback Arrington Maiden entered the game for a 3rd and 8. Maiden, who was met by 6’5 387 pound Ian Geffrard well short of the line to gain, dragged him and other Arkansas defenders 11 yards for the first down.
“That was the biggest run of the game,” Silverfield said.
When the clock hit zero, fans and players rushed onto the field in celebration of the biggest win of the season and an undefeated non-conference record. Next comes conference play, which starts Saturday in Boca Raton against Florida Atlantic University, with the Tigers' sights set on an AAC title and a bid to the college football playoff. Saturday was a good start.
