Nearly a month removed from their season-opening win over Arkansas State, the #25 Memphis Tigers will finally return to the gridiron Saturday night in Dallas after a Covid-19 outbreak temporarily caused the program to pause football operations. Their opponent, the 3-0 Southern Methodist University Mustangs, is coming off a 50-7 thrashing of Stephen F. Austin and will be looking to pick up a significant early American Athletic Conference West Division victory over the three-time reigning champs.
“Obviously, we’re excited to, hopefully, be playing a game this Saturday against a great opponent,” head coach Ryan Silverfield said. “We feel like we’re getting back where we need to be. Still not full strength, but we’re getting back to where we feel comfortable.”
One of the keys to watch for the Tigers will be the play of running back Rodridgues Clark, the man tasked with pacing the backfield in lieu of the absence of Kenneth Gainwell, their lead ball-carrier from a year ago. Against the Red Wolves, the sophomore from Starkville, Mississippi led all Memphis rushers with twenty carries for 105 yards and one score. For the Tigers to have a chance at a fourth-straight division crown, Clark’s continued development will be major for the offense.
“It’s a good opportunity,” Clark said. “It’s just me studying more film and knowing where more of my plays are going to hit at. In the previous game, I came out and it was my first game, and I was missing little tracks and was just a little off in my timing running the ball. This time, I’m just going to try to be a better running back with my tracks, blocking and all that. It’s a good opportunity to show who we are.”
Over the last five meetings, Memphis has dominated the series, going 5-0 and never scoring less than 28 points in that stretch. The closest game during that span, a 54-48 Memphis shootout win under the bright lights of the Liberty Bowl last year, was as thrilling a college football contest you will ever see and one can only hope that this year’s meeting even comes close to being as compelling. While the Mustangs may have come out on the losing end that day, senior quarterback Shane Buechele will certainly be chomping at the bit to get another chance at Brady White and company and help his team stake their claim as the class of the AAC West.
Any chance the Tigers have at piecing together another magical run like the one they turned in last year begins on Saturday night. To repeat as champions in the AAC west, they will have to go on the road and beat tough teams like the one they will face in SMU. Kick-off against the Mustangs is set for Saturday at 2:30 pm on ESPN2.
Zach’s score prediction: Memphis 41 SMU 35
