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Memphis Tigers Football Faces Off Against the Visiting Navy Midshipmen in AAC Action

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Football

The University of Memphis Tigers will continue American Athletic Conference play against Navy at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium on Thursday, Oct. 14.

The game is scheduled for an 6:35 p.m. CT kick and will be televised nationally on ESPN. The contest can also be heard on the radio on 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS.

SETTING THE SCENE
• This past Saturday, the Tigers fell on the road to Tulsa, 35-29. Redshirt senior Calvin Austin III had 13 receptions for 200 yards, while redshirt freshman running back Brandon Thomas rushed for 77 yards and two scores in the loss.
• Last season, Memphis posted a record of 8-3 in head coach Ryan Silverfield's first season at the helm of the program. The year ended with a 25-10 win over Florida Atlantic in the Montgomery Bowl.

SCOUTING NAVY
• Navy fell at home to No. 24-ranked SMU, 31-24, this past Saturday. The Midshipmen ran for 177 yards against the Mustangs, with nine different players tallying at least one rush. Quarterback Tai Lavatai completed 4-of-7 passes for 64 yards and a touchdown in the setback.
• Prior to the start of the season, the Midshipmen were tabbed to finish in a tie for 8th place in the AAC with East Carolina in a poll conducted of the league's media.
• Last season, Navy finished with an overall record of 3-7 and a conference mark of 3-4. The Midshipmen earned wins over Tulane, Temple and East Carolina in a shortened, 2020 campaign.

INSIDE THE SERIES
• Saturday's game against Navy will mark the sixth contest in the series between the two programs dating back to the 2015 season.
• The Tigers have won two-straight in the series after dropping three of the first four games againt the Midshipmen.
• The last time the two teams met, the Tigers came away with a 10-7 victory over Navy in Annapolis, Md. The Memphis defense was outstanding in the win, forcing the Midshipmen to go just 2-of-13 on third downs in the game and forcing two turnovers on downs.

NON-SATURDAY SUCCESS
• Since the start of 2014, Memphis is 20-1 in non-Saturday, regular-season games, including a perfect 8-0 mark at home.
• Memphis is 8-0 in Thursday night contests since 2014.
• The Tigers have three non-Saturday games this season including this week's with Navy. They will play at UCF on Friday, Oct. 22 and at Houston on Friday, Nov. 19.

AMAZING AUSTIN III
• Redshirt senior Calvin Austin III has established himself as one of the best wide receivers and weapons in the NCAA.
• Austin III leads the NCAA in receiving yards (837) and ranks second in receiving yards per game (139.5) and all-purpose yards (162.0).
• The redshirt senior also ranks fourth in the country in receiving touchdowns (8), seventh in receptions per game (8.0) and 12th in total touchdowns (9).
• He is also second in the NCAA in receiving plays over 10 yards (30), 20 yards (15) and 50 yards (4).
• Austin III has posted two of the top-five receiving games in program history this year. His 239 yards at Arkansas State rank second, while his 200 at Tulsa rank fifth.
• He also has posted five-straight 100-yards receiving games, tying his own program record set in 2020.

HOME FIELD ADVANTAGE
• Memphis has had a great home field advantage at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, posting a record of 33-4 (.892) since head coach Ryan Silverfield joined the coaching staff in 2016.
• As a head coach, Silverfield is 8-1 (.889) at the Liberty Bowl.
• That impressive stretch includes a 48-45 win against No. 25 UCLA on Sept. 16, 2017.
• Six of those victories were against Power 6 programs (Cincinnati in the AAC title game, Mississippi State, Kansas, Ole Miss twice and UCLA).

RUSSELL TACKLES IT ALL
• Linebacker JJ Russell ranks second in the NCAA in both total tackles (11.0) and solo tackles (7.3).
• On the season, he leads the team with 66 total tackles, including 44 solo.

ONE OF THE ELITE PROGRAMS IN THE NATION
• Memphis has posted 68 victories since 2014, giving the Tigers the 10th-most wins in the nation during that stretch.
• The 68 wins are the most among American Athletic Conference schools during that stretch.
• The Tigers also rank 12th in the country in winning percentage dating back to 2014 with their 68-29 (.701) mark.
• Memphis is one of only five FBS programs with at least eight wins each of the last seven seasons (Alabama, Clemson, Georgia and Oklahoma).

TRUE FRESHMAN HENIGAN CONTINUES TO SHINE
• Through six weeks, true freshman Seth Henigan has been one of the best quarterbacks in the nation.
• Henigan ranks fifth in the NCAA in passing yards (1,938), eighth in passing yards per game (323.0), 11th in both passing touchdowns (14) and passing yards per completion (14.91).
• Henigan is the highest-ranked true freshman in each of those categories.
• With his 1,938 passing yards on the season, Henigan is only 118 yards behind Paxton Lynch's program record of 2,056 passing yards as a freshman, set during Lynch's redshirt year. Henigan is already the most prolific true freshman passer in school history.
• Henigan's 463 passing yards at Tulsa were the fourth-most passing yards in Memphis history.
• After his 22-of-33 for 417 yards and five touchdown performance at Arkansas State on Sept. 11, Henigan was named to the Davey O'Brien Award's Great 8 and to the midseason Davey O'Brien Award Watch List.
• Against Nicholls on Sept. 4, Henigan became the first true freshman QB to start a season opener in Memphis football history.

DEFENSIVE STANDOUTS
• True freshman defensive back Greg Rubin ranks second in the nation in passes defended (1.8).
• Defensive back Quindell Johnson ranks ninth in the NCAA this season in solo tackles (6.0) and 22nd in the country in total tackles (9.2).

MEMPHIS OFFENSE AMONGST BEST IN NATION
• Through six weeks of the season, the Memphis offense is amongst the best in the nation.
• The Tigers rank 11th in the NCAA in total offense (499.0), 11th in passing offense (323.0) and 24th in scoring offense (36.0).

DYNAMIC DYKES
• Fifth-year Sean Dykes is making his case as one of the best tight ends in the country this season, posting 26 receptions for 438 yards and four touchdowns.
• His 438 receiving yards rank him third amongst tight ends in the NCAA, while his four scores are fifth-best and his 26 receptions are seventh-most.
• Dykes is the most prolific tight end in program history with his 1,607 receiving yards.
• Prior to this season, he was named to the Mackey Award Watch List and the Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watch List.
• In 2020, Dykes earned Honorable-Mention All-American Athletic Conference honors after reeling in 47 receptions for 581 yards and seven touchdowns.
• He averaged 12.4 yards per catch and totaled two games with over 100 yards receiving, including a standout performance in the victory over USF, going for 147 yards and two scores on seven catches.

STUD PUNTER
• Redshirt punter Joe Doyle has been terrific for the Tigers this season, establishing himself as one of the best in the nation.
• Doyle and Memphis rank fourth in the NCAA in punt return defense (0.75) and seventh in net punting (44.24).
• On the year, Doyle has punted 21 times for an average of 45.3 yards, including eight of 50 yards or more and 10 inside the 20-yard line.
• For his efforts, Doyle was named to the Ray Guy Award Watch List.

THOMAS THE TANK
• Redshirt freshman Brandon Thomas has been a force to be reckoned with so far this season, ranking 17th in the NCAA in rushing yards (586).
• He also ranks 21st in rush yards per carry (6.37), 28th in rush yards per game (97.7) and 30th in rushing touchdowns (6).
• In 2020, Thomas appeared in four games for the Tigers, rushing twice for eight yards.