White guides Memphis to win, snapping bowl drought
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Brady White already held several Memphis career records, but he left another mark in his finale.
White passed for 284 yards and three touchdowns to lead the Tigers to a 25-10 victory over Florida Atlantic on Wednesday night in the Montgomery Bowl, snapping a five-game bowl losing streak.
The Tigers (8-3) built a big halftime lead, withstood a third-quarter rally and ended coach Ryan Silverfield’s first season with a second straight win.
“They’ll go down in history for their fight and everything they did this season,” Silverfield said, adding that his team ended up playing with 53 scholarship players.
Meanwhile, Wil l i e Taggart’s debut season with Florida Atlantic ended at 5-4 after the offense sputtered much of the way.
White, who was named game MVP, completed 22 of 34 passes with three short touchdowns while also throwing an interception, having a big game even with a quiet night from star receiver Calvin Austin III.
“Another piece of history was made tonight for myself and for this team,” White said. He cited “this whole weird year” that included two canceled games in September because of COVID-19 issues.
More importantly, he said: “We finished it off right.”
Redshir t f re s hman receivers Tahj Washington and Javon Ivory both had big games against a defense that came in ranked 11th nationally in passing defense.
Washington caught eight passes for 105 yards while Ivory gained 126 yards on seven catches with a TD. Austin had 28 yards on three catches with a TD.