Memphis survives versus Arkansas State
JONESBORO, Ark. - Arkansas State tried to fire up its crowd by playing “Whoop That Trick” before the opening kickoff. There's just one problem: That song is used by Memphis to do the same thing.
Maybe it didn't directly motivate the Tigers, but they responded with a scoring flourish that reminded of the highpowered offense they regularly displayed from 2017-19. The Tigers led wireto-wire and held on for a 55-50 road win.
With Calvin Austin III and Brandon Thomas leading the way, Memphis (2-0) led with haymakers with five scores of more than 50 yards. But the Tigers also had to stave off a furious rally led by James Blackman.
Here's what we learned from the game:
Calvin Austin’s speed is something else
When Austin has daylight, there aren't many defenders who can catch him. The senior turned Centennial Bank Stadium into a track meet with touchdown catches of 55, 50 and 75 yards.
His 55-yard catch came on the Tigers' opening drive, and he didn't ease up, scoring twice in the second half. Austin also had a tough 37-yard catch on third down to keep a scoring drive alive.
After just 47 yards in the season opener, Austin had a career-high 239 yards, the second-most receiving yards by a Memphis player behind Anthony Miller's 250 in 2016.
Brandon Thomas shines in home state
Thomas, who grew up in Little Rock, Arkansas, showed off his speed with touchdown runs of 75 and 70 yards. Those were the longest runs by Memphis since Antonio Gibson's 78-yard touchdown run against SMU in 2019.
It was speed missing last year from the Tigers' ground game. Thomas, who had 191 yards, left no doubt he's the starting tailback, with playmaking ability reminiscent of Gibson, Darrell Henderson and Kenneth Gainwell.
Seth Henigan passes road test
Any doubts of how freshman Seth Henigan would handle his first road
game were eased when he threw touchdown passes on his first two drives. He finished with 417 yards passing and five touchdowns in his second start.
Henigan didn't commit a turnover, although he came close when he was strip-sacked and the Tigers recovered. His best stat was going for 5-for-7 on third down with 130 yards, showing his ability to deliver clutch throws.
Memphis finished with 680 yards of offense.
Sean Dykes gets tough
Memphis had to be better getting Sean Dykes the ball after he had just one catch in last week's opener against Nicholls State. The senior tight end not only responded to that challenge, he made one Arkansas State defender pay on his second score.
After catching the pass, Dykes spun into a defender, knocked him down and
raced down the sideline. The 40-yard play was a reminder he had his way with the Red Wolves last season with 137 yards and two touchdowns on 10 catches.
Dykes had nine catches for 143 yards Saturday.
Tigers’ defense rests
For nearly three quarters, the Memphis defense did its job, keeping Arkansas State in check with pressure up front. But once the Red Wolves switched to Blackman at quarterback, the Tigers gave up four consecutive scoring drives.
It was a terrible finish to an otherwise strong showing. The Tigers played mostly soft coverage and Blackman rallied the Red Wolves. His Hail Mary pass
on Arkansas State's final drive was knocked away by Quindell Johnson.
But it adds some concern for the Tigers next week hosting Mississippi State (2-0). While the Tigers' offense came alive, their defense, which gave up 681 yards, must be better to extend a 16game home winning streak.
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You can reach Evan Barnes on Twitter (@Evan_b) or by email at evan.barnes@commercialappeal.com