Sun Belt Sports Fans

Memphis 24, Middle Tennessee 17

When the Minnesota Golden Gophers beat Middle Tennessee State by a 24-17 score, it was one thing. For Middle Tennessee to lose to the Memphis Tigers by the very same score, that’s quite another matter.

Yes, the Blue Raiders – the preseason choice as the Sun Belt Conference champion – were once again without start quarterback Dwight Dasher, who will be out through the month of September due to illegal payments received in violation of NCAA rules. Dasher’s run-in with the NCAA occurred just a few days before the Minnesota season opener on Thursday, Sept. 2. For this game against Memphis, the men of Middle Tennessee knew well in advance that Dasher would be out. The Blue Raiders had time to prepare for Memphis, a team that had embarrassed itself in the first two weeks of 2010. This was supposed to be a Middle Tennessee victory and a launch toward a solid Sun Belt season, with Dasher rejoining the starting lineup in early October.

Instead, this game turned into an absolute nightmare for coach Rick Stockstill and his MTSU crew.

First, the context: Memphis did not show up in the first two games of the tenure of new head coach Larry Porter. The Tigers were crushed by a Mississippi State team that – in its subsequent two games – couldn’t get out of its own way on offense. Against Memphis, though, Mississippi State rolled to a 49-7 win. The next week, Memphis surrendered 49 more points to East Carolina. Sure, no one was expecting Middle Tennessee to ring up 49 on Memphis in week three, but 17 points is a paltry total that has to leave the Blue Raiders quite disappointed near the end of September.

Freshman Memphis cornerback Todd Washington picked off Middle Tennessee quarterback Logan Kilgore twice to lead a Tiger defense that forced four turnovers and held the Blue Raiders to 315 yards of total offense.  Being that the Tigers put up only 287 yards of total offense themselves, it’s a good thing Washington and company forced turnovers since the Tigers longest drive of the game was all of 39 yards, and that ended in a punt.

Memphis converted Washington’s second interception of Kilgore into six points when senior running back Gregory Ray – owner of 121 yards in this game – barreled up the middle for a nine-yard touchdown run.  Ray also scored following the Tigers’ third pick-off of a Kilgore pass, running nine more yards to paydirt in the third quarter to stake Memphis to a 24-10 lead.  The Blue Raiders responded with a third-quarter touchdown of their own, as junior quarterback Jeff Murphy scored from one yard out to cap a six-play, 69-yard drive and cut the deficit to 24-17.

That was as close as the Blue Raiders got, however, as the Tigers’ defense forced three punts and a turnover on downs on Middle Tennessee State’s final four possessions to secure the seven-point win.

Matt Zemek
DFN Sports Senior Staff Writer