One month in, Tigers Football is still in the best position to control its destiny and play spoiler for the College Football Playoff. Despite losing to Navy two weeks ago, Memphis Football has a bye week before the South Florida game to get its mind right before turning up the tempo to turn the 2024 season into a magical ride similar to what happened in 2019 when the Tigers lost to Temple but went on to win the American Athletic Conference and play for the Cotton Bowl against Penn State. The difference between the 2019 Memphis Football team and the 2024 team is that the 2024 team has more talent on both sides.

Memphis came into the 2024 season with high hopes of reaching the College Football Playoff. After the win over Mike Norvell and Florida State in early September, the Tigers seemed well on their way to running the table. Still, a lousy game against the Navy allowed for a humbling experience for Coach Silverfield and the Memphis Tigers to learn from as the Tigers turn the corner for the rest of the season.

Coach Silverfield and his Memphis team followed the loss to Navy with a 24-7 win over Middle Tennessee State to reach the bye week with plenty to grow from while maintaining the enthusiasm to reach the College Football Playoff while delving another AAC Championship back to the 901.

It’s hard to describe, but something about the 2024 Memphis Tigers team seems magical. In years past, an early-season loss would turn into a second loss or a free range of excuses, yet the Tigers stuck to the process. The bye week has provided Coach Silverfield another week to spend with the team, working toward reaching the College Football Playoffs.

From a scheduling perspective, with Tulane coming down the pipe on Thanksgiving, the next two against South Florida on the road next Friday, and North Texas at home on the 19th are two games that can define the course of the season. South Florida took Alabama down to the wire, while North Texas comes into the week at 4-1, with the lone loss coming to Texas Tech back on September 14th. From a matchup perspective, Memphis should beat all three with momentum building toward the Tulane game. If the Tigers were to run the table, they would need Army or Navy to take a conference loss, but the Tigers control their destiny with everything in front of them to play for.

Overall, Coach Ryan Silverfield has Memphis Football in the best position as a program than ever before. There are still opportunities to rattle off good wins to position the Tigers for a bid to the College Football Playoff and to have the chance at playing for another American Athletic Championship, the first since 2019. Last season, Coach Silverfield Memphis Football had another ten-win season and an AutoZone Liberty Bowl Championship over Iowa State. Trusting the process will land Memphis in the same position with even higher stakes for the Tigers to end the 2024 season.

Photo Credits: Memphis Football on X