For the first time since the end of the 2019 season, the Memphis Tigers will have a new Head Coach in 2026 as Coach Ryan Silverfield has left Memphis to accept the Head Coaching job at Arkansas. Change is often scary, but this one had been coming for a long time, as the disconnect between Coach Silverfield and the fan base reached record highs after another season of falling short with enough resources to bring a championship back to the 901, but never delivered on the potential. 

Coach Silverfield finished his career at Memphis with a record of 50-25, going to six straight postseasons, and winning five of those games, while one was decided as a no-contest due to an illness with the Hawaii football team during the 2021 Hawaii Bowl. Coach Silverfield did a lot of good for Memphis and left the program in a good place for the future Head Coach to take it to the next level. Despite the success and the 50 wins, Coach Silverfield built a bit of a reputation for not being able to finish a strong start, turning it into a postseason bid with a postseason victory, but short of winning a championship with the best resources at the Group of Five level. The disconnect with the fan base came with the lack of championship-winning staff since taking over. He won, so Memphis couldn’t fire him, but he did what was best for him while keeping the best interests of Memphis football in mind. Now, in the future, Coach Silverfield can return with the likenesses of Coach Mike Norvell and Justin Fuente for proper recognition of what he did to sustain the success that’s going on eleven years and counting. 

As far as where Memphis goes from here. 

Luckily, the Memphis Tigers have one of the best Athletic Directors in the country, Dr. Ed Scott, and having him will be the difference-maker in making a home-run hire that will take Memphis back to the next level, where they’re competing for Championships and College Football Playoffs. Dr. Ed Scott has a vision for this program and his own way for Memphis to get there. In all likelihood, this next football hire could not only be the one that takes Memphis back to winning championships, but also the next Head Coach to take Memphis from a G5 member to the Power Four. Memphis has been right there for years and has never been able to take that step, but with Dr. Ed Scott leading this coaching search, taking that next step will likely be one of the biggest criteria. 

As far as where Memphis goes from here with the short list of candidates? Former Running Backs Coach, Anthony Jones has had the support of former Memphis players in Seth Henigan and Caden Prieskorn calling for him to be the choice, then you have Coach Charlie Huff at Southern Miss, a proven winner who learned under Coach Nick Saban, then there’s Hugh Freeze, Pete Lembo, Will Stein, Mack Leftwich and a few outside names as well. Coach Jones and Coach Huff would be my first two calls if I were Dr. Ed Scott, then work the list from there. There’ll be a few names from there, but those guys would kill it at Memphis with the resources given to the football program. 

Memphis will be all good with whoever they hire. Memphis has the deepest pockets in the G5. They’ll have a beautifully renovated stadium starting next year, facilities that help with recruiting, plus the level of sustained success that many around the country can envy. Memphis has reached the postseason for 12 straight seasons, including this year’s pending bowl trip. Not many programs have sustained success, and taking over as Head Coach would not be a rebuild but a chance to take the keys and take the University of Memphis to the next level by winning championships. 

Fans expect a diligent coaching search, but they’d like the timing to speed up a bit because of signing day on Wednesday. 

Photo Credits- Memphis Football on X