There's been a lot of talk that the Cotton Bowl will be Memphis' Super Bowl. You've heard Penn State head coach James Franklin say it, the Penn State players have said it, and there's some in the media that have said it. What about Memphis? Do they feel this is their Super Bowl?
"Obviously, we know the task at hand. It's going to be a challenge, make no bones about it. But our players understand that, look, they're going to play excited. I don't doubt for a second that our young men will go out there and play hard. At the end of the day, I want them to be able to play fundamentally sound, physical, tough, disciplined football. That's the way we have been able to play all year. We just got to continue to do that. Don't treat this game any differently. Go out there and play with a lot of fun, a lot of energy and a lot of passion. Be relentless in everything we do but be detailed and have the understanding to just do your job. If we do that and we look up, the end result we like the scoreboard, so be it. But I know our guys will play hard," Memphis head coach Ryan Silverfield said at the media day.
The Memphis players were consistently asked about it as well.
Quarterback Brady White- "I assume they have respect for us to be on the stage. And obviously a lot of respect for them and what a good opponent they are. You know, it is a big stage and it is an awesome opportunity. It's the Cotton Bowl, one of the top bowl games in all of college football and we're excited about that. At the end of the day, it is another game. It is one game. So we have a similar approach, but I understand there is a little more weight to the game."
Running back back Kenneth Gainwell wasn't buying into the notion this is Memphis' Super Bowl and the whole G5 vs the P5 sentiment.
"It doesn't mean really anything. It's just another game."
Wide Receiver Damonte Coxie- "We don't see it as the biggest game. We see it as an opponent who's coming in and we've got to play. And we don't want to lose and they don't want to lose either. The power five and that stuff, this is good. But at the end of the day, we want to compete."
Memphis Linebacker Austin Hall has bought into the Power 6 notion that would make AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco proud.
"In my mind, we are a Power Six. We have some great teams in our conference, for sure. We are playing a big opponent, one of the biggest college football programs in college football. At the end of the day, if we want to showcase ourselves to be a Power Six, we got to beat them. We got to come out strong with that on our shoulders. We got to come out here. This is a business trip for us. We're coming here to win."
This isn't the Tigers first power 5 opponent. They opened the season with a 15-10 victory over Ole Miss.
Memphis is 5-5 in the last 10 games against the power 5. They are 6-6 against Top 25 teams since 2015.
While the narrative that this will be the Tigers Super Bowl, the fact is that Memphis has had big games before. They've won some and lost some. To Memphis, this is just another game.
"Obviously, we know the task at hand. It's going to be a challenge, make no bones about it. But our players understand that, look, they're going to play excited. I don't doubt for a second that our young men will go out there and play hard. At the end of the day, I want them to be able to play fundamentally sound, physical, tough, disciplined football. That's the way we have been able to play all year. We just got to continue to do that. Don't treat this game any differently. Go out there and play with a lot of fun, a lot of energy and a lot of passion. Be relentless in everything we do but be detailed and have the understanding to just do your job. If we do that and we look up, the end result we like the scoreboard, so be it. But I know our guys will play hard," Memphis head coach Ryan Silverfield said at the media day.
The Memphis players were consistently asked about it as well.
Quarterback Brady White- "I assume they have respect for us to be on the stage. And obviously a lot of respect for them and what a good opponent they are. You know, it is a big stage and it is an awesome opportunity. It's the Cotton Bowl, one of the top bowl games in all of college football and we're excited about that. At the end of the day, it is another game. It is one game. So we have a similar approach, but I understand there is a little more weight to the game."
Running back back Kenneth Gainwell wasn't buying into the notion this is Memphis' Super Bowl and the whole G5 vs the P5 sentiment.
"It doesn't mean really anything. It's just another game."
Wide Receiver Damonte Coxie- "We don't see it as the biggest game. We see it as an opponent who's coming in and we've got to play. And we don't want to lose and they don't want to lose either. The power five and that stuff, this is good. But at the end of the day, we want to compete."
Memphis Linebacker Austin Hall has bought into the Power 6 notion that would make AAC Commissioner Mike Aresco proud.
"In my mind, we are a Power Six. We have some great teams in our conference, for sure. We are playing a big opponent, one of the biggest college football programs in college football. At the end of the day, if we want to showcase ourselves to be a Power Six, we got to beat them. We got to come out strong with that on our shoulders. We got to come out here. This is a business trip for us. We're coming here to win."
This isn't the Tigers first power 5 opponent. They opened the season with a 15-10 victory over Ole Miss.
Memphis is 5-5 in the last 10 games against the power 5. They are 6-6 against Top 25 teams since 2015.
While the narrative that this will be the Tigers Super Bowl, the fact is that Memphis has had big games before. They've won some and lost some. To Memphis, this is just another game.
