Memphis was predicted to win the AAC Western Division before the season started. They received 25 of the 30 1st place votes.
Eight games later and they are nowhere near the team that people thought they would be. Were the expectations too high?
The simple answer is yes but are the Tigers really just an average team that is deserving of their 4-4 record?
Two of their four losses are by 1 point. They could easily be 6-2 right now and we wouldn't be talking about a disappointing season but they are not 6-2. They are 4-4 and 1-3 in conference play.
Coach Norvell said after the embarrassing loss to Missouri that he's not worried about the direction of the team.
"I'm not concerned about the direction of this team. I believe in this team."
Injuries have played a part in the Tigers play this year. DL O'Bryan Goodson, DB La'Andre Thomas, DB Tito Windham, LB Jackson Dillon, and DL Emmanuel Cooper all have missed time due to injuries.
The Tigers have been inconsistent for the most part of the year.
Let's compare some stats from last year at this point in the season. The Tigers were 6-1 (3-1 in conference play) at this time last year.
Defensively, they rank 76th in the nation in total defense this year. At this time last year they were ranked 119th.
Memphis is 54th in passing defense. This time last year they were 117th.
Memphis is 95th in rushing defense. This time last year they were 107th.
The Tigers scoring defense is 90th allowing 30.4 points per game. This time last year they were 105th and allowing 34.4 points per game.
While it may seem the defense is playing worse than last year, the numbers don't support that idea. The bye week is much needed for the defense though. After getting gutted by Missouri, the bye week is needed to refocus on finishing the year strong.
What about the offense?
Darrell Henderson is having a Heisman Trophy consideration type of season. He still leads the nation in rushing with 1,148 even though he missed the majority of the Mizzou game.
The Tigers are 8th in the nation in total offense. This time last year they were 15th.
The Tigers are 41st in passing offense. Last year they were 10th.
Memphis is 6th in rushing offense. Last year they were 71st.
The Tigers are averaging 42.5 points per game which ranks them 10th in the nation. This time last year they were 14th with 40.6 points per game.
When you're looking at the stats, Memphis is doing better than last year in a lot of the categories. But the only stat that most care about is the record. 4-4 isn't what fans want or expected.
The bye week comes at a good time for the offense just for the simple fact that Darrell Henderson has an extra week to heal.
The bye week comes at a good time for Tiger fans too. It gives them time to reflect. Some may reflect on the recent success of the program and feel disappointed in being 4-4. Some may reflect and appreciate the 4-4 record because they know where the Tigers had been is years past.
The Tigers have 4 games left. The Western Division title isn't the goal anymore. The goal is to finish strong. All four games are winnable games. Is Houston a winnable game? Yes, even Houston.
8-4 is respectable. It's a far cry from the 3-9 campaign that the Tigers had just five short years ago.
Eight games later and they are nowhere near the team that people thought they would be. Were the expectations too high?
The simple answer is yes but are the Tigers really just an average team that is deserving of their 4-4 record?
Two of their four losses are by 1 point. They could easily be 6-2 right now and we wouldn't be talking about a disappointing season but they are not 6-2. They are 4-4 and 1-3 in conference play.
Coach Norvell said after the embarrassing loss to Missouri that he's not worried about the direction of the team.
"I'm not concerned about the direction of this team. I believe in this team."
Injuries have played a part in the Tigers play this year. DL O'Bryan Goodson, DB La'Andre Thomas, DB Tito Windham, LB Jackson Dillon, and DL Emmanuel Cooper all have missed time due to injuries.
The Tigers have been inconsistent for the most part of the year.
Let's compare some stats from last year at this point in the season. The Tigers were 6-1 (3-1 in conference play) at this time last year.
Defensively, they rank 76th in the nation in total defense this year. At this time last year they were ranked 119th.
Memphis is 54th in passing defense. This time last year they were 117th.
Memphis is 95th in rushing defense. This time last year they were 107th.
The Tigers scoring defense is 90th allowing 30.4 points per game. This time last year they were 105th and allowing 34.4 points per game.
While it may seem the defense is playing worse than last year, the numbers don't support that idea. The bye week is much needed for the defense though. After getting gutted by Missouri, the bye week is needed to refocus on finishing the year strong.
What about the offense?
Darrell Henderson is having a Heisman Trophy consideration type of season. He still leads the nation in rushing with 1,148 even though he missed the majority of the Mizzou game.
The Tigers are 8th in the nation in total offense. This time last year they were 15th.
The Tigers are 41st in passing offense. Last year they were 10th.
Memphis is 6th in rushing offense. Last year they were 71st.
The Tigers are averaging 42.5 points per game which ranks them 10th in the nation. This time last year they were 14th with 40.6 points per game.
When you're looking at the stats, Memphis is doing better than last year in a lot of the categories. But the only stat that most care about is the record. 4-4 isn't what fans want or expected.
The bye week comes at a good time for the offense just for the simple fact that Darrell Henderson has an extra week to heal.
The bye week comes at a good time for Tiger fans too. It gives them time to reflect. Some may reflect on the recent success of the program and feel disappointed in being 4-4. Some may reflect and appreciate the 4-4 record because they know where the Tigers had been is years past.
The Tigers have 4 games left. The Western Division title isn't the goal anymore. The goal is to finish strong. All four games are winnable games. Is Houston a winnable game? Yes, even Houston.
8-4 is respectable. It's a far cry from the 3-9 campaign that the Tigers had just five short years ago.
