Memphis and Utah State met in the Servpro First Responders Bowl in Dallas today. In the end, Memphis would be the team to respond with a 38-10 win. Head coach Ryan Silverfield now joins Tommy West as the only Tiger coach to win two bowl games. What does this win mean for Memphis? We are not talking about the fans. We are talking about the University. We will look at what this win means for this season, the program, and the future of Memphis.
This Season
What started out as a rainy and ugly night in Starkville ended better than some had hoped {unrealistic fans} for Memphis. With the win today, the Tigers will finish this season with a 7-6 record. This win was what Memphis fans around the nation wanted. The 28-point win was the most significant win, in a bowl game, in program history. This Memphis team had a group of seniors who have been the heart and soul of this program. Silverfield spoke of this in the post-game press conference – “This one is for the seniors.” Silverfield also made a comment about this season that should resonate with fans. He would say when asked about this season. His response was simple yet spoke volumes. He said, “I feel like I can exhale.” We feel the same, coach.
In this season we would see many fans attack this program and want Silverfield fired. The post-game press conference showed that Silverfield is the right man for this job as we have stated many times in articles and our shows. This season was not easy, no college football season is, but this season ended in something never seen by Memphis fans. A back-to-back bowl wins, as Silverfield becomes the first coach in school history. This should be celebrated.
The Program
Memphis football has now been to a bowl game in nine straight seasons. This is something that we have talked about, but after this win, it needs to be discussed on a national level. This program is becoming a household name in postseason games. In the history of this program, it has never seen a sustained that we are now in.
Sustained success is hard to keep at any level in college football. For this program to maintain is a testimony to the administration as well as coaching hires. This current staff was given some slack early in the season but based on how this program finished 2022, this program is in great hands, and as Silverfield said tonight. “He is proud and honored to be the head coach at Memphis.”
The Future
This program saw an influx of youth as the season closed out. Players such as Sutton Smith, and others, have come in and made an immediate impact. With another top recruiting class in school history on the way in, who could be next?
Silverfield said tonight how all of the Memphis fanbases should feel when he said, “The future of MemphisFootball is bright.”
