Riley Ferguson rushes for a big gain against South Florida. Despite Ferguson's four total touchdowns, the Tigers fell to the Bulls, 49-42.
The University of Memphis football team finished the season 8-5 after a 51-31 loss in the Boca Raton Bowl to Western Kentucky and had the fifth best record in the American Athletic Conference.
This year was a slight step back in the win column for the Tigers, finishing at 9-4 last season, but there are many things Tiger fans can look forward to.
Memphis wide receiver Anthony Miller celebrates his touchdown against Ole Miss Saturday. The former walk-on leads the Tigers in receiving yards (429) this season.
   Junior Riley Ferguson filled the vacant spot left by first round pick and current Denver Broncos quarterback Paxton Lynch and exceeded expectations by playing well. The University of Tennessee and Coffeyville Community College transfer threw 32 touchdowns and more than 3500 yards this season.
Ferguson had a 63.2 percent completion percentage in his first season as a division one starter. His 284 passing yards per game was good for second in the conference, only trailing Houston’s Greg Ward.
   Arguably, the most impressive player for the Tigers this season was wide receiver Anthony Miller. The redshirt junior, Memphis native and Christian Brothers High School graduate became the main weapon for Ferguson this season.
He gained more than 1400 yards on 95 catches and scored 14 touchdowns, all of which are improvements from his sophomore campaign. His performance this season earned him the honor of being named to the second team all-AAC lineup. Miller established himself as one of the best playmakers in the conference, finishing second in receiving yards per game behind East Carolina’s Zay Jones.
   The 2016 season was also Mike Norvell’s first full season as a head coach. He seemed to pick up where former head coach Justin Fuente left off and continued to produce quality offense.
The former Arizona State offensive coordinator and Tulsa wide receivers coach is known for the fast-paced, high-scoring offenses he has coached over the course of his career. He continued that tradition this season by finishing third in the conference in total points, averaging 38 points per game.
The Tigers also finished fourth in yards per game, with more than 460 yards of total offense, which neared the stats from last season’s team.
   Norvell is now bringing in the highest rated recruiting class in school history. The Tigers currently have three four-star commitments, and they have the No. 48 ranked recruiting class in the nation as specified by rivals.com.
As of now, Memphis will bring in the AAC’s top-ranked recruiting class, which improved 16 spots from last season. If Norvell keeps this pace, the Tigers football program should continue to the improvement it has seen since hiring Fuente.
