If you told a Tigers football fan after their win against Florida State that this current team would be completely knocked out of playoff contention with three games left on their regular season schedule, some would be utterly dumbfounded. With this team? With this amount of offensive production? Surely with the new 12-team format this would be the year the Tigers would eclipse the College Football Playoffs.
Depending on who you ask, however, they might have been expecting this to happen.
Coming off a shocking and embarrassing loss to the UTSA Roadrunners (4-5, 2-3) last Saturday, the Tigers have fallen to a 7-2 record overall (3-2 in conference play) essentially knocking themselves out of AAC contention and the College Football Playoffs.
In a game that saw the Tigers enter as 7.5-point favorites, many expected for the unit to march into San Antonio and keep their dream alive, but in what has become a recurring theme this year, the Tigers inexplicably played down to their competition and were not able to recover.
“It starts with me, I’ve gotta do a better job as a head coach making sure we’re clicking on all cylinders,” said Ryan Silverfield in a Monday press conference following the loss. If you are familiar with Silverfield, you already know this is his favorite line when the team comes up short in any facet of the game.
So, why are we not seeing any differences? Why is the defense giving up 400+ yards in two out of the last three games (including allowing 653 against North Texas)? Why is the special teams unit still allowing massive returns setting up opponents with great field position? In a season meant to be Memphis’ opportunity to push themselves to new heights, why are we still asking the same questions?
If Coach Silverfield is going to keep allowing himself to be the scapegoat for these shortcomings, he needs to be held accountable for when the issues are still not fixed week in and week out. It is unacceptable for a coach to address issues that need to be fixed and have fans still having to watch the same issues unfold.
Looking deeper into his tenure, it goes without saying that Coach Silverfield has done great things for the program including last year's Liberty Bowl win over Iowa State. There is no denying that since Mike Norvell’s departure, Silverfield has taken the reins to consistently make Memphis a good team.
The problem with this is, when you look at the amount of talent this roster has, most fans would ask how are we not a great team? How are we not at least contending for the AAC championship? What is holding the team back from finding their next gear?
In an AAC that continues to get more and more competitive as the years go on, can Silverfield prove that he has what it takes to elevate the team rather than settling to just keep it afloat?
This is not to say that Ryan Silverfield is the sole reason for these disappointing seasons. You cannot overlook the injuries and recruiting disputes that have tested his leadership during his time here. However, when fans see a team with the potential to knock off previous playoff contenders, they are going to want to see long-term results especially in a season that was marred as being one of the most anticipated in the program’s history.
The ball is in your court, Silverfield, prove us wrong. Show us that you can elevate this team and show us the potential that fans know this team has, because the last thing fans want to hear at the end of this season is that you still need to be a better head coach.
