After one of the most up-and-down seasons in recent memory, Memphis Tigers Football (10-2) is set to take on the Big 12’s West Virginia Mountaineers (6-6).
The storyline going into the game for the Tigers is nothing but history. The final contest in the Seth Henigan era, one of the largest bowl game streaks in the country, and the most wins in a single season if Memphis can take home the victory…but what about West Virginia?
I sat down with Luke Blain, sports editor for The Daily Athenaeum, WVU’s student newspaper, to get some insight into the story of the Mountaineers headed into the bowl game.
“Last year, [WVU was] a team that wildly exceeded expectations,” said Blain. “They were predicted to finish last in the Big 12, then they end up winning eight games in the regular season.”
Going into this season, West Virginia was pegged a dark horse contender in the new Big 12 based on the previous year’s success, ranking seventh out of 16 in the preseason poll.
These expectations did not parlay onto the field, however. Blain thinks that overall, the team simply underperformed: “There were a lot of things clicking last year that weren’t this year.”
He said specifically the regression from QB Garrett Greene, who had much fewer passing yards and more interceptions this year compared to last, and the secondary, who gave up the fourth most passing yards per completion in all of FBS, were the main reasons why this season was a step back.
After the disappointing season, the Mountaineers made the decision to let go of sixth year head coach Neal Brown prior to the Frisco Bowl. WVU will be led by Chad Scott on Tuesday, who is their current offensive coordinator. They have named Rich Rodriguez to fillthat position starting next year.
With all of these storylines and all of this context in mind, let’s break down the offense and
defense for the Mountaineers.
For the offense, Blain says that WVU “lives and dies by the run.” Their tandem of backs, CJ Donaldson Jr. and Jaheim White, led the Mountaineers to a top 30 rushing attack in the country, and had a combined 1,468 yards and 16 touchdowns. Greene also contributed significant amounts in the ground game, averaging 5.6 yards per attempt for over 600 yards in 12 games.
On the other side of the ball, Blain reports that “the run defense is where this team shines…they regularly hold teams under their average.” T.J Jackson and Sean Martin lead a front-seven that has allowed 141.1 rushing yards per game, which is lower than the yards per game total of Memphis (173.6).
There’s something so fascinating when you look at anything from another perspective, especially in sports. It becomes truly special when the stories of either team combine into one overarching narrative.
This game means completely different things to both teams: Memphis is chasing history to transition them into a new era smoothly, while the Mountaineers are looking to end on a positive note to propel them into the future with a new coach.
A win goes a long way for both teams’ respective futures and the legacies of players like Seth Hennigan and Garret Greene, but only one of them can achieve it…that’s the beauty of the flip side.
The Frisco Bowl will be on ESPN at 8:00 PM CT on December 17.
