Tigers Defeat FAU in 2020 Montgomery Bowl

Silverfied becomes Memphis’ most successful first- year

coach

gotigersgo.com MONTGOMERY, Ala. — Memphis defeated Florida Atlantic 25-10 in the Montgomery Bowl on Wednesday night at the Cramton Bowl.

The Tigers (8-3) snapped a five-game losing streak in bowl games. They also evened the all-time series with FAU (5-4), which won the only previous matchup in the 2007 New Orleans Bowl.

Tigers head coach Ryan Silverfield finishes the 2020 season with the best winning percentage of any Memphis coach in their first season. He ties Mike Norvell, who he succeeded, with eight wins in his first season. Norvell's first Memphis team finished 8-5 in 2016.

'The young men in our locker room will go down in history for me,' Silverfield said.

'Hopefully, this won't be the best record or most memorable bowl win I have, but it will probably be my most memorable season because of all the things that we faced. I love those guys in our locker room. It's an honor to have worked with them.'

White moves up AAC career list

Senior quarterback Brady White had 284 passing yards against the Owls and moved into second all-time in American Athletic Conference career passing yards. He surpassed former Temple quarterback P.J.

Walker (2013-16) for No. 2 on the AAC all-time list.

White now has 10,690 career passing yards, a Memphis record, in three years as a starter for the Tigers. His 90 career touchdown passes are also a conference and school record.

'I'm extremely proud of our program and everything we've done,' White said. 'We finished it off right. It feels good to walk out of here with a bowl trophy.'

White confirmed in his postgame interview the Montgomery Bowl was his final game as a Tiger. As a result of COVID-19, all players exhausting eligibility this season are given the opportunity to return next season. White, who is currently a PhD candidate at Memphis, will now pursue a career in the NFL.

'My time here at Memphis has been so special,' White said. 'It's a special city and a special program. No one truly knows what it's all about unless they are around it long enough or living in the city. I'll bleed blue for the rest of my life.

I'm a Memphis Tiger forever.'

Riley sets record

Senior kicker Riley Patterson made a 53-yard field goal in the first quarter to set the record for the longest field goal in Cramton Bowl history.

Built in 1922, the stadium has hosted collegiate and high school football games in its 98-year history.

Patterson, who has accepted an invitation to the Reese's Senior Bowl, finished his Memphis career second in career points kicking (433) behind only NFL veteran Jake Elliot (445) and ahead of threetime Super Bowl champion and four-time Pro Bowl selection Stephen Gostkowski.

TD for Dorceus

Senior defensive lineman Joseph Dorceus lined up at fullback and caught a 2yard touchdown pass on third-and-goal in the final 30 seconds of the first half. The touchdown was followed by a 2-point conversion to put the Tigers in front 18-0 at halftime.

'When it was my opportunity, I was ready,' Dorceus said. 'I couldn't ask for

Continued on Page 14 TIGERS (cont.)

anything better than that.'

It was the third catch of Dorceus' career and first touchdown. He also had a 25-yard rush in the 2020 season opener against Arkansas State.

Dorceus concluded the season

Redshirt freshman wide receiver Javon Ivory had a game-high 126 receiving yards, his first career game of more than 100 yards.

His seven catches were also a career high.

Ivory's game-long 51-yard reception in the third quarter set up a touchdown pass from White to wide receiver Calvin Austin III to put the Tigers in front 25-10 and help put the game away.

'It's great to end this season the way we did,' Ivory said. 'We put in so much work and had so many issues with COVID and people opting out, but we kept fighting. To finish this season off with a win is indescribable.'

A first-quarter fumble recovery and a fourth-quarter interception gave Memphis 20 takeaways on the season as the Tigers finish tied for 10th nationally in forced turnovers.

The fumble was recovered by senior cornerback T.J.

Carter and linebacker Thomas Pickens had the interception just outside Memphis' end zone to clinch the victory.

The 20 takeaways are one more than Memphis' total from last season in three fewer games. It's the first time the Tigers have finished in the top 15 nationally in takeaways since 2017, when they forced 31 turnovers and were No. 3 in the FBS.