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Welcome back to the Tigers Football Insider, where we bring you the latest news and analysis from The Daily Memphian’s Frank Bonner II and Tim Buckley each week.
The Memphis Tigers have moved on from the 34-27 loss to Missouri and are now preparing to face Boise State at home at 3 p.m. Saturday.
Next game
Tigers (3-1) vs. Boise State (2-2)
At: Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium
Time/date: 3 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 30
TV/radio: ESPN2, 98.9 FM
The offense is looking to have more consistency this week and quarterback Seth Henigan said the key is to create explosive plays while limiting what he called “drive killers.”
“We had a lot of drive killers (against Missouri), Henigan said after Wednesday’s practice. “We had nine explosive plays, which for us are plays of 20+ yards. We had seven in the pass game, two in the run game. I think we had eight drive killers, which are like penalties, sacks and stuff like that.”
Memphis had a 10-yard holding penalty during its first drive that turned what would have been a third-and-3 into a second-and-16. The Tigers didn’t recover and were forced to punt. An illegal formation penalty later in the game turned a third-and-short situation into a third-and-9. Memphis didn’t convert and punted again.
Those are the plays Henigan alluded to on Wednesday. He also mentioned that he’s looking to protect the ball better against Boise State after throwing two interceptions for the second consecutive week.
Henigan said the goal for the offense is to have at least seven or more explosive plays in a game. The Tigers had nine against Missouri.
Boise State is allowing almost 12 explosive plays a game in the first four weeks. Memphis should have its chances to execute the chunk plays it is looking for, but the Tigers will need to prevent the self-inflicted mistakes that stunt their momentum if they want to turn those plays into drives that produce touchdowns. The Broncos are averaging just under 31 points allowed per game.
“We just want to execute to the best of our ability,” Henigan said. “We haven’t done that this year. We have a really explosive offense but we just need to show everyone. Be consistent every single snap, every single drive and put drives together consecutively.”
More from your Insider:
Missouri’s Tigers beat coach Ryan Silverfield’s previously undefeated American Athletic Conference Memphis Tigers 34-27 in an ESPNU-televised game in The Dome at America’s Center.
Memphis took a loss in its first real on-the-field test of the season. The aftermath will challenge the locker room leaders in how the Tigers respond against Boise State next week.
The University of Memphis was an onside kick away from having a shot at a game-tying drive against Missouri Saturday.
NCAA football box score for the Memphis Tigers vs. Missouri Tigers game played in St. Louis on Saturday, Sept. 23, 2023.
Jim Strickland’s $684 million plan to renovate Memphis’ four major sports venues was announced last October. Nearly a year later, no agreements have been reached regarding funding allocation.
Containing Missouri receiver Luther Burden while eliminating turnovers will go a long way in helping Memphis execute a potential upset.
Tauskie Dove understands the storylines that surround him playing his former school, but he hasn’t focused too much on that this week.
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