NCAA box score for the Tuesday, Dec. 27, game between the Memphis Tigers and the Utah State Aggies from Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas.

The Tigers (7-6) end the year with a .500 record or better for the ninth straight year and have now won two bowl games under third-year coach Ryan Silverfield.

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Box score: Memphis 38, Utah State 10

Utah State running back Calvin Tyler Jr. ranks No. 34 in the nation, averaging 86.9 rushing yards per game, and the 33 fourth-down attempts by the Aggies are tied for the 13th-most in the country.

Utah State has already shown it’s not afraid to try for a fake punt or fake field goal, and Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield said “unusual stuff” is likely to happen during bowl games. 

The Tigers have signed 23 players during the early signing period that ends Friday, Dec. 23.

Texas high school QB Harris Boyd, whose other offers included ones from Indiana and Arkansas State, signed with Memphis on Thursday. 

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Memphis Tigers football signees

Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield has known junior college transfer offensive lineman Chris Morris since he was an eighth grader. Now Morris will be joining his locker room. 

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Memphis Tigers football signees

Linebacker Geoffrey Cantin-Arku feels more confident in the defensive system after playing a season with the Tigers. 

The running back said his relationship with coach Ryan Silverfield and the way Memphis runs its offense is what drove him to want to play for the Tigers. 

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Memphis safety Rodney Owens to focus on NFL Draft

Jaguars kicker Riley Patterson kicked a 48-yard field goal to force overtime that allowed the Jaguars to beat the Dallas Cowboys 40-34. 

Memphis senior offensive analyst Quinn Gray has accepted a head coaching job at Albany State University. 

Blake Watson, a 5-9, 195-pound running back from Old Dominion, has committed to the University of Memphis.

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Memphis safety Rodney Owens to focus on NFL Draft

The Tigers will play Utah State in the First Responder Bowl at 2:15 p.m. on Dec. 27 and Owens will not travel with the team as he’s already been removed from the 2022 roster.

Memphis football started Monday morning by landing a commitment out of the transfer portal, a high school prospect and a junior college transfer.

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Transfer portal tracker: Memphis Tigers football

“I want to go one more year,” said the redshirt senior running back, who will use his sixth year of eligibility provided by the COVID-19 season to return to Memphis for the 2023 season.

Three-star quarterback Carson Black committed to the Tigers in June before decommitting six months later.

Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield said the draft board that NFL teams create is similar to the recruiting board he uses at the college level.

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Tigers football recruiting: Meet the Memphis commits

Bios of new Class of 2023 signees for coach Ryan Silverfield’s club from the NCAA’s early signing period.

University of Memphis athletic director Laird Veatch sent a video to the athletic department’s “ambassadors,” asking for NIL money. It seemed a good moment to ask five ambassadors what they are thinking about Memphis sports. 

Despite the speculation, the University of Memphis quarterback said he never thought about entering the transfer portal. He also believes the NIL era has its pros and cons. And he ‘has all the faith in the world’ for his coach.

Heading to the NFL is the plan for Prieskorn but not before playing one more year at Memphis.

Dallas Cowboys running back Tony Pollard scored two touchdowns for the second consecutive game. He’s scored multiple touchdowns in four games this season. 

The Memphis running back has a different perspective after his younger sibling, Alabama State linebacker Awysum Harris, died in July.

Multiple members of coach Ryan Silverfield’s 2022 team have entered the NCAA transfer portal and there are plenty of pickups too. Here’s a tracker.