Coming in to this game, I felt the key for the Tigers was their red zone defense. As it turned out, it was the red zone offense that cost the Tigers as they lost Saturday night to Marshall, 17-16.
The Herd got off to a fast start with Marshall driving 78 yards in 3 plays, capped off by a 40-yard TD run by Darius Marshall. It took less that a minute for the Tigers to find themselves down 7-0.
For three straight games the Tigers dominated the offensive stats but lost all three. Memphis had 26 first downs to 16 for Marshall. Memphis had 462 total yards to Marshall’s 403.
The game’s only turnover occurred with Marshall leading 7-0. On the Tigers second possession it appeared they were going to answer the Herds’ early touchdown.
Memphis Tigers QB Arkelon Hall Fumbles Against Marshall
But on 3rd and 5 from the Marshall 14, Arkelon Hall gained 6 yards to get the first down but promptly laid the ball on the ground. The Herds’ Aaron Johnson recovered the fumble at the Marshall 8, costing the Tigers a chance to put points on the board.
The game was sloppy, marred with penalties and extensive use of instant replay. In the first quarter alone there were four penalties for 35 yards, not including offsetting personal fouls and an offside call against Memphis that was declined.
The most incredible of all plays occurred in the first half as Darius Marshall ran 74 yards for an apparent touchdown. Marshall’s foot touched the sideline and the Tiger coaches were frantically pointing to the spot where Marshall’s foot went out of bounds.
Despite having a good look, the play wasn’t called dead and had to be reviewed. Instant replay confirmed Marshall stepped out of bounds at the Thundering Herd 32.
Memphis (0-3, 0-1 C-USA) was lethargic offensively in the first half, gaining only 169 yards. The Tigers managed a 12-play, 53-yard drive that ended with Matt Reagan kicking a 44-yard field goal to cut Marshall’s lead to 7-3.
Just before the half Marshall answered the Tigers score, driving 78 yards in eight plays. The Herds’ Craig Ratanamorn kicked a 31-yard field goal to give Marshall a 10-3 lead going into the locker room.
In the second half, the Tigers took the opening kickoff and drove 74 yards in 15 plays but had to settle for a Reagan field goal of 23 yards, cutting Marshall’s lead to 10-6.
The red zone problems arose when Will Hudgens entered the game with the Tigers having a first and goal at the 6.
On the first play, Hudgens ran left for two yards. On the next play, Hudgens ran a QB draw but was thrown for a two-yard loss, setting up a third and goal from the original line of scrimmage.
Hall replaced Hudgens on the third down play but his pass to Maurice Jones was broken up by the Herds’ T.J. Drakeford.
The Tigers defense held Marshall to just four plays on their next possession. On the ensuing drive, Memphis would get their only touchdown of the game, marching 56 yards in nine plays to take a 13-10 lead.
Memphis could have scored on the first play of the drive, with Hall tossing a perfect pass to Jones but he dropped what would have been a certain touchdown. The Tigers shook off Jones’ drop with the next eight plays, scoring on a 4-yard pass from reserve quarterback Will Hudgens to Earnest Williams.
But the lead was short-lived, with Marshall answering on their next possession. The Herd put together a nice 10-play drive capped off by Mark Cann connecting on an 18-yard TD pass to Darius Passmore to give Marshall the lead for good, 17-16 as time expired in the third quarter.
Hall completed 28-of-51 for 364 yards, and receiver Carlos Singleton had 11 catches for 158 yards to lead the Tigers offense.
Marshall (2-1, 1-0 C-USA) didn’t secure the win until 2:45 remained when defensive back Brandon Burns broke up Hall’s pass intended for Curtis Steele. Will Hudgens ended the game by throwing a Hail Mary pass that was knocked away one-yard inside the end zone.
”It’s really disappointing,” said Tiger coach Tommy West. ”This was a hard-fought game on the road that could have gone either way. Last week we gave a game away, but this was a hard-fought game where there were chances by both teams.”
Memphis is 0-3 for the first time since 1998. After blowing a 15-point fourth quarter lead at home last week against Rice, fans were calling for West to be fired.
After the poor performance this week, the grumblings are sure to get louder and more plentiful.
Next week Memphis returns home to face Nichols State at the Liberty Bowl. Marshall travels to Hattiesburg, Mississippi to take on the Golden Eagles of Southern Miss.
