Ryan Silverfield: Memphis football is winning but not close to where it needs to be
Hall of Fame coach Bill Parcells once said you are what your record says you are. In Memphis football's case, that's positive and misleading.
Yes, Memphis (4-1, 2-0) has its longest winning streak – four games – since 2019. But the way the Tigers are playing hasn’t pleased coach Ryan Silverfield as mistakes continue to add up.
The Tigers defeated Temple on the strength of a great defensive effort and despite being held scoreless in the first half for the first time since 2017. Once again, there were missed assignments, missed tackles, dropped passes and poor execution that almost overshadowed scoring 24 unanswered second-half points Saturday
The Tigers may be where most thought they’d be heading into hosting Houston (2-3, 1-2) on Friday (6:30 p.m., ESPN2). It’s just not good enough for Silverfield, his staff or the players.
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“We’re doing enough to win games. It doesn’t mean that we’re even close to where we need to be,” Silverfield said Sunday. “Everything that we’re doing has to get fixed and improved upon quickly because we know a talented team like Houston, we can’t go out there and play like we did (Saturday).”
One reason Memphis hasn’t crumbled under its mistakes is that it hasn’t turned the ball over much. The Tigers have just three turnovers and two of them came in the fourth quarter of games where the outcome was well in hand.
It’s helped the Tigers rise to second nationally with a plus-9 turnover margin. When they’ve been able to sustain drives deep in opponents' territory, the Tigers have cashed in by scoring on 21 of 22 red zone trips this season.
Yet they had issues with poor starts. Memphis is second nationally behind Clemson in second-half scoring (23.0 points per game) but 85th in first-half scoring (11.4). While it’s made for thrilling finishes, it’s also showed Silverfield’s still waiting for a complete performance.
“I would like to start faster, absolutely. We have to find that way,” Silverfield said. “You never want to go into a game especially midway through the third quarter with zero points. That’s unacceptable.”
It’s also shown the Tigers’ run game isn’t the only part of the offense that’s been more methodical than quick strike. Memphis is 83rd nationally with 5.7 yards per play, which would be the lowest since 2014 if the season ended today.
A short week means Memphis doesn’t have much time to figure things out. Houston has lost three of its last four games but the Cougars are still formidable as one of the more talented teams in the AAC.
The mistakes are correctable, Silverfield said, but the Tigers have to show improvement instead of just being mindful. Winning ugly might be working but it’s not the standard the team is comfortable with.
“Good is not what we want here. If you play like that and you don’t improve, you’re not going to win many more games,” Silverfield said.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: Memphis football has room to improve despite four-game win streak
