2016 Memphis
8–5 (5–3 American Athletic Conference), coached by Mike Norvell. Share
Schedule and results
- Biggest upsetBeat No. 18 Houston 48–44Nov 25
Houston was ranked No. 18 and favored to win.
- Most excitingLost to South Florida 42–49Nov 12
The win probability swung the most, by CollegeFootballData.com’s excitement index.
| Date | Opponent | Result | Elo |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 3 | vs Southeast Missouri State | W 35–17 | 86% |
| Sep 17 | vs Kansas | W 43–7 | 83% |
| Sep 24 | vs Bowling Green | W 77–3 | 66% |
| Oct 1 | at 16Ole Miss | L 28–48 | 33% |
| Oct 6 | vs Temple | W 34–27 | 64% |
| Oct 14 | at Tulane | W 24–14 | 67% |
| Oct 22 | at 24Navy | L 28–42 | 37% |
| Oct 29 | vs Tulsa | L 30–59 | 65% |
| Nov 5 | at SMU | W 51–7 | 54% |
| Nov 12 | vs South Florida | L 42–49 | 52% |
| Nov 18 | at Cincinnati | W 34–7 | 59% |
| Nov 25 | vs 18Houston | W 48–44 | 40% |
| Dec 20Bowls & playoff | vs Western KentuckyBoca Raton Bowl | L 31–51 | 36% |
Elo: a pregame chance from scores alone.
How it ended: Lost to Western Kentucky 51–31 in the Boca Raton Bowl; unranked in the final AP poll; tied for 5th in the American Athletic Conference.
In program history: The 15th-best season in program history by end-of-season Elo (of 84 on file).
- Record
- 8–5
- Conference
- 5–3 tied for 5th in American Athletic Conference
- AP final
- Unranked
- Points
- 505–375
- Coach
- Mike Norvell
- Elo
- 1573 +28 this season
- SP+ rating
- 7.7 No. 49 of 128; offense No. 43, defense No. 74, special teams No. 1
- SRS
- 2.5 No. 53 of 128 in FBS
- Returning
- 34% of last season’s EPA, No. 115 of 128
- Recruiting class
- No. 61 roster talent No. 79 in FBS
- Offensive coordinator
- Chip Long
- Defensive coordinator
- Chris Ball
- Offense
- Spread
- Defense
- Multiple
How good, play by play
| EPA per play | Success | Explosiveness | FBS rank | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 0.18 | 46% | 1.25 | 24th of 128 |
| Defense | 0.11 | 45% | 1.13 | 60th of 128 |
| Opponent-adjusted | 0.16 off 0.11 def | 46% off 45% def | — | 34th off 65th def |
How these are measured
Play-weighted averages over games against FBS opponents; raw numbers, not adjusted for the strength of the opponent. EPA (expected points added) measures how much each play changed the expected score; success rate counts plays that kept the offense on schedule; explosiveness is the average EPA on successful plays. Lower is better on defense. Ranked by EPA per play among teams that were FBS that season. The opponent-adjusted row (offense / defense) is CollegeFootballData.com’s WEPA, which accounts for who each team played.
Drives and havoc
| Points per trip inside the 40 | Average start | Havoc | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Offense | 3.8 | own 33 | 18% allowed |
| Defense | 3.4 | own 27 | 16% caused |
CORE rating -0.1, 65th of 128 (offense 6.3, defense 6.3).
A trip inside the 40 is a drive that reaches the opponent’s 40-yard line; points per trip is how many it scored on average (allowed, on defense). Average start is where drives began (the defense’s line is where its opponents started). Havoc is the share of plays ending in a tackle for loss, a forced fumble, an interception or a pass broken up. CORE is CollegeFootballData.com’s context- and opponent-adjusted rating (points better than an average team; lower is better on defense). From CollegeFootballData.com.
Leaders
| Passing yards | Riley Ferguson QB | 3,698 yds |
| Passing touchdowns | Riley Ferguson QB | 32 TD |
| Rushing yards | Doroland Dorceus RB | 810 yds |
| Rushing touchdowns | Doroland Dorceus RB | 9 TD |
| Receiving yards | Anthony Miller WR | 1,434 yds |
| Receiving touchdowns | Anthony Miller WR | 14 TD |
| Tackles | Jonathan Cook DB | 88 tkl |
| Sacks | Genard Avery LB | 5 sacks |
| Interceptions | Arthur Maulet DB | 2 INT |
Top recruits in the 2016 class
| John Tate SDE | ★★★ | No. 550 |
| Damonte Coxie WR | ★★★ | No. 580 |
| Joshua Perry S | ★★★ | No. 660 |
| Tim Hart ILB | ★★★ | No. 660 |
| David Moore DUAL | ★★★ | No. 901 |
247Sports composite rankings via CollegeFootballData.com; national rank in the class.
The 2016 class by position
| Signed | Stars | Rating | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Quarterbacks | 1 | 3.0 | 0.849 |
| Running backs | 1 | 3.0 | 0.824 |
| Receivers | 5 | 2.8 | 0.824 |
| Offensive line | 2 | 2.5 | 0.788 |
| Defensive line | 3 | 2.7 | 0.810 |
| Linebackers | 2 | 2.5 | 0.814 |
| Defensive backs | 6 | 2.8 | 0.816 |
| Athletes and specialists | 1 | 2.0 | 0.763 |
| Whole class | 21 | 2.7 | 0.814 |
High-school signees by position group, with their average stars and 247Sports composite rating (out of 1), via CollegeFootballData.com. Athletes are signees with no set position.
Drafted in 2017
The 2017 draft| Rd 5 | Jake Elliott K | Cincinnati Bengals |
Roster 109
The 2016 roster109 players, with numbers, heights, hometowns and each player’s 2016 line; 60 have a stat line. See the roster
2016 American Athletic Conference standings
Conference page| Team | Conf. | Overall | AP final |
|---|---|---|---|
| South Florida | 7–1 | 11–2 | 19 |
| Temple | 7–1 | 10–4 | |
| Navy | 7–1 | 9–5 | |
| Tulsa | 6–2 | 10–3 | |
| Houston | 5–3 | 9–4 | |
 Memphis | 5–3 | 8–5 | |
 UCF | 4–4 | 6–7 | |
| SMU | 3–5 | 5–7 | |
| Cincinnati | 1–7 | 4–8 | |
| Tulane | 1–7 | 4–8 | |
 East Carolina | 1–7 | 3–9 | |
 UConn | 1–7 | 3–9 |
Ordered by conference winning percentage, then conference wins. Division splits and tiebreakers aren’t applied.