Sports
Tigers still scratching for a victory after MTSU downer
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- Category: Sports
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20 Sep 2012
- Written by J.R. Moorhead
"We write our own story."
These were the words spoken by University of Memphis starting quarterback Jacob Karam when asked if the Tigers were disappointed with the way their season was going up to this point.
"We write our own story."
Five simple words that encompass the focus of a whole team. And although Memphis is now 0-3 after its 48-30 loss this past weekend (Sept. 15), the sentence speaks to the fact that the Tigers refuse to get down on themselves.
Sure, they might have seen the story going a little different. But what's a good story without some drama in the beginning for the protagonists to have deal with.
Memphis' season has been a calamity of errors. Unnecessary penalties and turnovers have plagued the Tigers. When you aren't a great team to begin with these type of mistakes can make it virtually impossible to win any game, as the Tigers are quickly learning, if they didn't already know.
In it's last contest, the Tigers fumbled the ball six times. They only lost three of those, but putting the ball on the ground that many times is downright ridiculous.
If all the turnovers weren't bad enough, the Tigers have compounded the problem by committing them at some of the most crucial points of the game.
In the UT-Martin game, the punt returner fumbled a punt in the waning seconds of the game, deep in Memphis territory, allowing UT-Martin to set up a last second field goal for the win.
Just before halftime in the MTSU game, Memphis drove the length of the field for a touchdown, cutting MTSU's lead to 10 points. The Tigers were set to get the ball first in the second half. With another score, it would've been a one-possession game and Memphis would've had some serious momentum.
Instead, the Tigers' fumbled the kickoff and Middle Tennessee punched it in for a quick score. The momentum had changed in the blink of an eye and the Tigers could never recover.
Things aren't going to get any easier for Memphis, as the Tigers travel to Durham, N. Car. this week to take on Duke Blue this Saturday (Sept. 22). The Blue Devils don't traditionally have a strong football team, but they have looked better this year and are 2-1 as they head into the match up with Memphis.
This will be the Tigers' last chance to improve before they start conference play. After watching Memphis play thus far, it has become evident that the Tigers are going to have to play a near perfect game to pull out a win.
Will that be this weekend? Will the Tigers continue along the same plotline of the story they have written so far? Or will they start a new chapter?
