Memphis Football Post-Game Notes

Sep 27, 2008 | Football

Sept. 27, 2008

 Memphis captains for today's game were seniors Brett Russell, Carlton Robinzine and Terrence Echols.

 Senior running back Charlie Jones scored in his third game this season when he rolled off a three yard run with 12:04 left in the first quarter. Jones scored again on Memphis' second drive of the game off a seven-yard run with 6:04 remaining in the first quarter. Jones also scored twice versus Rice and Nicholls State. Jones, who played 2004-2006 at Miami, now totals 16 career rushing TDs (10 at Miami). Jones finished the game with eight carries for 44 yards and two touchdowns.

 Charlie Jones has scored multiple rushing touchdowns in three games so far this season, marking the first season since 2005 that a Tiger has rushed for multiple TDs in multiple games. In 2005, DeAngelo Williams rushed for multiple scores in seven games.

 Freshman kicker Vinny Zaccario saw his first game action today when he booted the first PAT for the Tigers. Zaccario was in for Matt Reagan who missed the game with a hip flexor. Zaccario, a native of Tampa, Fla., prepped at Newsome High School. Zaccario missed his second PAT attempt (blocked).

 Receiver Steven Black completed his second pass of the season when he took the lateral from Arkelon Hall and tossed the 15-yard pass to Hall in the first quarter. Black had previously completed a four-yard pass to Hall versus Ole Miss.

 Carlos Singleton extended his receiving streak to 26 games with his 36-yard reception from Arkelon Hall in the second quarter. Singleton now ranks in a tie for third all-time at Memphis with the 26-game streak. He is tied with Earnest Gray. Singleton totaled three catches for a team-high 68 yards in today's game.

 Vinny Zaccario booted a 20-yard field goal in the second quarter with 3:54 remaining to give Memphis the 16-14 advantage. It was Zaccario's first FG attempt of the year. He hit a 37-yard field goal with just under six minutes remaining in the third quarter to give Memphis the slight 19-17 advantage. Zacarrio was called on again in the fourth quarter for a 40 yarder and booted the attempt to give Memphis the 22-17 advantage with 7:58 remaining in the game. He finished with 11 points kicking in the game.

 Curtis Steele rushed for 203 yards on 22 carries in today's game for his second consecutive game over 100 yards. He tallied 109 yards on 20 carries last weekend versus Nicholls State. Steele reached his 100th yard on a 46-yard carry in the third quarter, which was the longest run from scrimmage since DeAngelo Williams had a 67-yard run versus Akron in 2005. This is also the first time since the 2005 season that a Tiger back has rushed for back-to-back 100-yard games. Williams had 10 consecutive century games in 2005.

 Arkelon Hall left the game in the third quarter with what appeared to be cramps. He was replaced briefly by Will Hudgens. Hudgens finished the game with one completion for 17 yards.

 Duke Calhoun caught his first pass of the game, a 17-yard toss from Will Hudgens, in the third quarter to extend his receiving streak to 29 games. He holds the school record, which was previously 27 games by Russell Copeland. Entering today's game, Calhoun was ranked 11th nationally with his 28-game streak.

 D.A. Griffin forced his first career fumble in the fourth quarter. The fumble was recovered by Brandon Patterson for his second career fumble recovery and first of the season. Griffin tied Clinton McDonald for the team lead in tackles with nine and also was credited with a QB hurry.

 Alton Starr picked off Corey Leonard in the fourth quarter on 3rd-and-5 from the Memphis 37 for his second career interception. Starr totaled eight tackles, including four solo stops.

 Memphis had six sacks in the game, marking the most by the Tigers since making seven sacks in 2003 against East Carolina.

 Clinton McDonald led the team with a career best four sacks for minus 32 yards. He finished with nine tackles and a quarterback hurry. The four sacks are the most by a Tiger defensive player since James Logan had four sacks against Arkansas State in 1994. The four sacks ties the school record, which was set by Marlon Brown versus Louisville in 1987, and tied later in 1994 by Logan.

 For the second-straight game, Memphis has rushed for more than 200 yards as a team. The Tigers rushed for 243 yards on 41 attempts in today's game. Last week against Nicholls State, the U of M had 276 yards on 54 attempts. The last time Memphis has rushed for over 200 yards in back-to-back games came at the end of the 2005 season when the Tigers did so in the final three games of the year against Southern Miss, Marshall and Akron.

 Curtis Steele's 203 yard rushing game is the most since DeAngelo Williams rushed for 238 yards in his final collegiate game against Akron in 2005 at the Motor City Bowl. Steele averaged 9.2 yards per carry in the game.

 Steele rushed for his first touchdown as a Tiger on a two-yard run with 2:12 remaining in the fourth quarter. It was the third rushing touchdown in the game for Memphis. The last time the U of M had three or more rushing touchdowns came in 2006 against UTEP when the Tigers scored five from the run.

 The Memphis defense held Arkansas State to 352 total offensive yards. It is the first time ASU has been held under 400 yards this season.

 The Tigers rolled off 453 yards of total offense against ASU. Memphis has logged over 400 yards in all five games this season, and has amassed more yards than the opponent in every game.