Early Start

The atmosphere at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium has already been electric this season. Memphis' last home game was a 53-46, come-from-behind victory over American Athletic Conference preseason favorite Cincinnati in front of a rocking house and a national audience tuned in to an ESPN Thursday night broadcast, the only college game on television that night.

Certainly that excitement gets ratcheted up Saturday morning as the 5-0 Tigers, ranked No. 22 in this week's Amway Coaches Poll, play host to an Ole Miss team which is 5-1 and ranked No. 13 in this week's AP Top 25 and No. 12 in the coaches poll.

Kickoff for Saturday's game is slated for 11 a.m.

Fans are encouraged to arrive early.

The team's Tiger Walk through Tiger Lane will take place at approximately 8:30 a.m. Following Tiger Walk, a dedication ceremony to unveil the naming of a stretch of Tiger Lane to John "Bull" Bramlett Lane will take place. The recognition honors one of the greatest players of all-time, linebacker "Bull" Bramlett, who played against Ole Miss three times during his career.

ABC will broadcast the game on its nation-wide affiliates throughout the Southeast, Southwest and West Coast, including ABC Local 24 in Memphis. The game will be available on ESPN2 in the Midwest and Northeast.

On radio, the game can be heard locally on AM 600 WREC as well as WAMB-AM 1160 in Nashville and WJAK-AM 1460 in Jackson, Tenn. Fans can also listen to the game as subscribers to Memphis All-Access at www.GoTigersGo.com/Watch.

Saturday's nonconference game will pit two programs located just 70 miles apart. In front of what is expected to be a near-capacity crowd, both teams will look to start the game on solid footing with the morning kickoff.

"Part of our challenge is that we have to play a little more under control early in the game," Memphis head coach Justin Fuente said. "I don't feel like we've done a good job of that. I know our kids will be excited and there will be a great atmosphere and all those things, but we've got to understand we can play with great emotion, but we have to play with great intelligence."

Memphis has had to come back from early deficits in each of its last four games and has trailed at halftime on three occasions this season.

The Rebels will also look to get off to a good start early Saturday.

"We need to make sure we feel really good about those first few calls, and that our kids feel confident again," said Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze. "It doesn't mean it is going to work, because they are coaching and game planning too, and you're not exactly sure what you are going to see. But hopefully, we have a few successful plays early on to get us started right."

Both teams have posted impressive offensive numbers. Memphis is averaging 541 yards of offense per game (8th in FBS Football) and scoring 47.8 points per game (4th). Ole Miss' 511 yards of offense per game ranks 11th nationally. The Rebels' 46.8 points per game ranks fifth right behind the Tigers.

Memphis has been efficient on third downs in sustaining drives, converting on 47.6 percent of their third-down plays. Ole Miss' defense has held opponents to a 39.8 percent clip on third down.

"Defensively, we need to win third downs," Freeze said. "We have to do that against a team that isn't going to turn the ball over. That's not what they do. They take care of the ball. It would be great if you could force them.

"You can't count on it, but you have to find a way to win and get off the field on third down so you can get our offense more possessions and keep their offense on the sidelines."

Memphis' offense has been led by quarterback by junior quarterback Paxton Lynch, who has completed 103-of-146 passes for 1535 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has also ran for 116 yards and a score.

Through the first five games this season, Lynch has completed 70.5 percent of his passes and ranks fifth nationally in completion percentage. The Deltona, Fla., native's 181.5 pass efficiency ratio ranks third nationally.

"I don't know him personally, but he strikes me as the type of player that spends the time preparing that you should play that position," Freeze said of the Tigers' quarterback, who will make his 31st straight start on Saturday. "He understands where the ball needs to go, the time of the routes that they are calling, and he has a great understanding of what they don't want to do.

"You don't see him taking many chances or forcing it into coverage as he's getting hurries, or throwing late balls in the flat. He has an understanding, and he's taking care of the ball. With his arm strength and skills, it makes for a pretty good guy to have back there."

Saturday's game is one of three "Marquee Matchups" of quarterbacks as announced by the Davey O'Brien Foundation.

Ole Miss junior quarterback Chad Kelly leads the SEC in passing yards (1,862), yards per completion (15.39), total offense (331.08 per game) and touchdown passes (14). He has already tied former Ole Miss quarterbacks Bo Wallace and Eli Manning for the most 300-yard passing games in a season with four.

"In my opinion, watching (Chad) Kelly play, he has been pretty efficient and seems to be making good decisions and getting the ball to their guys on the edge," Fuente said. "He makes some plays with his feet. He's been a pretty good weapon for them."

Ole Miss' receiving corps all pose a threat offensively. In the win over New Mexico State, junior Laquon Treadwell caught a team-high eight passes for a career-high 136 yards and two touchdowns. The Rebels have three other receivers who have caught three touchdowns or more.

"We have seen some pretty good ones and I would say these guys are right in there at the top," Fuente said of Ole Miss' receivers. "They are very good. Obviously (Laquon) Treadwell is healthy and is a big playmaker for them. He is very explosive. They have plenty of guys on the outside that can exploit you if you're not in the right spot."

Memphis' defense is led by senior linebacker Wynton McManis, who is coming off a career-high, nine-tackle game at USF two weeks ago in the Tigers' last game.

A native of the Memphis suburb of Olive Branch, Miss., McManis is one of 10 players from the state of Mississippi on the Tigers' roster and one of seven hailing from the Magnolia State who are on the Tigers' depth chart. The defensive unit includes sophomore linebackers Genard Avery and Shareef White of Grenada, Miss., who both have started at one point this season, and Olive Branch native Leonard Pegues, who has started the last three games. Olive Branch native Dontrell Nelson is one of the Tigers' starting cornerbacks.

The winner of Saturday's game will become bowl eligible. Heading into Friday's games seven teams have already become bowl eligible. Both Houston and Boise State have an opportunity to reach six wins tonight in games played on the road.

Memphis will have a short turnaround following Saturday's game, returning to American Athletic Conference action next Friday at Tulsa. Ole Miss plays host to Texas A&M next week.

University of Memphis Athletics

Players Mentioned

Genard Avery

Paxton Lynch

Wynton McManis

Dontrell Nelson

Leonard Pegues

Shareef White

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