Inter-Divisional Showdown Set for Philadelphia

Memphis plays the third of three consecutive games against opponents to have appeared in the College Football Playoff Selection Committee Rankings in recent weeks when the Tigers travel to Philadelphia for an early Saturday game against Temple.

Kickoff is slated for 12 p.m. Eastern (11 a.m. Central) at Lincoln Financial Field. The game will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU and can also be seen online via WatchESPN.com and through mobile devices on the WatchESPN app.

Heard locally on AM 600 WREC, the radio broadcast is also available on WAMB-AM 1160 in Nashville and WJAK-AM 1460 in Jackson, Tenn. For fans living outside of those radio markets, the game will be broadcast to subscribers through Memphis All-Access at www.GoTigersGo.com/Watch.

Saturday's game is also available throughout the world to service men and women and their families on the Armed Forces Network. The broadcast can also be heard on Sirius XM Channel 108.

Temple suffered its first conference loss last week in Tampa, dropping a 44-23 decision to a surging USF team. The Owls (8-2, 5-1) could lock down the American Athletic Conference's East Division title and a berth into the league's Dec. 5th championship game by winning its final two games.

USF has two conference losses. The Bulls could make the championship game by finishing with the same number of league wins as Temple by virtue of last week's victory over the Owls.

Temple has historically been known for its defensive prowess but the Owls are on a record pace offensively as well in 2015.

Junior Jahad Thomas has run for 1,035 yards and 15 touchdowns this season, becoming the first running back under head coach Matt Rhule to gain 1,000 yards in a season. Thomas' high school and collegiate teammate, junior quarterback P.J. Walker, has notched his third 2,000-yard passing season. Walker has completed 169-of-291 passes for 2,028 yards and 15 touchdowns. He has thrown just five interceptions this season.

Together, Thomas and Walker have become the first Temple duo to accomplish the 1,000 / 2,000 feat since 1979.

Senior receiver Robby Anderson has caught 41 passes for 601 yards and six touchdowns. Red-shirt freshman Ventell Bryant has 33 catches for 457 yards and three scores.

At Temple, wearing a single-digit number is one of the team's highest honors. The single-digit numbers are issued to players whom their teammates deem the toughest on the team.

Running back Thomas is one of those players, wearing No. 5. The Owls' defense features seven players who will suit up in single-digit numeral uniforms, led by senior linebacker Tyler Matakevich. The post-season award candidate leads Temple with 96 total tackles including 11.5 for lost yardage and four quarterback sacks. He has intercepted five passes and has broken up another five.

All told, six of Temple's top-10 tacklers wear single digits.

"They have a tough-nosed, blue-collar football team," Memphis head coach Justin Fuente said. "They will line up and try to run over you. They play really fantastic defense and are really solid on special teams."

Temple gives up 357 yards per game and at 21 points allowed per contest, is one of the nation's leaders in scoring defense.

Memphis is coming off a 35-34 setback at Houston, which left the Tigers at 8-2 and 4-2 in league play. While the team has been eliminated from seeking a second straight conference title, the Tigers are still in the hunt to make 2015 one of the most successful and memorable in program history.

Back-to-back bowl seasons is already ensured. With another victory, Memphis will notch consecutive, nine-win seasons for just the second time in program history. Memphis has recorded six, nine-win seasons with last year's 10-3 mark being the first since 2003.

"I am confident that our kids have taken ownership of this team," Fuente said. "There will be a willingness to put up a fantastic effort."

Offensively, Memphis' 546 yards of offense and the team's 43.7 scoring average both rank in the top-10 nationally.

Memphis quarterback Paxton Lynch has completed 246-of-358 passes for 3,292 yards and 21 touchdowns this season.

Lynch, a post-season award candidate, is already the program's all-time passing yards leader for a season. He is on the cusp of setting other season records, including pass completions (the record is 261) and touchdown passes (25).

Memphis' receiving corps includes three players who have over 1,000 career receiving yards – seniors Mose Frazier, Tevin Jones and Alan Cross.

Frazier is Memphis' leading receiver this season with 56 catches for 659 yards and three touchdowns. Sophomore Phil Mayhue has caught 41 passes for 550 yards.

Cross, a candidate for the Burlsworth Trophy, which honors the most outstanding college player who began his career as a walk-on, has 22 receptions for 224 yards and three touchdowns. He has 14 touchdown catches for his career, most by a tight end in school history. Fans can vote daily for Cross to win the Burlsworth Trophy by clicking on BurlsworthTrophy.com.

Last week at Houston, sophomore running back Doroland Dorceus ran for 116 yards and a score while also catching a 61-yard touchdown pass. It was his second, 100-yard rushing game. For the year, Dorceus has run for 565 yards and eight touchdowns. He has eight receptions for 175 yards and two scores.

Defensively for Memphis, senior linebacker Wynton McManis is the team's co-leader in tackles with 50. He followed up a career-high 10-tackle game against Navy with a performance at Houston, which included a quarterback sack and two tackles for lost yards.

Sophomore Genard Avery also has 50 total tackles which includes 6.5 tackles for loss and three quarterback sacks.

Following this week's game at Temple, Memphis is back at home next Saturday for Senior Day. The Tigers will honor 15 seniors prior to the SMU game. Kickoff next week is also at 11 a.m. Central.

University of Memphis Athletics

Players Mentioned

Genard Avery

Alan Cross

Doroland Dorceus

Mose Frazier

Tevin Jones

Paxton Lynch

Phil Mayhue

Wynton McManis

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