University of Memphis Athletics
University of Memphis
3-0
Southern Illinois
2-1
Tigers Football Wins Homecoming Game Saturday
Sep 23, 2017 | Football
Pollard strikes again with fourth career kick return for a touchdown.
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – It wasn't the easiest. It wasn't the smoothest. And, it may not have been the prettiest Homecoming game in University of Memphis program history. But, it did go down as a win.
The Tigers overcame a slow start and used an electrifying Tony Pollard second-half kick return for a touchdown to propel the home squad to a 44-31 victory over Southern Illinois Saturday night. Memphis posted the win before a Homecoming crowd of 41,548 at Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium.
The Tigers improved to 3-0 in 2017. Southern Illinois fell to 2-1. It is the second-straight season that Memphis started a campaign with a 3-0 record.
For a second-straight week, Tigers quarterback Riley Ferguson was in a shootout, this time with the Salukis' Sam Straub. Ferguson passed for 288 yards and two scores, and on the other side, Straub was just as prolific with 290 yards and four touchdowns.
Up Next
Memphis travels to Orlando, Fla., for a second time this month. The Tigers face UCF (2-0) at 6 p.m. (CT) on ESPN2. The two squads were originally scheduled to meet Sept. 9, and that encounter was moved up a day to Sept. 8 as a result of Hurricane Irma. After traveling to Orlando, Memphis stayed at the airport 45 minutes before the team re-boarded the plane and returned to the Bluff City. The postponement was a result of Florida Governor Rick Scott closing down all universities in the state Sept. 7.
| Stats Leaders | Memphis | Southern Illinois |
| Rushing | Patrick Taylor Jr.: 16 carries/77 yards/TD | Daquan Isom: 17 carries, 49 yards |
| Passing | Riley Ferguson: 22-of-36/288 yards/2 TD | Sam Straub: 30-of-48/290 yards/4 TD |
| Receiving | Anthony Miller: 6 rec./47 yards/TD | Connor Iwema: 9 rec./118 yards/TD |
| Tackles | Austin Hall: 9 solo/PBU | Ryan Neal: 10 total/8 solo/PBU |
How It Happened
- The Tigers were down 21-17 at halftime. Southern Illinois outgained Memphis in total yards (241-200) in the opening half and held the ball over 18 minutes (18:05). The Salukis also converted 6-of-10 third-down conversions in the first half.
- The momentum shifted to the Tigers' side after the break. Memphis used a 10-0 run to grab a lead it did not lose the remainder of the contest.
- Memphis took a 24-21 lead on its first drive of the second half. Darrell Henderson scored from 14 yards out. The drive's big play was a Riley Ferguson-to-John "Pop" Williams' 55-yard connection that moved the Tigers into the red zone.
- After holding Southern Illinois to a 3-and-out, Memphis used a 10-play, 63-yard drive to extend its advantage to 27-21 on a Riley Patterson 30-yard field goal.
- The Salukis answered with a field goal of their own to slice the Tigers' advantage to 27-24 with :20 left in the third period.
- Then, a Tony Pollard bolt of lightning struck again. For the second time in 2017 and his own school-record fourth time of his career, Pollard returned a kick for a score. Pollard's touchdown put Memphis ahead 34-24 with :05 left in the third quarter.
- A Spencer Smith 31-yard field goal pushed the Memphis lead to 37-24.
- Southern Illinois answered with a touchdown with five minutes remaining, but Memphis wrapped up the victory on a Patrick Taylor Jr. six-yard touchdown scamper with just over a minute left.
- In the first half, the Tigers started slow and Southern Illinois took advantage. The Salukis took leads of 7-0 and 14-7 on two Sam Straub touchdown passes.
- Memphis grabbed its first lead of the game on a Smith 36-yard field goal with 1:31 left before halftime.
- Straub tossed his third touchdown pass of the first half with :36 left on the clock, and Southern Illinois led 21-17 at the break.
Team Stats
SIU 7, MEM 0
SIU - Iwema, Connor 36 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Sotiropoulos, M kick) 9 plays, 78 yards, TOP 3:31
SIU 7, MEM 7
MEM - MILLER, Anthony 1 yd pass from FERGUSON, Riley (SMITH, Spencer kick) 3 plays, 14 yards, TOP 0:50
SIU 14, MEM 7
SIU - James, Darrell 7 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Sotiropoulos, M kick) 15 plays, 73 yards, TOP 6:53
SIU 14, MEM 14
MEM - MAGNIFICO, Joey 9 yd pass from FERGUSON, Riley (PATTERSON, R. kick) 10 plays, 71 yards, TOP 3:05
SIU 14, MEM 17
MEM - SMITH, Spencer 35 yd field goal 13 plays, 59 yards, TOP 3:35
SIU 21, MEM 17
SIU - James, Darrell 33 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Sotiropoulos, M kick) 5 plays, 65 yards, TOP 0:55
SIU 21, MEM 24
MEM - HENDERSON, D. 14 yd run (SMITH, Spencer kick), 4 plays, 75 yards, TOP 1:13
SIU 21, MEM 27
MEM - PATTERSON, R. 30 yd field goal 10 plays, 63 yards, TOP 3:12
SIU 24, MEM 27
SIU - Sotiropoulos, M 32 yd field goal 16 plays, 60 yards, TOP 8:42
SIU 24, MEM 34
MEM - POLLARD, Tony 100 yd kickoff return (PATTERSON, R. kick)
SIU 24, MEM 37
MEM - SMITH, Spencer 31 yd field goal 11 plays, 54 yards, TOP 4:11
SIU 31, MEM 37
SIU - Graham, Jaylon 1 yd pass from Straub, Sam (Sotiropoulos, M kick) 13 plays, 56 yards, TOP 5:31
SIU 31, MEM 44
MEM - TAYLOR, Patrick 6 yd run (SMITH, Spencer kick), 8 plays, 72 yards, TOP 3:25
