University of Memphis Athletics
University of Memphis
Charlotte
Memphis to Open American Conference Play at Charlotte Saturday
Sep 29, 2026 | Football
MEMPHIS, Tenn. – The University of Memphis (3-1) football team heads on the road for its American Conference opener against Charlotte (0-4), an opponent who has pushed the Tigers to the brink in the first two matchups of the series, on Saturday, Oct. 3 inside Jerry Richardson Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.
The game will kick off at 2:30 p.m. CT on ESPN+ with Evan Budrovich on play-by-play, Reggie Walker providing analysis and Maria Trivelpiece on the sideline. The game will also be available to listen to on 98.9 THE ROAR OF MEMPHIS, Memphis' Athletics flagship station for Tiger Sports Network, with Dave Woloshin (play-by-play), Jarvis Greer (analyst) and Greg Gaston (sideline) on the call.
SETTING THE SCENE
• Memphis looks to start 1-0 in American Conference play with just its third matchup against the 49ers, a program who has taken the Tigers to the brink in each of the first two iterations of the series.
• Despite Memphis' consistent success in the American, Memphis enters this year's conference opener with a 6-7 record in American openers since joining in 2013.
o That record also includes a 2-5 mark when starting conference play on the road, with its last win in a road conference opener being last season at Florida Atlantic.
• Even though he is in just his first season as the head coach of an American Conference program, Charles Huff already holds a 5-3 record against current member institutions, including a 49-28 win over Charlotte in his 2021 season at Marshall.
o In that season, Huff was 4-2 against current American schools, partially due to Marshall being a CUSA member, along with multiple current American teams, including North Texas, Florida Atlantic, UAB and Charlotte.
• QB Marcus Stokes enters the matchup after being named an American Conference Weekly Honorable Mention on Monday, Sept. 20 after throwing for 4 TDs against UT Martin.
• The 2026 Memphis Tigers roster features a grand total of 81 newcomers, split between 20 true freshmen and 61 transfers, with 27 returners from last season.
• Huff brings along 17 players from his 2025 Southern Miss squad, including All-Sun Belt performers: DE J'Mond Tapp, LB Mike Montgomery and SAF Ian Foster.
o The list also includes 5 players who played for Huff at both Marshall and Southern Miss.
• Memphis returns just four players (CB Chauncey Logan Jr., DL Taylor Burton, WR Brady Kluse, OL Parker Mitchell) that started at least one game for the Tigers in 2025.
• Dating back to a win over UAB in the 2023 season, Memphis has forced at least one turnover in 28 of its last 37 games. Over that stretch, the Tigers have created 61 takeaways (36 INT, 25 FR).
• The Tigers currently have an active streak of 33 games with two or fewer turnovers, which is the second-longest streak by an American Conference team and the longest active streak in the conference.
o The streak is also the sixth-longest active streak by an FBS program.
INSIDE THE SERIES
• The Tigers and 49ers will face off for just the third time, with the only previous matchups in 2023 & 2024 occurring after Charlotte's move from CUSA to the American.
• Both games have come down to the final seconds, with Memphis scoring 10 points in the final seven minutes to force overtime to then win on Blake Watson's two-yard touchdown run in 2023, along with the 2024 matchup having a total of 33 points scored in the 4th quarter, highlighted by a 24-yard passing touchdown from Seth Henigan to Roc Taylor with just 31 seconds left on the clock.
SCOUTING THE 49ERS
• Charlotte prepares to host the Tigers after beginning the season 0-4 in nonconference matchups, including a 3-OT loss to The Citadel and a recent home loss to Louisiana.
• Three players have featured under center for the Niners this season, with Cole Gonzales being the lone member of the trio to play in all four games.
o QBs Conner Harrell and Jaylen White have each appeared in two games, but Gonzales was the starter in the season opener.
• Charlotte's passing attack has been the better half of the 129th ranked offense in the country, with the 49ers gaining just an average of 105.3 rushing yards per game, led by Khamani Alexander.
• Alexander, an App State transfer, has stepped into an even more prominent role with Chance Williams' removal from the Charlotte roster after the team's loss to then No. 9 Ole Miss.
o Through four games, Alexander has 21 more carries than the next highest total, along with 117 more rushing yards than the second-highest active rusher on the roster.
• Gonzales does appear to have a favorite pair of targets in Jaden Barnes and Jaylen Hampton, with the duo each having at least 20 catches and over 200 yards on the year.
o The two transfers, Barnes from App State and Hampton from Western Kentucky, combine for 51.7% of the reception share.
• Defensively, the 49ers have shown strength getting ballcarriers down in the backfield, ranking 31st in the FBS with an average of 6.5 tackles for loss per game, led by Gavin Willis' 5.0.
o Willis, a former Bucknell Bison before joining Charlotte last season, leads the 49er defense with 30 tackles, also forcing one fumble.
• One piece where Charlotte finds itself equal to Memphis is in getting the ball back on defense, with both programs only recording four turnovers gained this season.
"THREE THINGS IN LIFE THAT'S CERTAIN: DEATH, TAXES AND THAT THE TIGERS GONE' HUNT" - W, 27-21 at UNLV
• The Tigers opened the Charles Huff era with a statement win over RV/RV UNLV, a program who entered the season with higher odds than Memphis of becoming the Non-P4 representative in the College Football Playoff.
• Memphis entered the half trailing 14-7 after allowing a pair of explosive UNLV plays, only countered by the first of many connections from QB Marcus Stokes to TE Hunter Tipton on a 16-yard passing touchdown.
• In the second half, Stokes knotted the game up at 14 apiece on a 48-yard pass to WR Stonka Burnside, with RB Jaylin Carter later scoring on a 36-yard run to make it 21-21.
• The Tiger defense stood tall in the second half, limiting UNLV to just seven points in the final 30 minutes, forcing a pair of turnovers-on-downs and sacking Jackson Arnold six times, highlighted by 2.5 from DL Elijah Kinsler.
• Stokes finished his Memphis debut 15-for-26 for 223 yards and a pair of touchdown passes, also netting 45 yards on the ground.
• In a display of pure dominance at the point of attack, the Tigers recorded six sacks, with DL Elijah Kinsler (2.5), DL J'Mond Tapp (1.0), DL Taylor Burton (1.0), DL Joseph Head Jr. (1.0) and DL Jaden McKinney (0.5) all wreaking havoc in the backfield.
CHRISTENING THE STADIUM WITH A RIVALRY WIN - W, 42-24 vs. ARKANSAS STATE
• In front of a sold-out crowd of 45,632 in the newly renovated Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium, the Tigers put on a dominant display with a 42-24 win over Arkansas State in the Paint Bucket Bowl.
• RB Jaylin Carter shined for a second week in a row, this time going off for 183 rushing yards and four touchdowns, matching Mario Anderson Jr.'s TD total against North Texas in 2024 and the most rushing yards since Greg Desrosiers Jr.'s 204 last season at Florida Atlantic.
o Carter was named the American Conference Offensive Player of the Week for his performance.
• Carter wasn't the only Memphis running back to show out as Manny Covey had 15 carries for 103 yards, giving him his first career 100-yard rushing game as well.
• QB Marcus Stokes became the first Memphis Tiger with 2 or more passing TDs in his first two starts since Riley Ferguson in 2016, finding Jermane Hayes and Aidan O'Callaghan in the end zone for each's first collegiate touchdown.
• After Memphis' defensive line starred against UNLV, the Tiger secondary stole the show against the Red Wolves as SAF Dylan Smith, SAF Ahmere Foster and LB Zach Ruffin each picked off Arkansas State QB Trey Owens a total of four times.
o Smith picked off Owens twice, the first time a Tiger had multiple INTs in a game since Sylvonta Oliver in the 2022 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl against Utah State.
A TALE OF TWO HALVES - L, 20-38 at BOISE STATE
• The Tigers suffered their first loss of the season in a battle of two of the frontrunners for the top Group of Six program in a matchup that saw a contrast in play style and two completely different halves of competition.
• Memphis, a program formerly known for dominating time of possession, led 20-17 at the half with two of its scores just taking 33 seconds off the clock on an 87-yard reception by TE Hunter Tipton and an 80-yard run by RB Jaylin Carter.
o Memphis' four scoring drives, all coming in the first half, took a total of 4:33 off the clock.
o Comparatively, Boise State's scoring drives took a combined 21:14 of game time.
• After carrying a 20-17 lead into the half, Boise State took a commanding lead after a pair of defensive stops and scores, including the first punt-return touchdown allowed by Memphis since 2021.
• Memphis was shutout completely in the second half, with Boise State scoring the final 21 points of the game.
• QB Marcus Stokes had a career night in the loss, passing for 384 yards and connecting on three passes of 40-plus yards.
• TE Hunter Tipton had one of the best single-game performances by a Memphis tight end in program history, finishing the game with nine catches for 229 yards and a touchdown, en route to being named the John Mackey Award Tight End of the Week.
o It was the most receiving yards by a Tiger since Calvin Austin III's 200 against Tulsa in 2021.
• SAF Dylan Smith led Memphis with 12 tackles in the loss, a new career high for the Southern Miss transfer.
A FULL SUPPORTING CAST PUT ON A SHOW - W, 45-21 vs. UT MARTIN
• The Tigers took care of business at home, putting up a third-straight 500-plus yard performance against UT Martin.
• QB Marcus Stokes became the first Tiger since Seth Henigan in 2024 to pass for 4 TDs in a game, also tying his own career-high of 26 completions.
o Stokes was named an American Conference Weekly Honorable Mention for his performance.
• A multitude of backs featured for the Tigers, with true freshman Jordan Thompson gaining 110 yards with one touchdown on just six carries.
• Memphis took a balanced approach passing, with 12 different players catching a pass, the most in a game since 2021.
o Included in those receivers were RB Jaylin Carter, WR Joshua Joseph and TE Jonathan Harding, who all logged their first career touchdown receptions.
• The Tiger defense was also balanced, with no player making more than five tackles, but with 22 different players recording a tackle.
NATIONAL RECOGNITION
• Memphis was well represented on preseason national award watchlists by numerous student-athletes, as well as Preseason American Conference Teams put out by various publications.
• TE Hunter Tipton, DL J'Mond Tapp, LB Mike Montgomery and SAF Ian Foster were all named to the Shriners Children's East-West Bowl 1000 Watchlist.
• LB Donovan Mathena was named to the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team Nominee Class for the second season in a row, highlighting his continued commitment to on-the-field performance and community service efforts off the field.
o Mathena also was named to the 2026 Allstate Wuerffel Trophy Watch List for the second-straight season.
• RB Manny Covey picked up a nod on the 2026 Doak Walker Award Watch List, annually awarded to the best running back in the nation.
o Memphis has had 10 players be named to the watch list in nine separate seasons since 2004, including players in the past three seasons.
• SAF Ian Foster was named to the Chuck Bednarik Award Preseason Watch List, an award given to the best defensive player in all of college football.
o Memphis has had a player on the watch list now in each of the past three seasons.
• Seven Tigers garnered recognition on the 2026 Phil Steele Preseason American Conference Teams, with four first-teamers (DE J'Mond Tapp, LB Mike Montgomery, SAF Ian Foster, DL Jaden McKinney) on the defensive side and a trio of offensive linemen (Phillip Gray, Riley McGehee, Maarten Woudsma) being named to teams, with Gray as a third-team center and McGehee and Woudsma as fourth-team tackles and guards, respectively.
• 11 Tigers claimed 12 spots on the 2026 Athlon Sports Preseason American Conference Team, with DL J'Mond Tapp, LB Mike Montgomery and SAF Ian Foster on the First Team, TE Hunter Tipton and SAF Ahmere Foster on the Second Team, WR Tychaun Chapman, OL Maarten Woudsma, Ian Foster (KR), DL Jaden McKinney and CB Chauncey Logan Jr. on the Third Team, and WR Terrell Timmons Jr. and SAF Dylan Smith on the Fourth Team.
• DL J'Mond Tapp and SAF Ian Foster were both also named to the Sports Info Solutions Preseason American Conference Team, with Tapp listed as a DE and Foster as a defensive flex honoree. SIS's formula for selecting the team is based solely on data scouting and statistical analysis.
• Memphis had six honorees on the Pro Football Network Preseason American Conference Team, including DL J'Mond Tapp, SAF Ian Foster and RB Manny Covey (PR) as first-team selections. OL Riley McGehee picked up his second preseason honor on the second team, along with CB Anthony Richard Jr. ;SAF Ahmere Foster also picks up his second honor, this time on the preseason all-conference third team.
• Five Tigers were named to HERO Sports' Preseason Group of Six All-America Teams, with SAF Ian Foster and DL J'Mond Tapp on the first team, along with TE Hunter Tipton, LB Mike Montgomery and SAF Ahmere Foster all being named to the third team.
• DL J'Mond Tapp was also recognized in ESPN's Adam Rittenberg's Top 15 Non-QB Playmakers as the only member from a non-Power 4 School, along with being named to The Athletic's Freaks List.
• DL J'Mond Tapp also was named to the 2027 Panini Senior Bowl Top 300 List.
• TE Hunter Tipton also picked up a nod on the 2026 Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Watchlist, awarded to the most outstanding offensive player with ties to the state of Texas through high school and/or college.
• After recording six pressures, five tackles and a sack in Memphis' week zero win over UNLV, DL J'Mond Tapp was named the 2027 Shrine Bowl Defensive Player of the Week.
• Opening his Memphis tenure with a debut win on the road, head coach Charles Huff was named the Bear Bryant National Coach of the Week.
• RB Jaylin Carter was named the American Conference Offensive Player of the Week after going off for 183 yards and four touchdowns against Arkansas State.
• TE Hunter Tipton was named the John Mackey Award Player of the Week after a career outing of eight catches for 229 yards and a score, just five yards shy of the FBS single-game tight end receiving record.
• QB Marcus Stokes was named an American Conference Weekly Honorable Mention after being the first Tiger in two seasons to throw for 4+ TDs in Memphis' win over UT Martin.
OUR FOOTBALL FUTURE NOW: THE NEW-LOOK SIMMONS BANK LIBERTY STADIUM
• Memphis Athletics, alongside the University's Auxiliary Services Foundation, has completed a $226.5 million renovation of Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium to redefine the college football gameday experience.
• The brand-new, four-level West Tower features 26 luxury suites, 36 loge boxes, 370 club seats and a full-service kitchen.
• With the renovations is the new Landers Plaza, providing fans an elevated experience on the west side.
• The stadium also now features 360 degree sound, fireworks around the bowl of the stadium and one of the largest ribbon boards in all of college football.
• The new stadium capacity sits at 45,632 after renovations, creating a more intimate atmosphere for all fans and adding to the stadium pulse.
HOME OPENERS
• Memphis' 2026 home opener kicked off a new era in Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium with a 42-24 win over Arkansas State in the Paint Bucket Bowl.
• The 2025 season got off to a bang with a 45-10 win over the Mocs.
• The Tigers opened the 2024 season against North Alabama and rolled to a dominant 40-0 shutout win.
• 2022's season-opening game on the road at Mississippi State snapped an 11-season streak of opening the season in Memphis.
• The Tigers are 49-61-3 all-time in season-opening contests.
• Memphis has won 12-straight home openers and have posted a record of 55-49-5 all-time in home-opening games.
NONCONFERENCE OPPONENTS IN MEMPHIS
• Memphis is 34-1 in the team's last 35 home games against nonconference opponents.
• Among the games during that stretch for the Tigers include victories over Arkansas (2025), Mississippi State (2021), Ole Miss (2019, 2015), UCLA (2017) and Kansas (2016).
• The lone loss during that stretch came against UTSA (now a member of The American), 31-28, on Sept. 25, 2021.
NEW FACES ON STAFF
• Head Coach Charles Huff built up a new coaching staff across the board, also bringing his assistant head coach, Telly Lockette, from Southern Miss and Marshall prior to the duo's time with the Golden Eagles.
• Offensively, Kevin Decker and David Weeks both come in from Old Dominion to serve as offensive coordinator/quarterbacks coach and co-offensive coordinator/tight ends coach, respectively. Rounding out the offensive staff are Andy Kwon coaching the offensive line and Aaron Dobson coaching the wide receiving corps.
• Lance Guidry joins as the program's defensive coordinator and linebackers coach after spending time as a defensive analyst at LSU in 2025 and time as Miami's defensive coordinator after being Marshall's defensive coordinator under Coach Huff from 2021-2022. The defensive position groups are coached by Eric Mathies (defensive line), Dominique Bowman (safeties), Tim Duffie (cornerbacks) and Mac Goode (linebackers asst.).
WE'RE STOKED
• Marcus Stokes has shined in his first few games at the Division I level, currently posting top-25 FBS marks in completion % (71.4), passing TDs (9) and total offense (286.0).
o Stokes became the first Memphis QB since 2016 to throw for 2+ TDs in each of his first two games.
o He set a new career high of 384 passing yards at Boise State and tied his career high of 26 completions against UT Martin.
• Stokes, a West Florida transfer who was once committed to Florida in high school, dominated at the Division II level in 2025, winning Gulf South Conference Offensive Player of the Year, D2CCA Super Region 2 Offensive Player of the Year and being a finalist for the Harlon Hill Award, given to the most valuable player at the NCAA Division II level.
A BEVEE OF BACKS
• After mentoring multiple first-round running backs in Saquon Barkley at Penn State and Najee Harris at Alabama, Head Coach Charles Huff has built a balanced group of tailbacks who could all go off on a given day, guided by assistant head coach and running backs coach, Telly Lockette.
• Dallan Hayden comes in as the most experienced of the group after stints at Ohio State and Colorado. The Memphis native returned home for his final season, looking to build off of a current mark of 1,185 career rushing yards and eight rushing touchdowns.
• Manny Covey is set for his first season in the blue and gray after playing a versatile role at Cincinnati over the past two seasons. He recorded his first 100-yard rushing game against Arkansas State, while also having a 100-yard receiving performance under his belt and 156 career punt return yards from Cincinnati.
• Jaylin Carter has emerged as the top back in the deep room, currently top 10 nationally in rushing yards (437), rushing TDs (6) and yards per carry (7.95).
o He followed Huff from Southern Miss after rushing for 166 yards and a pair of touchdowns and logging 137 receiving yards as a true freshman in 2025.
• Jordan Thompson came in for his first career carries against UT Martin, rushing for 110 yards and a touchdown on six carries, including a 72-yard run where the "turf monster" recorded a tackle.
FAMILIAR FACES ON DEFENSE
• Coach Huff brings over multiple members of his 2025 Southern Miss defense that finished 1st in the nation in interceptions (23) and fifth in turnover margin (1.08).
o Current Memphis Tigers Ian Foster, Ahmere Foster, Mike Montgomery and Anthony Richard Jr. account for 10 of those 23 interceptions.
• Counting all Southern Miss to Memphis transfers, the 2026 Tigers team has the following production from Southern Miss' 2025 season -
o Tackles - 411 of 1,095 (37.5%)
o Tackles for Loss - 26.5 of 78.0 (34.0%)
o Interceptions - 10 of 23 (43.5%)
o Sacks - 12.5 of 30.0 (41.7%)
• DL J'Mond Tapp follows Huff to Memphis for his final season after finishing in the top 40 in the FBS in sacks (7.5) and being named to the All-Sun Belt First Team in 2025.
• LB Mike Montgomery also follows to lead Huff's defense yet again after finishing in the top 30 in the nation in tackles per game (8.8) and picking off a pair of passes for the Golden Eagles last season, earning a Third Team All-Sun Belt nod.
• The third piece of a key trio of Southern Miss transfers from Huff's 2025 campaign is SAF Ian Foster, who picked off three passes, returning two for touchdowns while adding 72 tackles, being named to the All-Sun Belt Third Team.
• Of the numerous pieces that Huff brings from Southern Miss are Ahmere Foster, Anthony Richard Jr. and Dylan King in the defensive backfield, who all contributed to last year's dominance in Hattiesburg.
o The three combined for 5 interceptions and 105 tackles.
• The Memphis defensive line is anchored by multiple Southern Miss transfers in addition to Tapp in Jaden McKinney and Jabari Ishmael, who combined for 48 tackles in the interior tackle spots.
o DE Elijah Kinsler also comes in from the Golden Eagles after a limited role during his freshman season in 2025.
BUILDING THE BOOTS
• Memphis brought in a pair of veteran kickers with a lower amount of in-game experience.
• Philippe Laforge sits at 5-for-6 on field goal attempts this season, sitting a perfect 5-for-5 on attempts of 30-39 yards.
o He is also perfect on PATs this season, currently 17-for-17.
o Laforge, a Coastal Carolina transfer, had attempted just four field goals and one extra point in his time as a Chanticleer, converting on attempts of 47 and 51 yards.
• Michigan State transfer Tarik Ahmetbasic enters his fourth collegiate season with just one point-after conversion in his career and no field goal attempts.
BEST AGAINST THE BEST
• Since 2015, Memphis has posted a record of 10-11 (.476) against top-25 ranked opponents.
• The 10 victories are the most over that stretch for any non-Power 4 team in the country.
• Memphis' 10 ranked wins since 2015 have come over No. 13/12 Ole Miss (2015), No. 18/21/20 Houston (2016), No. 25/RV UCLA (2017), No. 25/24 Navy (2017), No. 15/14 SMU (2019), No. 18/17/19 Cincinnati (2019), No. 21/21/20 Cincinnati (2019), No. 23/24 SMU (2021), No. 17/18/18 Tulane (2024) and No. 18/20 South Florida (2025).
AMONG THE ELITE
• Memphis has posted 110 victories since 2014, the 10th-most in the nation during that stretch.
o The 110 wins are the most among American Conference schools during that span.
• The Tigers also rank 11th in the country in winning percentage dating back to 2014 with their 110-47 (.701) mark.
• Memphis (69) is tied for the fifth-most home wins in the country since 2014, trailing only Alabama (81), Ohio State (79), Clemson (78) and Georgia (70). Memphis is tied with Oregon and Michigan with 69 home wins since 2014.
• Memphis' streak of 12-straight seasons with a record of .500 or better is the third-longest streak among Group of 6 and independent schools and is the longest such streak in the American.
MEMPHIS IN OVERTIME GAMES
• Memphis has been involved in 11 overtime games (3-8). The Tigers have played a total of five multi-overtime affairs and have a 2-3 record in those games.
• The most recent overtime game for the Tigers was in 2024 at Charlotte when Memphis won 44-38.
• The Tigers came up just short in the 2017 American Conference Championship game in double-OT at UCF, 62-55. The Tigers and Knights combined to score 117 points, the highest total in a conference title game in FBS history.
• Memphis ended the 2014 season with the first overtime game in five seasons, defeating BYU 55-48 in double-OT at the Miami Beach Bowl.
