Memphis versus Bethune-Cookman: How to Ace the Rehearsal

Week One of the college football season never fails to produce closer-than-expected results and sometimes downright shocking upsets. Heavily favored teams, on occasion, may slowly gel or even “sleepwalk” out of the opening gate, and the underdog, playing up to their competition, comes through with a resounding knockout punch. Nevertheless, the Bethune-Cookman Wildcats are what they are — a team that has gone 4-18 over the last two seasons with a first-time head coach. Memphis should very easily win this matchup and quickly turn the page to their trip up I-55 to Jonesboro next week. If you’re paying a team $425,000 to come to your stadium and take a cordial whooping, however, you might as well take full advantage of your opening game dress rehearsal. What aspects of game one should the Memphis coaching staff and Tiger fans look at on Saturday before the real competition begins? Here are three areas in which the Wildcats can prepare the Tigers for tougher opponents going forward.

Build Chemistry with the Receivers

The Bethune-Cookman secondary has a legitimate case to be the best position group on their team. The Wildcats return a 2022 First Team All-SWAC selection in senior defensive back Omari Hill-Robinson. In 11 games last season, he was responsible for 27 total tackles, 4 interceptions, and 5 pass break-ups. Former Temple defensive back Iverson Clement was additionally added to the Bethune-Cookman roster over the offseason. The former four-star athlete who played sparingly with the Owls will have a familiarity with the level of competition the Tiger receiving corps brings to the playing field. The Wildcats’ defense allowed 21 passing touchdowns and an average of 8.03 yards per pass play in 2022. Look for Seth Henigan to continue a career trend of widely distributing the ball to multiple receivers and working to build chemistry with his new-look WR room. In their lone game against an FBS opponent last season (Miami), the Wildcats allowed 281 passing yards, two touchdowns, and an 87 percent completion percentage between two opposing quarterbacks. No current Memphis wide receiver has served as the “go-to” man before this season, so it will be interesting to see who emerges and how he handles an increased workload.

Shore Up the Special Teams

One could argue that lackluster special teams play turned the tide against the Tigers on multiple occasions last season. In 2022, Memphis ranked 120th out of 130 teams in kickoff return defense. They ranked 121st out of 130 teams in punt return defense. Needless to say, new Memphis ST Coach Chris White has to drastically improve the Tigers in this area if they hope to compete for a conference title in 2023. And what would you know, Memphis gets to prove they’ll be better from the opening game of the season. Bethune-Cookman redshirt junior Darnell Deas is one of the best kick returners at the FCS level. The First Team All-SWAC return specialist ran back two kickoff returns for touchdowns and averaged 26.6 yards per return in 2022. Memphis, who expects to score often in this matchup, may have to kick to Deas more than they’d probably like on Saturday. After a difficult year in 2022, the Tigers’ special teams unit should receive a boost of confidence if they’re able to successfully bottle up the dynamic Deas on multiple attempts Saturday night.

Let the Defense Eat

Tiger fans have heard about the Memphis defensive line all offseason. With Jaylon Allen, CorMontae Hamilton, William Whitlow Jr., and others returning along with the additions of Josh Ellison, Derick Hunter Jr., and Keveion’ta Spears, the Tigers look as deep on paper as they’ve been in the Ryan Silverfield era. Squaring off against a Bethune-Cookman offensive line who struggled mightily with 42 sacks allowed in 2022, they’ll have their opportunity to shine early in game one. It’s worth noting that Tiger fans shouldn’t be alarmed if both the offensive and defensive schemes look a bit “vanilla” on Saturday, as there is little benefit in throwing out the playbook against an FCS opponent. Nevertheless, a Tiger defense that was reported to have several hotly-contested position battles throughout fall camp should have the opportunity to rotate multiple personnel into game action before a more solidified depth chart is ironed out in the coming weeks.