Memphis Opens American Conference Play With 59-8 Win Over Charlotte

Marcus Stokes threw for 318 yards and five touchdowns as Memphis routed winless Charlotte 59-8 in the American Conference opener for both teams on Oct. 3.

Memphis opened American Conference play with a 59-8 win over Charlotte on Saturday, Oct. 3, at Jerry Richardson Stadium. The Tigers improved to 4-1 overall and 1-0 in the league, while the 49ers fell to 0-5 and 0-1 in the conference opener for both teams.

The game was in doubt for less than five minutes. Charlotte faced fourth-and-1 at its own 49-yard line, and coach Tim Albin chose to punt. On the next play, Marcus Stokes hit Jermane Hayes for a 93-yard touchdown, and Memphis controlled the contest from there. "Once I got it, I was just thinking about scoring," Hayes said. "I got a fast burst."

The rout closed out an unusual stretch of the schedule for the Tigers. After opening the season against UNLV, Arkansas State and Boise State, Memphis went three weeks without a genuine test, beating FCS opponent UT Martin 45-21, taking an open week and then facing Charlotte.

Coach Charles Huff has said repeatedly this season that Memphis has no single preferred target and will look for whichever receiver is open, and Stokes distributed the ball that way again. Tight end Hunter Tipton continued to see steady involvement, and Hayes caught six passes a week after eight receptions against UT Martin, taking on a larger role in the offense. Drops were an issue for Tychaun Chapman in the win.

Several catches stood out on their own. Stonka Burnside came down with a touchdown over a defender, Brady Kluse hauled in a one-handed catch, and Tipton secured his own one-handed grab before outrunning the defense for a first-half touchdown.

Stokes completed 20 of 25 passes for 318 yards and five touchdowns and watched much of the second half from the sideline for the second game in a row. He described an offense focused on correcting errors rather than savoring its best moments. "We all know that we left stuff out there on the field," Stokes said. "We pay more attention to the plays we messed up."

The defense allowed only eight points, all of them on Henry Rutledge's 75-yard touchdown run on the first play of the second half. Aside from that, Charlotte got little going on the ground and almost nothing through the air, and the Tigers forced four turnovers. The defensive line disrupted the 49ers on third down and appears to be Memphis's strongest position group, even though stopping the run has been a concern at times this season.

"We're a dominating defense," Huff said. "A dominating defense doesn't mean you shut people out, they don't score. A dominating defense means within the game there are going to be moments where you take advantage of opportunities." The takeaways were a payoff for practice, in his telling. "We've probably been punching at balls in practice since the flood," Huff said, adding that finally getting a ball to come out in a game showed players why those drills are part of the routine.

Charlotte remains one of the weakest FBS teams in the country and is still searching for its first win, while Memphis is regarded as one of the favorites for the conference title.