Memphis Tigers at UAB Blazers
· NCAA - Football
UAB stuns No. 22 Memphis with goal-line stand, an emotional win for interim coach Alex Mortensen
The Blazers fired head coach Trent Dilfer last week, and Mortensen delivered as a 21 1/2-point home underdog.
“We wanted to play with fanatical effort, and the second thing was poise and the third thing was we talked about staying together no matter what,” Mortensen said.
UAB did that down the stretch.
Memphis (6-1, 2-1 American Athletic Conference) reached the 1-yard line twice in the final minute, but two false starts and a delay-of-game penalty stalled the drive. Memphis threw incomplete into the endzone on fourth-and-goal from the 11.
UAB was powered by a new starting quarterback, Ryder Burton, who completed 20 of his 27 passes for 251 yards and three touchdowns. Iverson Hooks caught 11 passes for 172 yards and all three of Burton’s TD passes. The Blazers (3-4, 1/3 AAC) also ran for 219 yards, their most against an FBS opponent since 2023.
Solomon Beebe's 81-yard touchdown run put UAB up 10 early in the third, after which UAB pieced together two possessions that milked more than 12 minutes off the clock to help preserve the win.
Memphis' AJ Hill completed 13 of 25 passes for 175 yards, with a touchdown and an interception. He replaced Brendon Lewis early in the third quarter.
“I thought the guys had the right mindset to the bye week, the right approach to the game,” Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield said. “I think this loss had nothing to do with their lack of execution. We got outcoached.”
UAB: The Blazers found new offensive life with Mortensen and Burton in charge, surpassing 450 yards of offense against an FBS opponent for the first time this year.
UAB: At UConn on Nov. 1.
How To Watch
How can I watch Memphis Tigers vs. UAB Blazers?
- TV Channel: Tigers at Blazers 2021 College Football, week 8, is broadcasted on ESPN2.
- Online streaming: Sign up for Fubo.
Scoring Summary
 |
TD | 1st Period 9:56 | Iverson Hooks 15 Yd pass from Ryder Burton (Jonah Delange Kick) |
 |
TD | 1st Period 9:42 | Sutton Smith 99 Yd Kickoff Return (Gianni Spetic Kick) |
|
FG | 2nd Period 7:08 | Jonah Delange 21 Yd Field Goal |
|
TD | 2nd Period 1:12 | Greg Desrosiers Jr. 1 Yd Run (Gianni Spetic Kick) |
|
TD | 2nd Period 0:02 | Iverson Hooks 16 Yd pass from Ryder Burton (Jonah Delange Kick) |
|
TD | 3rd Period 10:33 | Solomon Beebe 81 Yd Run (Jonah Delange Kick) |
|
FG | 3rd Period 3:14 | Gianni Spetic 25 Yd Field Goal |
|
TD | 4th Period 4:06 | Iverson Hooks 20 Yd pass from Ryder Burton (Jonah Delange Kick) |
|
TD | 4th Period 2:19 | Christian Ross 37 Yd pass from AJ Hill (Gianni Spetic Kick) |
Statistics
 MEM |
 UAB |
|
|---|---|---|
| 20 | 1st Downs | 25 |
| 5-11 | 3rd down efficiency | 9-13 |
| 2-4 | 4th down efficiency | 1-1 |
| 362 | Total Yards | 470 |
| 243 | Passing | 251 |
| 22/35 | Comp/Att | 20/27 |
| 6.9 | Yards per pass | 9.3 |
| 119 | Rushing | 219 |
| 25 | Rushing Attempts | 41 |
| 4.8 | Yards per rush | 5.3 |
| 8-54 | Penalties | 6-47 |
| 1 | Turnovers | 2 |
| 0 | Fumbles lost | 1 |
| 1 | Interceptions thrown | 1 |
| 24:55 | Possession | 35:05 |
Game Information
Location: Birmingham, AL
Attendance: 19,037 · Capacity:
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