Memphis Tigers
Encyclopedia
The Memphis Tigers represent the University of Memphis
in Division I of the NCAA
. They are members of C-USA and currently feature nine women's sports and nine men's sports. These include:
Men's Sports
Women's Sports
After the final game of the 1914 season, there was a student parade. During this event, several University students shouted, "We fight like Tigers!" The nickname was born. As time passed, the nickname "Tigers" was increasingly used, particularly in campus publications, but did not catch on with the newspapers downtown. They continued to use "the Blue and Gray" when referring to the University.
Under Coach Lester Barnard in 1922, Memphis's football team gave a ring of truth to that old student yell about Tigers. The team adopted a motto - "Every Man a Tiger" - and went on to score 174 points while allowing its opponents just 29 points. The Tiger nickname continued on with students and alumni, eventually being adopted as the official nickname for the University of Memphis in 1939.
. The university is one of a select few schools in the country that keep a live tiger as a mascot, although the practice of live animals serving as university mascots is carried on by a number of other universities, such as Auburn University's
War Eagle
, and others.
, Larry Kenon, Ronnie Robinson, Bill Cook and others, eventually lost to John Wooden's UCLA Bruins
, led by Bill Walton
.
The Tigers continued an era of excellence throughout the 1980s and went to the Final Four
in 1985 losing to Villanova, the ultimate winner of the tournament. The 1985 Final Four trip has since been vacated by the NCAA due to several recruiting violations committed by head coach Dana Kirk
and his staff. Success continued through much of the 1990s. Under head coach John Calipari
, the Tigers reached the Elite Eight
three years in a row (2006–2008) and those same years won the conference championship, going undefeated in conference play in 2007 and 2008. Their record for those three seasons is 106-9. In 2007, the team was ranked #1 in ESPN's
and CBSSports.com
Pre-Season Polls and for the first time in 25 years, earned a #1 ranking on Jan. 21, 2008 in the both the AP Poll
and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll. The 2008 season took the Tigers to the Final Four
where Memphis lost the championship game to the Kansas Jayhawks
in overtime. In 2009, the Tigers entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 2 seed. However, they lost in the Sweet Sixteen to Missouri
, 102-91. In April 2009, Josh Pastner
was named head coach of the Tigers.
Perennial rivals include UAB
, the University of Southern Mississippi, in-state rival University of Tennessee
, and former Conference USA members University of Cincinnati
and University of Louisville
. The world record holder for the highest slam dunk
(12 feet from floor to rim) is a former University of Memphis basketball forward, and current Harlem Globetrotter Michael Wilson. At home, the Tigers play on Beale Street
in the state-of-the-art FedExForum
.
After decades of independence, the Memphis football
program currently competes in Conference USA
. The team is currently under new head coach and former Tiger running back Larry Porter
after nine year veteran Tommy West
was fired on November 9, 2009. The Tigers' home field is 62,380 seat Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium
. The U of M played in five bowl games in six seasons from 2003 to 2008. In 2005, the Tigers football team was led in the Motor City Bowl
by DeAngelo Williams
, a then-senior All-American running back and eventual first-round draft pick by the Carolina Panthers
of the NFL.
University of Memphis
The University of Memphis is an American public research university located in the Normal Station neighborhood of Memphis, Tennessee and is the flagship public research university of the Tennessee Board of Regents system....
in Division I of the NCAA
National Collegiate Athletic Association
The National Collegiate Athletic Association is a semi-voluntary association of 1,281 institutions, conferences, organizations and individuals that organizes the athletic programs of many colleges and universities in the United States...
. They are members of C-USA and currently feature nine women's sports and nine men's sports. These include:
Men's Sports
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Cross CountryCross country runningCross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
- FootballMemphis Tigers footballThe Memphis Tigers football team represents the University of Memphis in college football at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision level. The Tigers compete in Conference USA...
- GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
- RifleRifleA rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
- Soccer
- TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- Track and FieldTrack and fieldTrack and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
Women's Sports
- BasketballMemphis Tigers women's basketballThe Memphis Tigers women's basketball team represents the University of Memphis in NCAA Division I women's college basketball. The Tigers compete in Conference USA, in which they have won two Conference USA conference tournament championships and two Metro Conference tournament championships...
- Cross CountryCross country runningCross country running is a sport in which people run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open country, and include hills, flat ground and sometimes gravel road...
- GolfGolfGolf is a precision club and ball sport, in which competing players use many types of clubs to hit balls into a series of holes on a golf course using the fewest number of strokes....
- RifleRifleA rifle is a firearm designed to be fired from the shoulder, with a barrel that has a helical groove or pattern of grooves cut into the barrel walls. The raised areas of the rifling are called "lands," which make contact with the projectile , imparting spin around an axis corresponding to the...
- Soccer
- SoftballSoftballSoftball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of 10 to 14 players. It is a direct descendant of baseball although there are some key differences: softballs are larger than baseballs, and the pitches are thrown underhand rather than overhand...
- TennisTennisTennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
- Track and FieldTrack and fieldTrack and field is a sport comprising various competitive athletic contests based around the activities of running, jumping and throwing. The name of the sport derives from the venue for the competitions: a stadium which features an oval running track surrounding a grassy area...
- VolleyballVolleyballVolleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
Name
When the Memphis State University first fielded a football team in the fall of 1912, no one had selected a nickname for the squad. Early references to the football team tabbed them only as the Blue and Gray Warriors.After the final game of the 1914 season, there was a student parade. During this event, several University students shouted, "We fight like Tigers!" The nickname was born. As time passed, the nickname "Tigers" was increasingly used, particularly in campus publications, but did not catch on with the newspapers downtown. They continued to use "the Blue and Gray" when referring to the University.
Under Coach Lester Barnard in 1922, Memphis's football team gave a ring of truth to that old student yell about Tigers. The team adopted a motto - "Every Man a Tiger" - and went on to score 174 points while allowing its opponents just 29 points. The Tiger nickname continued on with students and alumni, eventually being adopted as the official nickname for the University of Memphis in 1939.
Mascot
The official mascot of the University of Memphis is TOM III, a live bengal tigerBengal Tiger
The Bengal tiger is a tiger subspecies native to the Indian subcontinent that in 2010 has been classified as endangered by IUCN...
. The university is one of a select few schools in the country that keep a live tiger as a mascot, although the practice of live animals serving as university mascots is carried on by a number of other universities, such as Auburn University's
Auburn University
Auburn University is a public university located in Auburn, Alabama, United States. With more than 25,000 students and 1,200 faculty members, it is one of the largest universities in the state. Auburn was chartered on February 7, 1856, as the East Alabama Male College, a private liberal arts...
War Eagle
War Eagle
War Eagle is the battle cry of fans for the Auburn Tigers football team, and all other athletics teams of Auburn University, and for all intents and purposes, for Auburn University in general. It is also the title of the university fight song...
, and others.
Men's basketball
The Memphis Tigers men's basketball program first gained national prominence when it reached the 1973 NCAA Division I basketball championship game. The Tigers, led by Larry FinchLarry Finch
Larry Finch was a player and coach for the University of Memphis men's basketball team. He is perhaps most famous for leading the Memphis State Tigers to the NCAA men's basketball championship game in 1973 in a heroic loss to the UCLA Bruins, led by Bill Walton.- Playing career :Finch was born in...
, Larry Kenon, Ronnie Robinson, Bill Cook and others, eventually lost to John Wooden's UCLA Bruins
UCLA Bruins
The UCLA Bruins are the sports teams for University of California, Los Angeles . The Bruin men's and women's teams participate in NCAA Division I as part of the Pacific-12 Conference and the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation . For football, they are in the Football Bowl Subdivision of Division I...
, led by Bill Walton
Bill Walton
William Theodore "Bill" Walton III is a retired American basketball player and television sportscaster. The "Big Red-Head", as he was called, achieved superstardom playing for John Wooden's powerhouse UCLA Bruins in the early '70s, winning three straight College Player of the Year Awards, while...
.
The Tigers continued an era of excellence throughout the 1980s and went to the Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
in 1985 losing to Villanova, the ultimate winner of the tournament. The 1985 Final Four trip has since been vacated by the NCAA due to several recruiting violations committed by head coach Dana Kirk
Dana Kirk (basketball)
Dana Grey Kirk was an American college basketball coach. He was the head coach for the Memphis State University men's team from 1979 to 1986. His coaching record was 158–58, including a Final Four appearance in 1985...
and his staff. Success continued through much of the 1990s. Under head coach John Calipari
John Calipari
John Calipari is an American basketball coach. Since April 2009, he has been the men's head coach at the University of Kentucky....
, the Tigers reached the Elite Eight
NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship
The NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship is a single-elimination tournament held each spring in the United States, featuring 68 college basketball teams, to determine the national championship in the top tier of college basketball...
three years in a row (2006–2008) and those same years won the conference championship, going undefeated in conference play in 2007 and 2008. Their record for those three seasons is 106-9. In 2007, the team was ranked #1 in ESPN's
ESPN
Entertainment and Sports Programming Network, commonly known as ESPN, is an American global cable television network focusing on sports-related programming including live and pre-taped event telecasts, sports talk shows, and other original programming....
and CBSSports.com
CBSSports.com
CBSSports.com was founded in 1994 as SportsLine USA, and today is a CBS-owned website that provides sports scores, news, statistics, live and on-demand video, mobile apps, e-commerce, fantasy sports products, services, and information..Headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, CBSSports.com it is...
Pre-Season Polls and for the first time in 25 years, earned a #1 ranking on Jan. 21, 2008 in the both the AP Poll
AP Poll
The Associated Press College Poll refers to weekly rankings of the top 25 NCAA teams in one of three Division I college sports: football, men's basketball and women's basketball. The rankings are compiled by polling sportswriters across the nation...
and the ESPN/USA Today Coaches' Poll. The 2008 season took the Tigers to the Final Four
Final four
Final Four isa sports term that is commonly applied to the last four teams remaining in a playoff tournament, most notably NCAA Division I college basketball tournaments. The term usually refers to the four teams who compete in the two games of a single-elimination tournament's semi-final round...
where Memphis lost the championship game to the Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas Jayhawks
The sports teams at the University of Kansas are known as the Jayhawks. They are one of three schools in the state of Kansas that participate in NCAA Division I. The Jayhawks are also a member of the Big 12 Conference...
in overtime. In 2009, the Tigers entered the NCAA tournament as a No. 2 seed. However, they lost in the Sweet Sixteen to Missouri
University of Missouri
The University of Missouri System is a state university system providing centralized administration for four universities, a health care system, an extension program, five research and technology parks, and a publishing press. More than 64,000 students are currently enrolled at its four campuses...
, 102-91. In April 2009, Josh Pastner
Josh Pastner
-References:...
was named head coach of the Tigers.
Perennial rivals include UAB
University of Alabama at Birmingham
The University of Alabama at Birmingham is a public university in Birmingham in the U.S. state of Alabama. Developing from an extension center established in 1936, the institution became an autonomous institution in 1969 and is today one of three institutions in the University of Alabama System...
, the University of Southern Mississippi, in-state rival University of Tennessee
University of Tennessee
The University of Tennessee is a public land-grant university headquartered at Knoxville, Tennessee, United States...
, and former Conference USA members University of Cincinnati
University of Cincinnati
The University of Cincinnati is a comprehensive public research university in Cincinnati, Ohio, and a part of the University System of Ohio....
and University of Louisville
University of Louisville
The University of Louisville is a public university in Louisville, Kentucky. When founded in 1798, it was the first city-owned public university in the United States and one of the first universities chartered west of the Allegheny Mountains. The university is mandated by the Kentucky General...
. The world record holder for the highest slam dunk
Slam dunk
A slam dunk is a type of basketball shot that is performed when a player jumps in the air and manually powers the ball downward through the basket with one or both hands over the rim. This is considered a normal field goal attempt; if successful it is worth two points. The term "slam dunk" was...
(12 feet from floor to rim) is a former University of Memphis basketball forward, and current Harlem Globetrotter Michael Wilson. At home, the Tigers play on Beale Street
Beale Street
Beale Street is a street in Downtown Memphis, Tennessee, which runs from the Mississippi River to East Street, a distance of approximately . It is a significant location in the city's history, as well as in the history of the blues. Today, the blues clubs and restaurants that line Beale Street are...
in the state-of-the-art FedExForum
FedExForum
The FedEx Forum is an arena located in downtown Memphis, Tennessee. It is the home of the Memphis Grizzlies of the NBA and the NCAA Division I men's basketball program of the University of Memphis, both of whom previously played home games at the Pyramid Arena...
.
Football
The University of Memphis football program dates back to 1912.After decades of independence, the Memphis football
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
program currently competes in Conference USA
Conference USA
Conference USA, officially abbreviated C-USA, is a college athletic conference whose member institutions are located within the Southern United States. The conference participates in the NCAA's Division I in all sports...
. The team is currently under new head coach and former Tiger running back Larry Porter
Larry Porter
Larry Porter is the former head coach of the Memphis Tigers football team. Porter was named the new head football coach at the University of Memphis on November 29, 2009...
after nine year veteran Tommy West
Tommy West
-External links:* *...
was fired on November 9, 2009. The Tigers' home field is 62,380 seat Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium
Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium
Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium is a football stadium, located at the Mid-South Fairgrounds, in Midtown Memphis, Tennessee, United States. The stadium is the site of the annual AutoZone Liberty Bowl, and is the home field of the University of Memphis Tigers football team...
. The U of M played in five bowl games in six seasons from 2003 to 2008. In 2005, the Tigers football team was led in the Motor City Bowl
Motor City Bowl
The Little Caesars Pizza Bowl is a post-season college football bowl game certified by the NCAA that has been played annually since 1997. The first five games were played at the Pontiac Silverdome in Pontiac, Michigan. Starting in 2002, the game was moved to 65,000-seat Ford Field in downtown...
by DeAngelo Williams
DeAngelo Williams
DeAngelo Williams is an American football running back for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. Williams was drafted by the Panthers 27th overall in the 2006 NFL Draft...
, a then-senior All-American running back and eventual first-round draft pick by the Carolina Panthers
Carolina Panthers
The Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
of the NFL.
Basketball
- Elliot WilliamsElliot WilliamsElliot Jerell Williams is an American professional basketball player with the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association...
(guard, Portland Trail BlazersPortland Trail BlazersThe Portland Trail Blazers, commonly known as the Blazers, are an American professional basketball team based in Portland, Oregon. They play in the Northwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association . The Trail Blazers originally played their home games in the...
) - Tyreke EvansTyreke EvansTyreke Jamir Evans is an American professional basketball player with Virtus Roma in Italy. He is also under contract with the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association , but is not currently playing with them because of the 2011 NBA lockout...
(guard, Sacramento KingsSacramento KingsThe Sacramento Kings are a professional basketball team based in Sacramento, California, United States. They are currently members of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association...
) - Derrick RoseDerrick RoseDerrick Martell Rose is an American professional basketball player for the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association ....
(guard, Chicago BullsChicago BullsThe Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago, Illinois, playing in the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1966. They play their home games at the United Center...
) - Chris Douglas-RobertsChris Douglas-RobertsChris Douglas-Roberts, also known as CDR is an American basketball player who plays for Virtus Bologna. He played college basketball for the Memphis Tigers.-High school:...
(guard, Milwaukee BucksMilwaukee BucksThe Milwaukee Bucks are a professional basketball team based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, United States. They are part of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association . The team was founded in 1968 as an expansion team, and currently plays at the Bradley Center....
) - Joey DorseyJoey DorseyRichard Elmer "Joey" Dorsey is an American professional basketball player who plays for Caja Laboral. He played college basketball for the University of Memphis Tigers, where he was an interdisciplinary studies major...
(forward, Toronto Raptors) - Earl BarronEarl BarronEarl Daniel Barron, Jr. is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers in the National Basketball Association.-Career:...
(center, Phoenix SunsPhoenix SunsThe Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US...
) - Rodney CarneyRodney CarneyRodney Dion Carney is an American professional basketball player. He played college basketball at the University of Memphis and was selected in the 2006 NBA Draft by the Chicago Bulls and shortly afterwards traded to the Philadelphia 76ers.-Early college career:Carney made the Conference USA...
(guard/forward, Golden State WarriorsGolden State WarriorsThe Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in Oakland, California. They are part of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association...
) - Sean BanksSean BanksSean Anthony Banks is an American]] professional basketball player currently in the NBA Development League and playing for Idaho Stampede...
, Antonio BurksAntonio BurksAntonio Cornell Burks is an American professional basketball player, formerly in NBA. He is 6'0" and 185 lb . Burks played at Booker T. Washington High School in Memphis, then one year at Hiwassee Junior College in Madisonville, Tennessee before joining the University of Memphis as an...
(guard, KK Crvena zvezdaKK Crvena zvezdaKošarkaški klub Crvena zvezda is a professional basketball club based in Belgrade, Serbia. Its name Crvena zvezda means Red Star and it's part of the Red Star Belgrade sports society ....
) - Anfernee "Penny" Hardaway
- Keith LeeKeith LeeKeith Lee is a retired American professional basketball player who was selected by the Chicago Bulls in the 1st round of the 1985 NBA Draft later to be traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers...
- Dajuan WagnerDajuan WagnerDajuan Marquett Wagner is an American former professional basketball player.Wagner is the son of former University of Louisville and NBA player Milt Wagner...
- Lorenzen WrightLorenzen WrightLorenzen Vern-Gagne Wright was an American professional basketball player.-Early life and college:Raised in Oxford, Mississippi, Wright played all levels of basketball in Memphis – high school, collegiate and professional...
- Shawne WilliamsShawne WilliamsShawne Brian Williams is an American professional basketball player who last played for the New York Knicks of the NBA...
(Guard, New York KnicksNew York KnicksThe New York Knickerbockers, prominently known as the Knicks, are a professional basketball team based in New York City. They are part of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
) - Elliot PerryElliot PerryElliot Lamonte Perry is a retired American professional basketball player in the NBA.The 6'0" point guard from Memphis State University , was selected with the tenth pick of the second round by the Los Angeles Clippers in the 1991 NBA Draft...
- Darius Washington Jr.Darius Washington Jr.Darius Myron Washington Jr. is an American and naturalized Macedonian professional basketball player currently playing in Turkey with Türk Telekom....
- Cedric HendersonCedric HendersonCedric Earl Henderson is an American basketball player who played 5 seasons in the NBA.A 6'7" small forward, Henderson starred at the University of Memphis, and was selected by the Cleveland Cavaliers in the second round of the 1997 NBA Draft...
Football
- DeAngelo WilliamsDeAngelo WilliamsDeAngelo Williams is an American football running back for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League. Williams was drafted by the Panthers 27th overall in the 2006 NFL Draft...
(Carolina PanthersCarolina PanthersThe Carolina Panthers are a professional American football team based in Charlotte, North Carolina. They are currently members of the South Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Panthers, along with the Jacksonville Jaguars, joined the NFL as expansion...
) - Stephen GostkowskiStephen GostkowskiStephen Carroll Gostkowski is a placekicker for the New England Patriots of the National Football League...
(kicker, New England PatriotsNew England PatriotsThe New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National...
) - Tony BrownTony Brown (American football)Robert Anthony "Tony" Brown, Jr. is an American football defensive tackle who is currently a free agent. He was signed by the Carolina Panthers as an undrafted free agent in 2003...
(Tennessee TitansTennessee TitansThe Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter...
) - Isaac BruceIsaac BruceIsaac Isidore Bruce is a retired American football wide receiver. He was originally drafted by the Los Angeles Rams in the second round of the 1994 NFL Draft. He played college football at the University of Memphis....
(San Francisco 49ersSan Francisco 49ersThe San Francisco 49ers are a professional American football team based in San Francisco, California, playing in the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The team was founded in 1946 as a charter member of the All-America Football Conference and...
) - Mike McKenzie (New Orleans SaintsNew Orleans SaintsThe New Orleans Saints are a professional American football team based in New Orleans, Louisiana. They are members of the South Division of the National Football Conference of the National Football League ....
) - Brandon McDonaldBrandon McDonaldBrandon McDonald is an American football cornerback for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League. He was drafted by the Cleveland Browns in the fifth round of the 2007 NFL Draft...
(Cleveland BrownsCleveland BrownsThe Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League...
)