Memphis was a favorite to crash the 12-team College Football Playoff last season, but with losses to UAB and Tulane. The Tigers ended the year with three-straight regular season losses and a bowl game loss to NC State. That was in the Ryan Silverfield era, though. Now Charles Huff is in charge and if you haven’t been following Memphis football, there’s a lot of excitement within the city around this season. Between the transfer portal additions and his ability to rebuild smaller programs, Memphis might be in a better position this year than they were a year ago. Here’s three reasons why you should buy into the Tigers in 2026.Â
Charles Huff couldn’t be a better fit for Memphis football
Look at how he turned around Marshall and Southern Mississippi. At Marshall, he had a 32-20 record, including winning a conference championship and knocking off Notre Dame during his tenure. In his lone season at Southern Miss, he turned them from a one-win team to reaching a bowl game at 7-5. Though the Golden Eagles lost four-straight games to end the season, the fact that they didn’t have any FBS wins the season before Huff got there and started the year 7-2 goes to show just how good he really is.Â
He’s a good coach for Memphis because they aren’t the project like the two programs he previously coached. They’re on the cusp of being a mainstay in the CFP conversation as a Group of 6 team and one of the most talked about teams when it comes to conference realignment conversations. Huff feels like the coach that is good enough to get them over that hump in both categories.Â
If there’s any season you should be all in on Memphis, it’s this year. It’s not just about the quality of the team, it’s about the coach they added to replace Silverfield that’s going to continue elevating this program.Â
The roster overhaul should set Memphis up for successÂ
Memphis lost quite a bit from last year’s roster but Huff did a good job in bringing in talent to replace the outgoing transfers. Air Noland and Marcus Stokes, an FCS transfer, are in a tight battle and either option feels like a good one. Noland is a former five-star quarterback that’s hopped around but hasn’t really found the team for him to grow into; Memphis could be that. One of the biggest moves was adding Dallan Hayden.Â
Hayden is from Memphis and that addition alone proves just how much in tune with Memphis, Huff is. He wasn’t able to carve out a significant role in his two seasons in Colorado and was stuck behind Tre’Veyon Henderson and Miyan Williams for two seasons at Ohio State. He’s talented and should be a big replacement for Sutton Smith in the backfield, who followed Silverfield to Arkansas.Â
The rest of the roster, though balanced with additions in the transfer portal, will have to work through kinks, but Huff put this roster together so there’s something to be said about how he’ll be able to get the most out of his team.Â
They’re still one of the strongest teams in the American Conference
When you look at the rest of the American Conference, Memphis shouldn’t have any problems in conference play. Tulane, though they’ll be a threat as always in the conference, lost their coach and quite a bit from last year’s squad that reached the College Football Playoff so it opens the door for Memphis to take over. North Texas and USF also lost quite a bit from their teams last season with coaching changes as well.Â
Memphis doesn’t have as many preseason All-conference players with most of their representation coming from the defensive side of the ball. That said, it doesn’t really mean much until teams play. Memphis will be one of the better teams in the conference and though they were hit with a massive coaching change and roster turnover, they’re the best equipped to bounce back the best.Â
Anything can happen in the American Conference and last year was the perfect example of that. That’s why all the preseason attention being off of Memphis could be the very reason why they finally prove they’re one of the top G6 teams in college football.Â
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