Troy looking to finish vs. Memphis after fading late in loss to Clemson
The Trojans led by 16 in the first half last week at Clemson before losing 27-16. Troy (1-1) now hosts Memphis (2-0), which is a slight favorite for Saturday’s game at Veterans Memorial Stadium.
“I think it just gives us a lot of confidence,” linebacker Luke Hodge said. “Watching the film from the first half, seeing what happens when we do our job and play to the best of our ability. But also you see the second half when we kind of don’t do our job as well. You can see both sides of it. But I think it gives us a lot of confidence to know if we prepare that way and play that way, that we can beat anybody we want.”
Putting together a 60-minute effort has often been a challenge for Troy in the last two years. The Trojans played similarly at Iowa in 2024, trailing just 24-21 heading into the fourth quarter before losing 38-21.
Last Saturday at Clemson, Troy took a 7-0 lead before a lengthy lightning delay, then was up 16-3 at halftime before the homestanding Tigers dominated the second half.
Second-year head coach Gerad Parker said he continues to examine and refine his team’s weekly preparation process. The Trojans ended last season at 4-8, but have won five of their last seven games since beginning 2024 with a 1-7 record.
“The win is a byproduct of steps towards better and how you play,” Parker said. “Ultimately, in the end, it’s the best way to create strong faith and belief in what you’re doing and that your processes are correct. … So for me, it’s me concentrating on our football team and making sure our processes are correct. And we’re improving each week. If we do that, the byproduct will be winning.
“Does that create a momentum to your fan base, to your locker room, to your building, to all the families that go through this? Absolutely, it does. But it’s a byproduct of great processes Monday through Friday. And that’s the thing I’ve got to make sure our football team sees because if we get the desired result on Saturday, well, next Saturday we play a great opponent too.”
Saturday’s game is the first in a stretch of six where the Trojans will play teams they lost to a year ago. That list also includes South Alabama (Oct. 4), Texas State (Oct. 11), Louisiana-Monroe (Oct. 18) and Louisiana (Oct. 25).
That “Revenge Tour” begins on Saturday vs. the Tigers, who won 38-17 in Memphis a year ago. Tight end Ethan Conner said the Trojans were focused on redemption during the offseason.
“It’s very, very important,” Conner said. “You know, we harped on it all offseason about working, being better, taking one game at a time and just looking to dominate one game at a time, preparing one game at a time and just being able to go out there and perform like we need to.”
Memphis routed FCS opponent Chattanooga 45-10 in its opener, but trailed for much of the first half last week vs. Georgia State before erupting for 21 unanswered points in the final two quarters. The Tigers ran for 205 yards as a team, while quarterback Brendon Lewis — a Nevada transfer who beat Troy 28-26 in last year’s season-opener — completed 16 of 20 passes for 196 yards and also ran for 68 yards and a touchdown.
In last year’s game at Memphis, Troy lost starting quarterback Goose Crowder to injury in the first half. The Tigers’ defense held the Trojans to just 251 total yards.
