The 2024 season is officially in the rearview mirror for the Memphis Tigers, and all eyes are now on what lies ahead for the 2025 campaign. Despite finishing with an impressive 12-2 record and securing their fifth consecutive bowl victory, Memphis again fell short of an AAC Championship Game appearance—a goal that has remained elusive under head coach Ryan Silverfield. On Friday, February 28, the program unveiled its 2025 regular-season schedule, setting the stage for another high-expectation season.
The biggest question surrounding the Tigers is whether they will enter 2025 as a team retooling for the future or one fully committed to reclaiming AAC supremacy. If Memphis is truly “all in” on winning the American Athletic Conference, they’ll need to navigate a schedule with a team that features new faces at key positions and a daunting final stretch against three teams that appeared in bowl games last season. Adding to the challenge, the Tigers will also face a nearby SEC opponent early in the year. With all that in mind, let’s break down Memphis’ 2025 slate, game by game, and examine the key storylines for each matchup.
Chattanooga-Home: Memphis opens its 2025 campaign against the Chattanooga Mocs. What’s intriguing about this matchup is that it will be the first opportunity to see what the Tigers will look like with new faces at positions such as quarterback. Incoming freshmen Antwaan Hill and transfer portal prospect Brendon Lewis are top names to watch regarding who will be the Tigers’ starting QB. The Mocs finished last season with a 7-5 record and a third finish in the Southern Conference.
Georgia State- Away: Teams from the Sun Belt Conference are known to pull off big upsets at the start of the season. Could that be the vibe when the Tigers head to Atlanta to face the Panthers on September 6? The Panthers are coming off a season where they finished with a 3-9 record.
Troy-Away: A rematch from last year’s 38-17 Tigers victory over Trojans. But this time, the game will take place in Troy, Alabama.
Arkansas-Home: Hopefully, the Tigers will not have a letdown in their matchups with Georgia State and Troy before their showdown with the Arkansas Razorbacks. The matchup is the first of a three-game series that was announced in 2019. The first matchup will occur in Memphis, and the next two will appear in Fayetteville in 2026 and 2028.
Florida Atlantic-Away: The Tigers head back on the road after the matchup with the Razorbacks to face the Florida Atlantic Owls. This year’s matchup with FAU and Memphis will be the first time the two teams have faced each other since the 2020 Birmingham Bowl. If the Tigers defeated the Razorbacks the week prior, could they be headed for a letdown against the Owls? That’s how things played out when Memphis defeated the Florida State Seminoles last season. The following week, the Tigers were shockingly defeated by a Navy team that went on to have one of their most successful campaigns in recent memory.
Tulsa-Home: The Tulsa Golden Hurricanes will be the Tigers’ second-straight opponent from the AAC, which will have a new head coach. Tre Lamb takes over for Kevin Wilson, who was fired after only two seasons with the program. Lamb has a reputation for revitalizing teams during his previous stops. East Tennessee was 3-8 before Lamb took over in 2023. They went from 3-8 to 7-5 in his first season as head coach. Before he arrived at East Tennessee, Lamb led Gardner Webb to back-to-back FCS playoff appearances.
UAB-Away: Since joining the AAC in 2023, the Blazers are 0-2 in the Battle of the Bones series with the Tigers. Will that change in 2025, or will it be more similar? Regardless of what happens, the upcoming season is critical for the future tenure of UAB head coach Trent Dilfer.
South Florida-Home: In 2024, we did not see a repeat of the shootout in the 2023 matchup between South Florida and Memphis. That’s mainly because their starting quarterback, Byrum Brown, was injured for most of the season. The injury seems to have played a role in the Bulls not meeting lofty expectations before the 2024 campaign started.
Rice-Away: The Rice Owls played a lot better than their 4-8 record indicated in 2024. But the program took a step back compared to its first season in the conference, which included a bowl appearance. In last year’s matchup, the Tigers only won by seven points against the Owls.
Tulane-Home: Last season, the Tigers ended the Green Wave’s three-game winning streak that started in 2023. The matchup heads back to Memphis, with Tulane seeking to avenge last season’s defeat. The Green Wave was deeply in the conversation of being a playoff team until the defeat to the Tigers occurred. That may happen again this season, but hopefully, the conversation will involve both teams.
East Carolina-Away: The Pirates fired their head coach midway through the season and would then qualify for a bowl game appearance to finish the year with an 8-5 record. The last time Memphis faced East Carolina, they fell short in a thrilling shootout that included four overtimes.
Navy-Home: Memphis will close out the 2025 regular season with a high-stakes matchup against Navy in a game that could have major AAC implications. The Midshipmen finished the 2024 season with a strong 10-3 record, including a 6-2 mark in conference play, proving they are once again a force to be reckoned with in the AAC. Last season, Navy handed Memphis a crushing defeat that ultimately cost the Tigers a shot at the conference title, and the opportunity for redemption will be on the minds of players and fans alike.
As always, stopping Navy’s relentless triple-option attack will be challenging, but with a home crowd behind them, Memphis will look to end the regular season on a high note. Depending on how the season unfolds, this game could be pivotal for conference standings or bowl positioning, making it a must-win showdown for the Tigers.
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