Yesterday was not a good day to be a Memphis Tigers football fan. The team lost to ECU on a last-minute decision by head coach Ryan Silverfield. Memphis was prepared to kick an extra point to tie the game at 30 and send it into a second overtime. But ECU called a timeout to ice the kicker, and that gave Silverfield time to change his mind and go for a two-point conversion. Memphis didn’t get it.
The DM’s Geoff Calkins made a point (subscriber-only link) I agree with completely: It’s not that Memphis went for 2 at the end of a particular game; it’s that they’re not putting 50 or 60 points on the board in every game as they were a few years ago.
So the Tigers fall to 5-5 and have two games left to get bowl-eligible.
- Friday, November 19 at Houston – ESPN FPI has Houston an 80% favorite to win
- Saturday, November 27 at Tulane – ESPN FPI has Memphis a 72.7% favorite to win. Only 72.9% despite Tulane having only 1 win and 0 conference wins this year.
It wasn’t a good day to be a Grizzlies fan either. The Grizzlies now sport a below .500 record following a loss to New Orleans last night, and they have dropped to 9th place in the NBA’s Western Conference. Next up for the Grizz: At home vs. the Houston Rockets, 7 PM Monday.
In better news for Memphis, the men’s basketball Tigers beat North Carolina Central, 90-51. Next: a home game vs. the Saint Louis Billikens, 7 PM Tuesday.
Cincinnati didn’t get the help it needed to move into the CFP top four. Georgia gave the Tennessee Vols the expected beating, and Alabama, Oregon, and Ohio State won their games.
Top 25 teams who lost: 8 Oklahoma (to 13 Baylor), 11 Texas A&M (to 15 Ole Miss), 16 NC State (to 12 Wake Forest), 17 Auburn (to Mississippi State)
Arkansas beat LSU in overtime, 16-13. The Hogs have Alabama next week. The Crimson Tide are not playing like a national championship team and if the game were in Fayetteville, I’d give Arkansas about a 20% chance. It’s on the road though.
Tug’s Casual Grill is giving away a $10 gift card with the purchase of a $50 gift card, or a $25 gift card with the purchase of a $100 gift card. Cards must be used in January 2022.
Redbird Rants advises fans to keep an eye on a pitcher named Andre Pallante, considered the most underrated prospect in the St. Louis Cardinals system. He spent much of last season at Double-A Springfield, and could be on the Redbirds’ roster on Opening Day.
Chris Gales plays the Memphis Clover Club inside Hotel Indigo Thursday night.
COVID Act Now has the reproduction rate of the virus in Shelby County at 1.11. That is not good. Greater than 1 indicates exponential spread. We had been below 1 for a couple of months and were at 0.74 just weeks ago. James Aycock took a well-deserved week off from his COVID Week-in-Review summaries, so I don’t have a link for that today.
Today is National Pickle Day. For the best possible celebration, get them on a Soul Burger at Earnestine & Hazel’s.
Want to shop local for your Thanksgiving dinner? Next Saturday, the Memphis Farmers Market will hold a special Turkey Day Market under the pavilion at Front and G.E. Patterson. They’ll have all the proteins and veggies you need for your Thanksgiving dinner as well as arts and crafts vendors. The Market will open at 9 AM (not the usual opening time of 8 AM) and will run until 1 PM.
Project Green Fork hosts a dinner called Reharvest Memphis at Comeback Coffee Tuesday evening. Featured chefs will include
- Dory’s Dave Krog and Brandon Burke
- Good Fortune Co.’s Sarah Cai and Arturo Leighton
- Farm & Fig’s Dino Grisanti and Mark Henley
- Salt & Soy’s Brad McCarley
The chefs will serve one-of-a-kind hors d’oeuvres created from surplus food, in order to get people thinking about the connection between sustainability and food. There will also be local beers at the event, as well as cocktails from Old Dominick. Guests will be required to show proof of COVID vaccination or a negative test less than 72 hours old.
Jimmy James Band performs live at the Blues Hall on Beale 7-11 PM Sunday through Thursday of this week.
NutRemix, presented by New Ballet Ensemble and School, comes to the Cannon Center this Saturday. This is a modern remix of The Nutcracker, set on Beale Street.
The next-to-last event of the year at South Main Sounds, Southwriter Night, happens this Friday, November 19. Sarah Spain, Alexis Jade, Adria Hyde, and Laura Lang will provide the live music. Join them, won’t you?
Wow the first half of this work week looks gorgeous. WeatherBug has us at 63 tomorrow, only dropping to a low of 54 tomorrow night. Then we hit 74 Tuesday and 75 Wednesday before rain and cold weather move back in late Wednesday night. Looks like I’ll put the shorts back on tomorrow!
The Office @ Uptown at 594 N. Second Street reopens tomorrow for coffee and connection with your neighbors, and at 8:45 tomorrow morning they will host a Parks Not Parking press conference. They’ll share feedback gathered from the community about St. Jude’s planned 7-story parking garage at the corner of A.W. Willis and Third.
Carolina Watershed hosts a holiday Full Moon Market Friday night. Free entry and in addition to the vendors, there will be fire spinners, an art competition, and live music.
The Peabody hosts a conference for 4-H professionals Tuesday-Thursday of this week.
Have I mentioned lately that I hate my laptop’s trackpad? I’ll have a replacement computer in here Friday. Can’t wait.
Today is the start of my birthday week, and I plan for it to be a fantastic one. Not sure yet what my plan is for the actual day, which is Thursday. There’s a DNA meeting that night, but I see myself starting the celebration well before 5 PM so I might not be in a proper state of mind to mingle with Downtown dignitaries. I have 4 days to figure it out. I’ll be starting off the week with brunch at the Blind Bear today at 11. Posts may be hit-or-miss this week because of this stupid laptop, but hopefully, I’ll be back tomorrow with more news.