Tigers fall short in record-setting Cotton Bowl Classic

DALLAS – Memphis' historic season has come to an end with a 53-39 setback to Penn State at the 84th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic Saturday afternoon. Memphis finishes the 2019 season with a 12-2 overall record, the most wins in school history. 

The 2019 Cotton Bowl will go down as one of the most exciting Cotton Bowls all-time as numerous records were shattered between the two teams. Most importantly, kicker Riley Patterson individually rewrote the record books at AT&T Stadium.

Patterson made six field goals and converted on three PATs to score a school and Cotton Bowl record 21 points kicking. His 51-yard field goal was also a Cotton Bowl record and the six made field goals were the most made in NCAA bowl history.

He got the Tigers on the board first with a 48-yard attempt in the first quarter. Memphis' defense forced Penn State to go three-and-out on the opening kickoff that preceded Patterson's field goal. 

The two teams exchanged scores on the next two drives before the Memphis defense posted back-to-back sacks, forcing Penn State to punt. Patrick Taylor Jr. recorded his fifth rushing touchdown of the season and 36th in his career during the scoring exchange. 

Patterson's second field goal of the quarter lifted Memphis to a 13-7 advantage with 2:55 on the clock. 

Penn State rattled off 21 unanswered through the heart of the second quarter to shift momentum back in favor of the Nittany Lions. Memphis didn't back down and strung together a 75-yard drive culminating in a Kenneth Gainwell rushing touchdown with 3:15 before the end of the first half. 

Again, Penn State had an answer, but so did the Tigers. 

Trailing 35-20 with possession of the final drive of the first half, Memphis drove the ball 49 yards down the field to put Patterson in position for his third field goal attempt of the half. He converted a 44-yard attempt to put the Tigers down by just 12, 35-23, at the intermission.  

Momentum started to shift back in favor of the Tigers as Memphis cut the deficit to five, 35-30, with a six-play, 75-yard drive. During the drive, Brady White contributed with a pass, a reception, the first of his career, and his third rushing touchdown of the 2019 season. 

Two plays later, linebacker Austin Hall recorded his second interception of the season to give Memphis the ball back.Memphis turned the Penn State turnover into three more points by way of Patterson's fourth field goal of the game, making it a 35-33 game. 

Trailing 38-36 with 38 seconds remaining in the third, momentum shifted back in favor of the Nittany Lions after a 15-yard pick six. Patterson's sixth field goal of the contest pulled the Tigers back within a score, 45-39, with 12:01 remaining, but it proved to be the final time Memphis put a tally on the board. 

Cotton Bowl Tidbits

• Riley Patterson shattered multiple school and bowl records against Penn State:
o 21 points kicking is a school and all-time bowl record.
o Six made field goals were a school record and the most field goals made in NCAA bowl game history
• Brady White threw for a career-high 454 yards. He became the fourth quarterback in program history to throw for over 7,000 yards in his career as well as only the second quarterback (Riley Ferguson, 2017) to throw for 4,000 yards in a single-season. 
• White's 51 pass attempts were a career-high. 
• The 92 combined points scored were the most points scored ever in the Cotton Bowl. 
• Memphis outgained Penn State, 542 to 529, and finished with two more first downs (27- to 25).
• Patrick Taylor Jr. recorded his 36th career touchdown, putting him into a tie for second all-time with Darrell Henderson and Dave Casinelli. 
• Kenneth Gainwell finished the 2019 season with 2,069 all-purpose yards, becoming just the fifth player in program history to eclipse 2,000 all-purpose yards in a single-season.
• Damonte Coxie recorded his sixth 100-yard receiving game of the season and the 11th in his career.