Memphis Football: 3 takeaways from season-opening win over Arkansas State

2. Arkansas State could struggle in the Sun Belt this year

While Memphis mostly picked up where it left off last year, Arkansas State also brought over some of its baggage from the prior season.

Head coach Blake Anderson probably is not any closer to deciding upon a quarterback following the result. Logan Bonner and Layne Hatcher played about the same with basically the only difference being that Bonner had more snaps. He finished with one touchdown and two interceptions. Meanwhile, Hatcher tried to bring a little spark at the end when trying to mount a comeback, but it ultimately resulted in a turnover on downs which ended the game.

It’s the old “two servants, one master” problem that will need to be figured out sooner rather than later.

Perhaps more worrying is the defense was exposed several times throughout the game. Last year, A-State was one of the worst teams in the country in giving up big plays, and while Memphis rarely threw anything deep, their secondary was often scorched in the red zone. Incidents like these could have easily happened 40-50 yards downfield.