MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia celebrates its 41st anniversary^st Bowl appearance in school history tonight when it takes on Memphis in the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl in Frisco, Texas.

The game will be played at 20,500-seat Frisco Stadium.

Today’s contest marks the earliest date the Mountaineers have ever played a bowl game. The previous one was December 19, 1964, when WVU faced Utah in the Liberty Bowl in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

It will also be the first meeting against Memphis, members of the American Athletic Conference.

The 10-2 Tigers were the preseason favorites to win at American and finished the year tied with Navy in third place, one game behind Tulane and two games behind 19th^Th-Rank army.

Memphis, 25th place^Th In the Associated Press Top 25 poll last regular season, he posted wins against North Alabama, Troy, Florida State, Middle Tennessee State, South Florida, North Texas, Charlotte, Rice, Alabama-Birmingham and Tulane and losses against Navy and UTSA.

Senior quarterback Seth Henigan became the AAC’s all-time leading passer with 13,984 yards. He has thrown for more than 3,000 yards in every season he has played for the Tigers, including 3,883 yards in 2023.

This compares well against a West Virginia pass defense that ranks 124th^Th in the country, giving up 268.9 yards per game and 124^Th in pass efficiency defense with a rating of 158.13.

Henigan has thrown 102 career touchdown passes and needs just three to break Holton Ahlers’ AAC record of 104.

Henigan’s favorite target is Roc Taylor, a 6-foot-1, 224-pound senior who has 61 catches for 834 yards and two touchdowns.

DeMeer Blankumsee, a Toledo transfer, has 412 catches for 557 yards and a team-best five touchdowns.

Running back Mario Anderson Jr., a transfer from South Carolina, is a dual-threat who leads the team in rushing with 1,292 yards and 17 touchdowns while ranking second in receiving with 46 yards for 290 yards and two touchdowns.

He averages 133 all-purpose yards per game.

The Tigers are 19th^Th in scoring an average of 35.2 points per game, 21st^st total averaged 442.1 yards and 24 yards^Th in the passing game, an average of 268.5 yards per contest.

Defensively, the Tigers are 10th^Th-Best run defense in the country, allowing just 103.9 yards per game. Navy scored 361 against Memphis and North Texas ran for 208, but everyone else struggled to move the ball on the ground against the Tigers.

Florida State managed just 37 yards rushing – one of six times Memphis held its opponent to fewer than 100 yards in a game. In their last two games, the Tigers lost just 28 yards to UAB and 57 to Tulane, both Memphis wins.

Middle linebacker Chandler Martin, a transfer from East Tennessee State, leads the Memphis defense in several categories. The 6-foot, 230-pound junior has 94 tackles, 15 tackles for loss, 10 quarterback hurries, seven sacks, four pass breakups, four fumble recoveries, one forced fumble and one interception.

Senior cornerback Davion Ross leads the team with three interceptions.

West Virginia (6-6) lost its regular season finale at Texas Tech 52-15, prompting a leadership change when coach Neal Brown was relieved of his duties on Sunday, Dec. 1.

Chad Scott was named interim coach for the game while also taking over Brown’s playing responsibilities.

“We’re going to be simple in what we do,” Scott said last Thursday before the team left for Texas. “We will go there with a good attitude and a simple game plan. Our guys are excited to play in this bowl game.”

Interim Defense Coordinator Jeff Koonz has been in that role since the Cincinnati game after Jordan Lesley was fired in late October.

Koonz’s defense has allowed 24 points in a win at Cincinnati, 49 in a loss to Baylor, 21 in a win against UCF and 52 most recently at Texas Tech.

“Nobody wants to have a performance like that against Texas Tech,” Koonz said. “I can’t speak for the players, but that was a motivating factor for me personally.”

The Mountaineers rank in the 100s in 11 different defensive categories and have had trouble stopping the pass and generating turnovers all season.

West Virginia will also be without its second-leading tackler, Josiah Trotterwho entered his name in the transfer portal.

Senior quarterback Garrett Greene has completed 58.2% of his passes for 1,972 yards and 13 touchdowns while running 126 times for 638 yards and five touchdowns.

Greene is ranked 11th^Th in school history in passing yards (5,042), touchdowns (34) and completions (369) and is 19th^Th in rushing yards (2,041).

He ranks ninth with 27 career rushing touchdowns.

Only two WVU quarterbacks, Pat White (4,480) and Major Harris (2,161), have rushed for more yards than Greene.

Second semester Jahiem White is the team’s leading rusher with 817 yards, including a season-high 158 against Oklahoma State.

White has surpassed 100 yards in a game three times this year, Greene once and once CJ Donaldson Jr. once.

Second semester Hudson Clement is the team’s leading receiver with 40 catches for 575 yards and three touchdowns. He is the only player to surpass 100 yards rushing in a game against Kansas, catching seven passes for 150 yards.

Tight end Cole Taylor is one catch behind Clement on the roster with 39 catches for 404 yards and three touchdowns.

Security for seniors Anthony Wilson Jr. He leads the defense with 94 tackles and has two of the team’s five interceptions.

“I want to win this last game for the players,” Scott said.

Here is today’s countdown to kickoff:

10 – The Mountaineers have scored 10 touchdowns on third down this season – three rushing and seven passing.

9 – Quarterback Garrett Greene is tied for ninth in school history with 27 career touchdowns.

8 – West Virginia ranks EIGHTH in the nation with the fewest penalties, with just 52 through 12 games.

7 – Running back CJ Donaldson Jr. had the best performance of his career in the regular season finale against Texas Tech.

6 – The Mountaineer defense has recorded multiple sacks in all but SIX of their last 17 games dating back to last season.

5 – Safety for seniors Anthony Wilson Jr. ranks fifth in the Big 12 with an average of 7.9 tackles per game.

4 – Today’s game against 25^ThNo. 1-ranked Memphis will be the FOURTH top-25 opponent West Virginia faces this year, joining No. 8 Penn State, No. 11 Iowa State and No. 17 Kansas State.

3 – WVU is one of two FBS teams to have THREE players rush for more than 600 yards this year – Jahiem White (817), CJ Donaldson Jr. (651) and Garrett Greene (638).

2 – West Virginia has won 11 Big 12 Conference games in the last TWO seasons.

1 – The Frisco Bowl is the FIRST meeting between West Virginia and Memphis on the gridiron.

Tonight’s game begins at 9:00 p.m. ET and will be broadcast nationally on ESPN (Mike Monaco, Kirk Morrison and Dawn Davenport).

Mountaineer Sports Network radio coverage with Tony Caridi, Dwight Wallace and Jed Drenning begins at 8 p.m. on stations across West Virginia, online via WVUsports.com and the Varsity Network and WVU Gameday apps.