Memphis football season and Seth Henigan's career ends with a smile

FRISCO, Texas – Ryan Silverfield was soaked from head to toe with gallons of iced coffee.

It’s not what anyone imagines during those January practices, those nights spent in the spring planning games and making roster decisions. It wasn’t what anyone expected in August when Memphis football began its most anticipated season with dreams of the College Football Playoff, dreams of a road game in December in Austin, Columbus or State College.

But Silverfield stood in the middle of Toyota Stadium, the smell of coffee wafting everywhere, and he was beaming.

“It was really refreshing,” he said a few minutes later. “It smells delicious.”

His team had just beaten West Virginia 42-37 in the Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl, giving the Tigers their eleventh win of the season and giving Silverfield its celebratory coffee bath. It was actually an improvement over what happened this time last season, when the celebratory Gatorade swim after their AutoZone Liberty Bowl win over Iowa State went wrong, leaving Silverfield bleeding from a radiator-caused wound.

These two victories were similar in some ways. Memphis’ offense was dynamic against two Big 12 opponents. And the defense made decisive plays in both games. Against West Virginia, it was a wild play that sealed the game when linebacker Elijah Herring intercepted quarterback Garrett Greene’s pass, then fumbled on the return but was later judged to be on the ground for initiating a slide.

But there was one big difference: Last year’s win was about the future, about the players Memphis brought back in 2024 and the expectations in the first year of the expanded playoffs. Tuesday’s win was about the past, about quarterback Seth Henigan’s impact on the program over four extremely productive years.

“It meant the world to me,” Henigan said. “Just to go home with a win I think is a good end to a pretty good career. And after staying at the same university for four years, I hope that this is a testament to who I am and who the people around me are.

He threw for 294 yards and two touchdowns against West Virginia. This moved him to 13th place on the NCAA all-time passing yards list and tied him with Clayton Tune for the most touchdown passes in AAC history.

Henigan and this Memphis upperclassmen never made it to an AAC title game. This was his best chance, the best squad Silverfield had assembled, with the most experience and with access to the playoffs finally becoming a reality for the Group of Five teams. Teams with realistic playoff expectations don’t want to end their season in a football stadium in Frisco.

Nevertheless, this squad won eleven games and showed that it can compete with anyone. It also gave Henigan a chance to celebrate a bowl victory in front of friends and family, just minutes from his hometown in nearby Denton.

He was the first quarterback Silverfield recruited. Silverfield installed Henigan as a starter when he was still a true freshman. He overcame the mistakes and believed that the boy from Denton, who had just won a state championship, could eventually be the standard-bearer for the Tigers.

“There will never be another Seth Henigan,” Silverfield said. “And that’s okay.”

It’s almost cruel that a few hours later Silverfield is meeting with recruits again on campus. Life moves fast in college football, and when he landed in Memphis early Wednesday, he had to leave Henigan.

“I’m going to enjoy the last few minutes with him,” Silverfield said.

The story of Henigan’s legacy will continue to change. Fans may look back in a few years or decades and see his career differently. Will there ever be a four-year starter for an FBS team again? Will anyone break all of these records that Henigan has worked so hard for?

One of the many complicated aspects of Henigan’s legacy is the fact that he changed his jersey number every year. No. 14 was the wide-eyed newbie who had to learn on the job. No. 5 was the sophomore, who again went 6-6 and left fans wondering about his progress. No. 2 became the all-time leading passer in program history.

No. 9 was the grown-up version of everyone, smiling as he celebrated his latest win.

Silverfield said he hopes Memphis can honor Henigan by retiring his number — or one of his numbers — at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.

Linebacker Chandler Martin, who has also burned himself into the Tigers’ traditions over the last two seasons, leaned over from his seat on the other side of the table and offered a different idea.

“A statue,” he said.

Reach sportswriter Jonah Dylan at [email protected] or on X @thejonahdylan.

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Memphis football season and Seth Henigan’s career ends with a smile

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