Tulane Football Schedule Breakdown: Memphis
Tulane Football Schedule 2026
Week 1 - at Duke, September 5
Week 2 - South Alabama, September 12
Week 3 - at Kansas State, September 19
Week 4 - Southern Miss, September 26
Week 5 - OPEN DATE, October 3
Week 6 - at Army, October 10
Week 7 - Memphis, October 16
Week 8 - UTSA, October 24
Week 9 - at Charlotte, October 30
Week 10 - Tulsa, November 7
Week 11 - at Rice, November 14
Week 12 - North Texas, November 21
Week 13 - at South Florida, November 27
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Yesterday, we went over the first conference game that Tulane would play against Army.
No doubt that playing in West Point will prove challenging, but what awaits TU afterward will likely be the most important game on the schedule (if we go by preseason poll voting).
The Elephant in the Room
The biggest question regarding the Memphis football program are the three coaches in new positions. Last year, former Memphis head coach Ryan Silverfield left Memphis for the Arkansas job. In his place, Memphis brought in Southern Miss head coach, Charles Huff (7-5 last year in Hattiesburg).
Huff has a solid background with Marshall from 2021-2024, finishing with a 39-26 record across four years, including a 10-win season and the program's second ever win over a top-10 opponent (No. 8 Notre Dame, 2022). He'd leave Marshall in 2024 after leading them to a 10-3 record to go Tulane's week four opponent, Southern Miss.
After just one year with the Golden Eagles, he'd leave for the American and join the Tigers.
Joining Huff will be his longtime defensive coordinator--Lance Guidry and former Old Dominion OC, Kevin Decker.
Keeping the Ball Rolling
The trio of new staff will have a tough roll to take heading into this year. Over the past four years, the Tigers have piled up a 42-23 record with conference play being where they've struggled (22-18).
This conference play has been what's kept the Tigers out of the conference championship during this era, as they haven't won one since 2019, despite having two 10-win seasons over the last three years.
What Memphis is really good at is taking the ball away. They ranked 28th in turnover margins (+0.5), giving the ball away on average 0.9 times a game while taking it away 1.4 times.
Memphis is a team that capitalizes on critical mistakes, so the coaches will be looking to build on that ability.
Absolutely Zero Familiarity
There are two returning players across all 22 starting positions this year. In the projected depth chart, there are 20 2026 transfers that are looking at starting spots, and the second string behind them are also pretty much all transfers.
This might be the same Memphis that Tulane faces every year, but there will be no familiarity in how they approach this game. With a new coaching scheme and an entirely new roster, you're looking at an entirely fresh Memphis football team.
Their offensive and defensive rankings? Those turnovers we just mentioned? Forget about it (sort of).
This team is still using last year as a lesson to learn from and something to build off of.
Establishing Themselves in the American
Regardless, TU will, at this point, have an established identity and should be working towards gaining momentum toward the end of the season.
This game is an opportunity to establish Tulane as 'the team to beat' in the American, especially if they can take down one of only three teams selected in poll voting.
As we're sure you've seen on social media, most media outlets are pretty low on Tulane.
All 138 FBS Schools. One Ultimate Ranking.
— FOX Sports (@FOXSports) August 17, 2026
Where did your school land on @RJ_Young's Ultimate 138 CFB Rankings? pic.twitter.com/Za4wTl5yFA
A win against Kansas State or Duke would boost their credibility, but a win over Memphis alongside it? That would solidify how good TU is.
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Colin has been following football for over a decade. Growing up supporting LSU naturally led him to be a massive Saints fan. He is a regular guest on the Ball Don’t Lie podcast on WBOK-AM in New Orleans as well as Apple Podcasts, where they discuss the NFL, College Football, and the NBA.