Television
ABC
Bob Wischusen, Brock Huard and Allison Williams

Memphis Radio
WREC-AM 600 (flagship)

UCF Radio
WYGM-FM 96.9 (flagship)

THE GAME
Saturday’s game will be the 14th meeting between Memphis and UCF in a series that dates to 1990 … Memphis won that initial meeting 37-28, but UCF has won the last 13 matchups, including a 31-30 victory in Memphis this season … UCF is 5-0 against Memphis in Spectrum Stadium and 6-0 against the Tigers in Orlando (the 2005 matchup was played at the Citrus Bowl) … UCF and Memphis shared the American Athletic Conference title in 2014 (along with Cincinnati) in the last year of the conference’s single-division format … Both teams are making their second appearance in The American Championship … Both teams were pegged as the respective preseason favorites in their respective divisions in 2018 … This year’s championship game will be the first between The American’s two preseason favorites … This year’s game marks the fourth time in as many years that The American Championship is carried live on ABC … The American Championship has drawn more than two million viewers in each of its first three years.

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Head Coach
Mike Norvell (Central Arkansas ’95)
26-12, third season

Notes
Memphis has made a remarkable run to The American Championship — one that seemed unlikely after the Tigers fell to 1-3 in conference play after the October loss to UCF … Facing must-win situations in each of its last four conference games, the Tigers won all four by an average of 18 points to repeat as West Division champions … Head coach Mike Norvell’s 26 wins are the most in a three-year span in school history … Norvell has taken Memphis to The American Championship for the second time in his three seasons with the Tigers … The Tigers rank fifth nationally in total offense at 503.0 yards per game, thanks in large part to the performance of RB Darrell Henderson … Henderson, a midseason All-America selection and a Doak Walker Award finalist, is second nationally with 1,699 rushing yards and 19 touchdowns … RB Patrick Taylor II has rushed for 894 yards and 14 touchdowns, giving Memphis what might be the most potent backfield duo nationally … QB Brady White, a transfer from Arizona State, has stepped in to throw for 2,947 yards and 25 touchdowns in his first year with the Tigers …  Damonte Coxie has team highs of 62 receptions, 1,062 receiving yards and seven touchdown catches … TE Joey Magnifico has five touchdown catches and is a threat in the passing game as well … The Tigers rank third in The American in total defense at 397.2 yards allowed per game. … LB Bryce Huff enters Saturday’s game ranked second in The American with 18.0 tackles for loss and is third in the conference with 9.5 sacks … LB Curtis Akins has a team-high 77 tackles … CB T.J. Carter, the 2017 American Rookie of the Year, is a player to watch in the secondary with two interceptions and 11 pass breakups … Memphis is always strong on special teams … WR Tony Pollard is a two-time American Athletic Conference Special Teams Player of the Year, but has only attempted 14 kickoff returns this season as opponents have avoided kicking to the All-America return specialist … WR John “Pop” Williams is second The American in punt return average (11.1 yards) … K Riley Patterson is third in the conference in scoring, first among kickers (8.8 ppg) … P Adam Williams has averaged 42.5 yards per punt and has dropped 16 kicks inside the 20-yard line.

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Head Coach
Josh Heupel (Oklahoma ’01)
11-0, first season

Notes
UCF enters this year’s American Athletic Conference Championship on a 24-game winning streak — the longest active streak nationally — as the Knights went 11-0 in the regular season and finished 8-0 in conference play for the third time in The American’s six-year history … The Knights scored at least 31 points in all 11 games this year and rank fourth nationally in total offense at 531.4 yards per game … UCF has scored at least 30 points in 24 straight games, which matches the longest streak nationally since 1936 … The Knights will have to run their offense without their catalyst, however, as QB McKenzie Milton suffered a serious leg injury in the second quarter of last Friday’s game against USF … Head coach Josh Heupel will turn to redshirt freshman QB Darriel Mack Jr. behind center for the rest of the season … Mack, who has looked solid in limited action in 2018, has the luxury of a veteran offensive line and proven playmakers at the skill positions … The  backfield is led by RB Greg McCrae, who has had a breakout year to the tune of 895 yards and eight touchdowns, while explosive RB Adrian Killins Jr. has 638 yards and four TDs …  UCF is equally deep at the receiver positions as WR Gabriel Davis leads the way with 655 yards and six touchdowns on 44 catches, while WR Dredrick Snelson and WR Tre Neal have 37 catches each … The Knights’ defense is led by S Richie Grant, a Sporting News midseason All-America pick who has team highs of 98 tackles, a league-leading five interceptions and three forced fumbles … DE Titus Davis is an impact player up front with 6.0 sacks and 15.0 tackles for loss … DE Nate Evans has 82 tackles with 7.0 tackles for loss and two fumble recoveries … UCF is second nationally in turnover margin … The Knights have committed only nine turnovers and have registered 25 takeaways … UCF has forced at least one turnover in every game this season and in each of the last 30 games, dating to 2016 … K Matthew Wright is second in The American in kicker scoring (8.7 ppg), while P Mac Loudermilk is sixth in the conference with a 42.9-yard average … Killins has averaged 21.8 yards on 12 kickoff returns, while RB Otis Anderson has averaged 10.5 yards per punt return.