Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders vs Memphis Tigers Match Player Stats On Sep 20, 2014

Memphis 36, Middle Tennessee 17: Paxton Lynch passed for 219 yards and two touchdowns to lead the Tigers to a home win over the Blue Raiders.

Lynch was 21-of-35 for Memphis (2-1), finding Alan Cross twice for scores and Keiwone Malone six times for 76 yards. Brandon Hayes rushed 21 times for 99 yards and Doroland Dorceus finished with 91 rushing yards and a touchdown.

Austin Grammer was 24-of-35 for 237 yards and an interception for Middle Tennessee (2-2), which got seven receptions for 96 yards from Demetrius Frazier. Reggie Whatley had eight carries for 41 yards while Shane Tucker scored twice on the ground for the Blue Raiders.

Memphis got on the board first on Lynch's 7-yard touchdown pass to Cross 3:19 into the game, then added to the lead with a safety when Tank Jakes sacked Grammer in the end zone. The Blue Raiders cut into the advantage with a 1-yard run by Tucker near the end of the first quarter, but Jake Elliott's 27-yard field goal and Dorceus' 32-yard touchdown run gave the Tigers a 19-7 halftime lead.

Elliott added to the advantage with a 29-yard field goal midway through the third, though Middle Tennessee responded with a 36-yard field goal by Cody Clark. But early in the fourth, Lynch found Cross from 50 yards out and Bobby McCain had a 59-yard return for a touchdown of a Grammer fumble to seal it.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Memphis' safety was its first since a 2003 contest against Louisville. … The Blue Raiders had allowed just four sacks coming into the contest but gave up five. … The win snapped a three-game losing skid for the Tigers in the series.