Based on conference tie-ins, the game was expected to feature teams from the American Athletic Conference (The American), the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), or the Big 12 Conference . Selected for the bowl were Memphis, of The American, and Utah State, of the Mountain West Conference . This was their eighth meeting; entering the game, the Tigers led the all-time series, 4–3.[6]
Memphis compiled a 6–6 record in regular-season play, 3–5 in conference play. Their season included a four-game winning streak followed by a four-game losing streak. The Tigers faced two ranked teams, losing to both Tulane and UCF . Entering this game, Memphis had been invited to a bowl game each season since 2014, including the 2021 Hawaii Bowl , which was canceled the day before kickoff.
Utah State also recorded a 6–6 regular-season record; they went 5–3 in conference play. After starting the season 1–4, the Aggies then won five of their remaining seven games to become bowl eligible . They faced, and lost to, two ranked FBS teams, Alabama and BYU . This was the Aggies' 10th bowl appearance since the 2011 season.
2022 Servpro First Responder Bowl
Period 1 2 3 4 Total Memphis 3 21 0 14 38 Utah State 0 3 0 7 10
at Gerald J. Ford Stadium • Dallas, Texas
Date : Tuesday, December 27, 2022Game time : 2:15 p.m. CST Game weather : Sunny • Temperature : 49 °F (9 °C) • Wind : 4 mph (6.4 km/h) southeastReferee : Francisco VillarTV announcers (ESPN ) : Mike Monaco (play-by-play), Charles Arbuckle (analyst), and Nicole Regoni (sideline)Box score
Scoring summary Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP Memphis Utah State 1 1:05 12 64 5:14 Memphis 26-yard field goal by Chris Howard 3 0 2 12:13 9 37 3:52 Utah State 53-yard field goal by Connor Coles 3 3 2 7:24 8 72 4:49 Memphis Eddie Lewis 15-yard touchdown reception from Seth Henigan , Chris Howard kick good 10 3 2 2:56 5 50 2:26 Memphis Eddie Lewis 22-yard touchdown reception from Seth Henigan, Chris Howard kick good 17 3 2 0:24 10 52 1:38 Memphis Caden Prieskorn 3-yard touchdown reception from Seth Henigan, Chris Howard kick good 24 3 4 11:04 5 92 1:48 Utah State Brian Cobbs 44-yard touchdown reception from Bishop Davenport, Connor Coles kick good 24 10 4 7:22 7 47 3:42 Memphis Jevyon Ducker 1-yard touchdown run, Chris Howard kick good 31 10 4 3:16 5 58 1:54 Memphis Jevyon Ducker 48-yard touchdown run, Chris Howard kick good 38 10 "TOP" = time of possession . For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football . 38 10
Team statistical comparison[4] Statistic Memphis Utah State First downs 26 15 First downs rushing 11 7 First downs passing 14 7 First downs penalty 1 1 Third down efficiency 7–14 5–13 Fourth down efficiency 0–0 0–1 Total plays–net yards 76–430 58–261 Rushing attempts–net yards 47–146 35–126 Yards per rush 3.1 3.6 Yards passing 9.8 5.9 Pass completions–attempts 20–29 15–23 Interceptions thrown 0 3 Punt returns–total yards 2–8 1–1 Kickoff returns–total yards 1–26 4–121 Punts–average yardage 4–148 5–188 Fumbles–lost 1–1 0–0 Penalties–yards 5–55 8–54 Time of possession 34:16 23:54
^ @JacobHRichman (December 27, 2022). "Seth Henigan is named MVP of the 2022 First Responder Bowl" (Tweet ). Retrieved December 27, 2022 – via Twitter . ^ Austro, Ben (December 4, 2022). "2022–23 bowl officiating assignments" . footballzebras.com . Retrieved December 16, 2022 . ^ "2022 Bowl Schedule" . College Football Poll . Retrieved December 26, 2022 .^ a b c d "2022 First Responder Bowl Final Stats" (PDF) . Statbroadcast . December 28, 2022. Retrieved December 27, 2022 .^ "2022 College Football Bowl Schedule" . FBSchedules.com . Retrieved November 1, 2022 .^ "Winsipedia - Memphis vs. Utah State" . Winsipedia.com . Retrieved December 4, 2022 .