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What Charles Huff learned about Memphis in first months as Tigers football coach
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- What Charles Huff learned about Memphis in first months as Tigers football coach
Charles Huff has been in the Bluff City for only a few months, but Memphis football's new coach has already learned plenty about the city.
"We represent something bigger than ourselves," Huff said. "We represent something bigger than what we call Shelby County. This is really a state type of energy. This is not just Shelby County. This is like a state, national type of energy. Which is good, because we've got some things that we need to do, and we're going to need that energy to do it."
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Huff spoke during a news conference on March 23 before the Tigers kicked off spring practice . It's a critical time for him and his staff because the Tigers have nearly an entirely new roster as they prepare for what looks like a wide-open American Conference in 2026.
Huff had made it clear when he was introduced in December 2025 that winning a conference title is his goal, and he'll have a shot to get there right away.
He has spent the past few months getting to know the city, the restaurants, the people.
"Men's, women's, revenue sports, non-revenue sports, this community loves the Tigers," he said. "And you believe that, but until you really sink your feet in it, you don't really understand. The word "fan" is derived from the word "fanatic," so sometimes it's a little radical, to the left or the right, but it always comes back to a love. It always comes back to wanting the Tigers to do well."
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There's a lot of positivity around the program as spring practice kicks off. The Tigers have an expected quarterback battle between West Florida transfer Marcus Stokes and South Carolina transfer Air Noland. The coaching staff is all new, including offensive coordinator Kevin Decker and defensive coordinator Lance Guidry.
Memphis will wrap spring practice with a fan event on April 18 at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium. And that'll give the Tigers another chance to get to know the Memphis fans ahead of the season opener Aug. 29 at UNLV.
"There's going to come a time where there's going to be decisions made or things that happen that the fans are going to be radically disappointed about," Huff said. "But what I've seen is as quickly as they get radically disappointed, they come right back with the same energy."
Reach sports writer Jonah Dylan at jonah.dylan@commercialappeal.com or on X @thejonahdylan.
This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: What Memphis football coach Charles Huff has learned about the city so far
