In 2011, Tannar Rehrer became only the second Tiger to catch 70 passes in a season (he finished with exactly 70). He's one of only four Memphis players to catch as many as 60 in a season. Name the other three sticky-fingered Tigers. (Hint: One of them achieved the feat twice.)

• U of M Athletic Media Relations

Ryan Nance and Michael Busby combined for a shutout this afternoon in the C-USA championship game to earn UAB its first NCAA tournament berth in 21 years. A two-run home run by freshman Jeff Schalk was the big blow in the Blazers' 5-0 victory.

Tiger starter Chase Joiner kept UAB off the scoreboard for six innings. But in the seventh, his errant throw on a pickoff attempt at third base allowed Ryan Ussery to score the game's first run. Schalk followed shortly with a drive that cleared the rightfield wall.

Memphis loaded the bases in the bottom of the seventh inning, but with the tying run at first, both Ethan Gross and C-USA Player of the Year Jacob Wilson struck out.

The 7th-seeded Blazers and 5th-seeded Tigers were each playing in the C-USA championship for the first time. Memphis ends its season with a record of 31-28.

The U of M men's basketball team has made a habit of winning the Conference USA tournament in March. (The Tigers have taken six of the last seven hoops tourneys.)

But for coach Daron Schoenrock's baseball program, this Sunday will mark the first time the Tigers get to play for a C-USA tournament crown. Riding a 14-3 run that has improved the team's record to 31-26, the Tigers will face a team from a pool that includes Central Florida, Tulane, East Carolina, and UAB. (The game will air Sunday at 1 p.m. on CBS College Sports.) A win would put Memphis in the NCAA tournament for the first time since 2007.

• Joe Murphy
• Third-baseman Jacob Wilson

Led by C-USA Player of the Year Jacob Wilson (.327, 17 home runs, 64 RBIs) and C-USA batting champ Adam McClain (.405), the Tigers rallied late to beat 7th-ranked Rice, 3-2, Thursday to earn their spot in Sunday's championship. Perennial contenders for a College World Series berth, the Owls (40-16) will make the NCAA tournament despite the loss. Meanwhile, Memphis gets to play one of the biggest games in the program's history.

The tournament is being held in Pearl, Mississippi.

What is the highest win total for the Tiger basketball program over the first three years of a decade? (Let's define the first year of the Eighties as 1979-80. First year of the Nineties as 1989-90. And so on.)

• Larry Kuzniewski
• Josh Pastner

2010s: 75 wins
2000s: 63
1990s: 58
1950s: 54
1960s: 53
1980s: 50
1970s: 45

What is the highest win total for the Tiger basketball program over the first three years of a decade? (Let's define the first year of the Eighties as 1979-80. First year of the Nineties as 1989-90. And so on.)

Since 1960, the Memphis Tiger football program has averaged 30 points per game in five seasons. Name the years the U of M lit up the scoreboard.

• 1960: 30.2 points per game (team finished 8-2)
• 1961: 33.2 (8-2)
• 1969: 32.8 (8-2)
• 2003: 30.2 (9-4)
• 2004: 35.8 (8-4)

Since 1960, the Memphis Tiger football program has averaged 30 points per game in five seasons. Name the years the U of M lit up the scoreboard.

Next season, as juniors, three Tigers will have a chance at reaching 1,000 career points: Joe Jackson (719 points through two seasons), Tarik Black (691), and Chris Crawford (551). When is the last time a Tiger team featured three native Memphians who would each join the 1,000-point club?

The 1991-92 Tigers (a team that reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA tournament) featured Memphians Ernest Smith (1,122 career points), Billy Smith (1,040), and Penny Hardaway (1,319).

• U of M Athletic Media Relations
• Billy Smith

Next season, as juniors, three Tigers will have a chance at reaching 1,000 career points: Joe Jackson (719 points through two seasons), Tarik Black (691), and Chris Crawford (551). When is the last time a Tiger team featured three native Memphians who would each join the 1,000-point club?

• Larry Kuzniewski
• Joe Jackson

The 2011-12 Memphis Tigers won both Conference USA's regular season and tournament championships, making them the most accomplished team in three seasons under coach Josh Pastner. How many times did the Tigers win both a regular season and tournament title under coach Larry Finch?

The Tigers never pulled off this double during Finch's tenure as coach (1986-97). They won the Metro tournament championship in 1987, the Great Midwest regular-season title in 1995, and tied for the C-USA regular-season championship in 1996.

The 2011-12 Memphis Tigers won both Conference USA's regular season and tournament championships, making them the most accomplished team in three seasons under coach Josh Pastner. How many times did the Tigers win both a regular season and tournament title under coach Larry Finch?

• U of M Athletic Media Relations
• Elliot Perry and his favorite coach.

With the arrival this fall of Shaq Goodwin, the Tigers could have as many as three McDonald's All-Americans on the floor at the same time during the 2012-13 season. (Junior-to-be Joe Jackson and rising sophomore Adonis Thomas also played in the star-studded exhibition game.) When was the last time — before the 2011-12 season — that Memphis had a pair of McDonald's stars on the same team?

Cedric Henderson (1993) and Lorenzen Wright (1994) each played in the McDonald's All-American game. They were teammates with the Tigers under coach Larry Finch for the 1994-95 and 1995-96 seasons.

With the arrival this fall of Shaq Goodwin, the Tigers could have as many as three McDonald's All-Americans on the floor at the same time during the 2012-13 season. (Junior-to-be Joe Jackson and rising sophomore Adonis Thomas also played in the star-studded exhibition game.) When was the last time — before the 2011-12 season — that Memphis had a pair of McDonald's stars on the same team?

• Larry Kuzniewski
• Joe Jackson

The University of Memphis introduced Tom Bowen this afternoon as the school's new athletic director, to replace the retiring R.C. Johnson, effective June 18th. A search committee chaired by Alan Graf (CFO at FedEx) recommended Bowen to university president Shirley Raines. Bowen will succeed Johnson (who has served as A.D. since 1996) one academic year before the Tiger program joins the venerable Big East Conference.

Bowen comes to Memphis after more than seven years in charge of the athletic department at San Jose State University. Prior stops include an administrative role with the NFL's San Francisco 49ers and a stint as associate athletic director at the University of California from 2000 to 2002. He's a 1983 graduate of Notre Dame and has a master's degree in administration/education from the University of San Francisco. Bowen will turn 51 next month. He and his wife, Mia, have three children.

• San Jose State University
• Tom Bowen

Chief among his tasks will be improving a football program that has gone 5-31 over the last three seasons under coaches Tommy West (2009) and Larry Porter (2010-11). San Jose State had some success on Bowen's watch, reaching a bowl game after the 2006 season and recovering from a 1-11 season in 2010 to go 5-7 under coach Mike MacIntyre last fall. Bowen noted today that the Spartans won nine games in 2006 with just 67 scholarship players. His first football season in Memphis will be alongside rookie coach Justin Fuente, hired last winter to replace Porter. In 2008 San Jose State was one of 12 Division I universities honored for Overall Excellence in Diversity.

"The search committee and I wanted someone who could continue the progress of Tiger athletics developed over the last 16 years under the leadership of R.C. Johnson," said Raines. "Tom Bowen was the unanimous choice of the committee."

A few of Bowen's remarks from this afternoon's press conference at the Hardaway Hall of Fame:

Goose bumps. I'm so excited to be here. I'll try and control my excitement to get through this press conference.

I'm humbled and honored to follow in R.C. Johnson's footsteps. I'm very excited about the opportunity that lies before us. It's great to be a Tiger.

What made the Memphis job appealing?
Having a chance to really look at the University of Memphis and what's taken place here, both prior to getting into the Big East and where you're going. I want to be a part of that. The success of the young coaches here. And the academic component, which is very important to me. The academic success of my student-athletes [at San Jose State] was priority one. The vision is a championship ring on one hand and a diploma in the other. When I was first contacted by [the search firm], I figured there were a lot of guys more qualified than me, but I wanted to be considered. So I'm humbled and honored to be selected.

What's prepared you to reach this level?
I spent the last seven-and-a-half years at San Jose State, an FBS school. Building a football program and repairing an athletic program that had fallen on some very difficult times financially, competitively, and academically. I spent some time with the San Francisco 49ers and at Cal-Berkeley. I feel very confident I can come in and continue the legacy and leadership of your previous A.D.

What are some of the biggest challenges you see, especially with the football program?
Well, I see some challenges I'll be able to get into when I officially start [in June]. I had a chance to meet with Coach Fuente, and he's a very good football coach, with a very good staff. And some hard-working young men who are ready to defend their home turf.

What did you do to turn the football program around at San Jose State?
It was a process of uniting a city, a university, an academic community, an alumni base, and some former great players. We were going to focus on doing it the right way: be good students first, athletes second, and make the university proud of us. We started an external campaign and tried to visit every high school in California, telling them we were alive and well and playing football at San Jose State. I hired Dick Tomey, one of the finest gentlemen in football. We linked arm and arm and committed ourselves to building San Jose State football back to where it used to be.

Bowen mentioned "100-day benchmarks" as part of his process for running an athletic department. He said specifics of such a plan will be shared when his new role becomes official in two months. A member of the university's search committee declined to comment on specifics of the search or Bowen's credentials, noting a gag order from Raines.

Former Tiger defensive tackle Dontari Poe is expected to be selected in the first round of this year's NFL draft (April 26th). Name the five previous Memphis players to be drafted in the first round.

• DeAngelo Williams

1977 — Bob Rush, offensive lineman; 24th pick, by San Diego. Played eight years in NFL.
1978 — Keith Simpson, defensive back; 9th pick, by Seattle. Played eight years in NFL.
1985 — Derrick Burroughs, defensive back; 14th pick, by Buffalo. Played five years in NFL.
1996 — Jerome Woods, defensive back; 28th pick, by Kansas City. Played ten years in NFL.
2006 — DeAngelo Williams, running back; 27th pick, by Carolina. Will enter seventh NFL season this fall.

NOTE: Offensive lineman Harry Schuh was selected by Oakland in the first round of the 1965 AFL draft.