The Memphis Belle

Growing up, my good friend Eric's favorite movie was 'The Memphis Belle.' The movie was a fictionalized account of the 1944 documentary 'Memphis Belle:  A Story of a Flying Fortress.'  The Memphis Belle's claim to fame is that is was the first Air Force bomber to complete 25 combat missions with its crew intact.  To use a sports analogy the Memphis Belle went 25-0 in World War II.

In the 1990 movie a big party is planned upon the safe arrival of the Belle.  The Belle had survived its previous 24 missions so number 25 was a sure thing.  On the 25th mission the Belle barely survives a German attack, and Lt. Colonel Derringer is humbled when the tattered Belle limps back to the base.

I hate to compare war and sports because war is real life and sports in entertainment.  I cringe when athletes refer to themselves as warriors and call games wars.  The sole thing sports and war have in common is unpredictability.  If I took one thing from the movie 'The Memphis Belle,' it's that you can't take anything for granted.  Even the celebrated flying fortress barely survived her last mission.

For nearly a decade it was a foregone conclusion that the Memphis Tigers would win Conference USA.  As long as John Calipari was recruiting the Derrick Roses and Tyreke Evans of the world, Memphis would be impossible to beat in the conference.   Memphis had a 64 game conference win streak that UTEP finally snapped last January.

This years Memphis Tigers resemble the Memphis Belle after her 25th mission more than her previous 24.  They've been blown out by Kansas, Georgetown, Tennessee and have lost to lowly Rice in conference play.  At one point their leading scorer was suspended for allegedly mocking the coach on the team bus.  Despite everything they find themselves in a familiar spot in late February, atop the Conference USA standings.  They have swept Southern Miss, UAB, and UCF and got a nice win over Gonzaga in Spokane in early February.

Conversely, the Miners have lost to USM, UAB, and UCF and have dropped three of their last four.  The Miners are desperate for both a win and some confidence.  The Miners would love to make the Tigers' return trip to Tennessee a long one.  Like the famous air fortress, the Tigers have been resilient and will be difficult to put away.