In a season full of historic highs, longtime Memphis Tigers football fans can’t help but reflect on the program’s lows that made a chance at the Cotton Bowl even sweeter.

Doug Guizlo, a University of Memphis graduate tailgating ahead of the American Athletic Conference championship game Saturday, remembers the back-to-back 1-10 seasons in 1981 and 1982. He remembers the Tigers beating Arkansas State 12-0 at the end of 1982 and how miserable the weather was.