It has been about 9 years since I first moved to Memphis, but I still have a lot of fond memories there. I lived at the University Cabanas my first year. There were a bunch of SCO students there as well as UT Med and U of Memphis students. It was less than 10 minutes from SCO. We had a lot of fun there. I don't even know if it still exists though or if it has gone downhill since we left town. Talk to the ladies in admissions for a recommendation. They will know what places are nice, safe, and inhabited by your classmates instead of thugs.
Memphis is a fun town. Ask the SCO folks where not to go. You will figure out real quick what is safe and what is not. My 1st year roommate and I drove way down Florida Street our first week there to a place called Bob Furniture to buy some used stuff for our apartment. It was way shady and a real eye opener.
Downtown was really getting better when I was there. Beale Street was fun. Redbirds games at Autozone Park are a blast. The Peabody Place was a good place to spend a day. I hope you like BBQ and Mexican food because there were a ton of great restaurants there. Check out the BBQ Shop on Madison about 5 minutes East of SCO. It is to die for. We still get some via FedEx from time to time!
Get down there early so you can find your way around town and hang out with some of your classmates. Have fun!