MEMPHIS, Tenn. — The Memphis Tigers are AutoZone Liberty Bowl champions, beating Iowa State 36-26 in front of a home crowd at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.
Seth Henigan played arguably the best game of his college career in the Liberty Bowl, throwing for 364 yards and four touchdowns, adding another touchdown on the ground over a high-quality Iowa State passing defense.
Memphis quarterback Seth Henigan became the all-time leading passer for the Tigers, eclipsing Brady White's record in the third quarter as the Tigers were pulling ahead from the Cyclones.
Running back Blake Watson rushed for 107 yards on 15 attempts, including a 55-yard scamper in the second half that set the Tigers up for another key score.
Iowa State quarterback Rocco Brecht torched the Tigers' much-maligned passing defense for 446 yards and three scores, but the Memphis defense made a huge difference holding the Cyclones to 0 rushing yards.
Four different Tigers receivers found the endzone, including Demeer Blankumsee, who caught a 70-yard bomb from Henigan on the first drive of the game to set the tone.
A missed extra point by kicker Tanner Gillis had the Tigers up 6-0, and would go up 19-0 on the Cyclones in the first quarter. Iowa State wouldn't go away, scoring 13 unanswered before Gillis made a 49-yard field goal to put the Tigers up 22-13 at the half.
Henigan and the offense came out blazing in the third quarter, scoring two straight touchdowns to give the team a 36-13 advantage before Iowa State once again got themselves back into the game.
Another missed kick by Gillis gave the Cyclones the ball down 36-20, and promptly scored, failing a two-point conversion to trail 36-26 with nine minutes left.
That's when the Tigers took control of the game for good, driving down the field and taking eight minutes off the clock before turning the ball over on downs on Iowa State's two-yard line.
With just 42 seconds left in the game, Iowa State could not pull off a nearly impossible comeback, and the Tigers sealed the win.
Memphis avenged a one-point loss to Iowa State in the 2017 Liberty Bowl to complete a 10-win season, the first under head coach Ryan Silverfield and the first since 2019 when the Tigers won the American Athletic Conference championship and a Cotton Bowl berth under Mike Norvell.