Memphis linebacker Geoffrey Cantin-Arku gathered a series of teammates around him before the game and pointed at the red-and-white striped turf at Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium.

"We're 9-3," he yelled. "And no one respects us!"

That might have changed about 3½ hours later.

Cantin-Arku and his Tigers easily handled Iowa State in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl 36-26 on Friday afternoon, earning the win as a 10.5-point underdog in a unique bowl game as the visiting team at its home stadium. It gave coach Ryan Silverfield the signature win he has been looking for, the Tigers' first as an underdog this season.

It also gives him and his staff something to take into next season, when the expectations for Memphis will be as high as they've ever been. The expanded 12-team College Football Playoff will include a Group of Five team, and that means the winner of the American Athletic Conference will have a good shot at getting in.

As for the AAC? The three teams that finished ahead of Memphis all have question marks heading in to next season. Tulane has a new coach. UTSA will have a new quarterback. And SMU won't even be in the conference.

Memphis will have the best returning quarterback in the AAC in Seth Henigan, who was outstanding again, capping a dominant back half of the season. He became the program's all-time leading passer during the third quarter of the bowl game and is on track to top every Tigers passing record next season.

But Memphis is losing a slew of seniors who have made their imprint on the program. Among them are center Jacob Likes and defensive end Jaylon Allen, two stalwarts who helped set the tone on either side of the ball. And both got to go out with a resounding win.

"It was special, man," Allen told the Commercial Appeal after the game. "It was probably one of the most special moments I've ever had in my life."

It was easily Memphis' most complete performance of the season. Gone were the shambolic starts that haunted them during the first half of the season. Missing were the defensive lapses that kept lesser teams in games that shouldn't have been close. Finished with were the penalties and mistakes that doomed the Tigers on this same field against Tulane and SMU.

The Tigers got the ball to start the game and took control within seconds. Henigan lofted a pass across the middle of the field to Demeer Blankumsee, who caught it in stride and waltzed into the end zone. A fourth-down stop followed on Iowa State's first drive, and the Tigers scored twice more to take a 19-0 lead before 15 minutes had elapsed.

There were moments when the Cyclones did build momentum, but they never really threatened a repeat of their 2017 win in this bowl game. Memphis, after falling short of its stated goal to win the AAC title game, probably earned some respect Friday afternoon by beating a Big 12 team in front of a national audience on ESPN.

Henigan finished with 342 yards and four touchdowns, adding a rushing touchdown for good measure. Receiver Roc Taylor had eight catches for 102 yards. Linebacker Chandler Martin, a transfer from FCS program ETSU, again led the team in tackles to cap his first-team All-AAC season.

All three will be back in 2024.

"We're returning most of our guys on offense," Henigan said after the game in response to a question about his individual accolades.

Silverfield, sitting to his left, couldn't help but beam.

Reach sports writer Jonah Dylan at jonah.dylan@commercialappeal.com or on Twitter @thejonahdylan.

This article originally appeared on Memphis Commercial Appeal: For Memphis football, Liberty Bowl win means more than just a triumph