Iowa State will play Memphis in the Liberty Bowl

AMES, Ia. — Iowa State will face Memphis (10-2) in its third Liberty Bowl, this one on Dec. 30 in Memphis.

It’s the Cyclones’ first postseason appearance since a 2012 Liberty Bowl loss against Tulsa. It’s the 13th bowl game in school history.

The game starts at 11:30 a.m. Central Time, and will be televised on ABC television.

Sunday’s announcement is another step in second-season coach Matt Campbell’s process of making the school's football program relevant.

The on-field part of that progression started with this season’s 7-5 record and sharing fourth place in the Big 12 Conference at 5-4 — the most regular-season wins at Iowa State since the 2005 team also won seven, and the highest Big 12 finish since sharing third place in 2010.

All that came just before Campbell was awarded a new contract, an agreement that improved his annual salary from $2.1 million to $3.5 million. It lengthened his original contract from expiring after the 2021 season to lasting through 2023.

Iowa State is back in the bowl business after a season that included victories at Oklahoma and at home against TCU — opponents that were ranked among the Top Five at the time of the upset.

The season also included four the five losses coming in one-possession games.

Iowa State is an intriguing story — not only because it’s the Cyclones' first bowl in five years, but also because:

Campbell, the Big 12 Conference Coach of the Year, and his staff have worked wonders in their second season in Ames. Joel Lanning plays extensively on both sides of the ball, and is a leading candidate for the Hornung Award that will be announced next week.

Also, four quarterbacks have shared in the Cyclones’ best regular season since 2005. There’s a pair of 1,000-yard rushers on the team — David Montgomery this season, and Mike Warren in 2015.

Iowa State's bowl game resume before 2017 consisted of a Sun Bowl, two Liberty Bowls, a Peach Bowl, a Hall of Fame Bowl, two Insight Bowls, a Humanitarian Bowl, two Independence Bowls, a Houston Bowl and a Pinstripe Bowl.