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Miami • If a bowl game is played at noon MST on a Monday while most people are at work or out Christmas shopping, is it still considered a meaningful postseason football contest?

To the BYU Cougars and Memphis Tigers, it sure is.

At least, that's what players and coaches in both shades of blue are saying, describing Monday's inaugural Miami Beach Bowl at Marlins Park as hugely important to their respective programs.

Memphis (9-3) has won six straight games and is playing in a bowl game for the first time since 1998, eager to show that the turnaround engineered by third-year coach Justin Fuente is headed toward even greater heights.

BYU (8-4) has won four straight games and six of its last nine bowl games, but the Cougars will be out to erase the bitter memories of last year's 31-16 loss to Washington in the Fight Hunger Bowl and continue the late-season surge directed by fill-in quarterback Christian Stewart. The Cougars have enjoyed the sunny weather since arriving in Miami on Wednesday, but the Sunshine State has not been good to them, historically. They've never won in Florida, dropping bowl games here in 1976 and 1985 and losing regular-season games to Florida State (twice) and Central Florida in October.

"Well, I think both teams are [eager] to win," BYU coach Bronco Mendenhall said Saturday as the Cougars staged their final practice of the season. The Cougars didn't do anything football-related on Sunday, per school policy.

"I am not sure what the experts say in terms of what the margin is [expected to be], either way," Mendenhall said. "My guess is it will be pretty close, and it should be a really intriguing game. It is the only game on that day, on a national stage, [and it is] in Miami. I think it is a great opportunity for our program."

Fuente, who has some familiarity with BYU because he was TCU's offensive coordinator when the Horned Frogs beat the Cougars in 2009, 2010 and 2011, said he expects to see the team that went 4-0 in November, and not the one that went 0-4 in October.

"This is a very good football team we are going up against," Fuente said. "So we will have challenges across the board in every facet of the game."

At first glance, this appears to be a classic matchup pitting BYU's high-scoring offense against Memphis' stingy defense.

The Cougars are averaging 36 points per game, 20th best in the country, and 463 yards per game, 26th best. Memphis allows just 17.1 points per game, fifth best in the country, and 343 yards, 22nd best.

The Cougars scoffed Saturday when a Memphis television reporter suggested they might not take the Tigers seriously because they are not a big-name program.

"We don't overlook a team," said BYU receiver Jordan Leslie. "When you look at their defense, it is a top-ranked defense. I mean, that's a challenge for us. Our defense looking at their offense is just as much of a challenge. You can't look at the name-brand of a team, because any team any year can be successful. They are 9-3 and their losses are against ranked teams and Houston. That's a tough schedule. To have an opportunity to go 10-3 - that's a great team."

That said, Leslie and Stewart believe they can move the ball on one of the best defenses they will face this season, if not the best. Stewart ruffled some feathers and perhaps provided some bulletin board material when he said on BYUtv last week that BYU is better than Memphis at "everything" and "I think we will be able to pass."

Leslie defended his good friend's bravado, saying, "you are supposed have confidence. … Us as an offense, the way we have been playing, what we have been doing [in practice] against our defense, I feel like we have a great opportunity to score points."

BYU offensive coordinator Robert Anae watched the Cougars moved the ball well against Washington last year, only to sputter in the red zone and settle for field goals. He said it will take touchdowns to beat the Tigers, who aren't slouches offensively themselves.

"Well, hopefully we block people, and we secure the football," Anae said. "I do believe that is what is at stake in a really tough, close bowl game. The fundamentals usually show on the scoreboard. So the team that does that the best, at the highest level, I do believe will be victorious."

Twitter: @drewjay —

Miami Beach Bowl

P BYU vs. Memphis

At Marlins Park, Miami

Kickoff • Noon TV • ESPN

Radio • 1160 AM/102.7 FM

Records • BYU 8-4, Memphis 9-3

Series history • First meeting

About the Tigers • They have won six straight games, last losing on Oct. 11 to Houston, 28-24. … They tied with Cincinnati and Central Florida for the American Athletic Conference championship in their second year in the league. … Senior linebacker Tank Jakes leads a defense that ranks No. 5 in the country in fewest points allowed, 17.1.

About the Cougars • They have won four straight games and are 6-3 in bowl games in Bronco Mendenhall's 10 seasons as head coach. … They are 13-18-1 all time in bowl games, including last year's 31-16 loss to Washington in the Fight Hunger Bowl. … They are 0-2 in bowl games played in the state of Florida, having lost to Oklahoma State in the 1976 Tangerine Bowl and to Ohio State in the 1985 Citrus Bowl. —

BYU's bowl history under Bronco Mendenhall

Year Bowl Game Result

2013 Fight Hunger Bowl Washington 31, BYU 16

2012 Poinsettia Bowl BYU 23, San Diego State 6

2011 Armed Forces Bowl BYU 24, Tulsa 21

2010 New Mexico Bowl BYU 52, UTEP 24

2009 Las Vegas Bowl BYU 44, Oregon State 20

2008 Las Vegas Bowl Arizona 31, BYU 21

2007 Las Vegas Bowl BYU 17, UCLA 16

2006 Las Vegas Bowl BYU 38, Oregon 8

2005 Las Vegas Bowl Cal 35, BYU 28