Miami Beach Brawl: Bowl Game Turns Ugly As BYU, Memphis Fight It Out On The Field

Calling a football game a battle borders on the definition of hyperbole, but the Miami Beach Bowl, played Monday, Dec. 22, between BYU and Memphis, turned out to be exactly that. The teams fought for 60 minutes, then two overtimes and then actually fought themselves off the field thanks to a huge midfield brawl that broke out amid frustration and exhaustion.

"It wasn't always pretty," Memphis coach Justin Fuente told ESPN. Call that the understatement of the bowl season.

Reviews of the footage show wind-up, right-handed hammers; helmet throwing; stomping; and other awesome —um, ugly — cases of sportsmanship. The fight broke out after Memphis began celebrating its 55-48 win on the field.

BYU was obviously upset they fell short in the two-overtime heartbreaker, and obviously didn't take lightly to Memphis rubbing it in their faces.

There were times when the action on the field was just as exciting as the postgame antics.

Paxton Lynch threw four touchdowns and ran for three more for Memphis, and kicker Jake Elliot tied it at the end of overtime with a 54-yard bomb, all after BYU stormed back from a double-digital deficit.

The fight broke out after an interception finally ended the back-and-forth classic, according to Bleacher Report.

Memphis had reasons to celebrate BYU maybe didn't comprehend at the time. The win gave Memphis its first 10-win season since 1938, according to ESPN. That's 76 years of futility off their backs. The 10 wins also match the team's total from the past four seasons combined. So congratulations to a team that made it over the hump. Then again, you have to act like you've been there before.

None of us have ever been to the likes of the Miami Beach Bowl. This was the first in history. Here's to hoping the game stays this exciting for years to come.