TALLAHASSEE, Fla. – Seth Henigan threw for 272 yards and two touchdowns – the 40th consecutive game in which he threw a TD pass – as Memphis beat Florida State 20-12 on Saturday.

Henigan threw touchdown passes to Greg Desrosiers Jr. and Anthony Landphere, and Memphis (3-0) built a 20-3 lead in the third quarter. The Tigers scored touchdowns on drives of 65 and 75 yards and made 7 of 17 third and 2 of 3 fourth attempts.

“Winning is hard and I never want to downplay a win,” Memphis coach Ryan Silverfield said. “But this is monumental. Let’s call it what it is. Regardless of the record, they were No. 10 in the country last season.”

“This is huge for our program. We will remember this game for a long time.”

The players, coaches and fans of Memphis won’t soon forget it. And the Tigers are taking home quite a bonus: a $1.3 million guarantee and a profile-building road win against a Power 4 team.

Memphis dominated on defense and made many timely plays on offense.

“Our defense is much improved from last year,” Henigan said. “They’re playing extremely well right now. … I’m proud of our guys. I thought they played hard. We showed that intensity, that grit, that Memphis toughness.”

DJ Uiagalelei completed 16 of 30 passes for 201 yards and one interception and struggled to move the Seminoles (0-3) ahead until they scored twice in the third quarter.

Florida State went to the Memphis 39-yard line and smashed the ball into space with two seconds left to set up one last play, but Uiagalelei’s Hail Mary was blocked at the goal line by Memphis’ Julian Barnett.

The Memphis defense pressured Uiagalelei all day, recording four sacks. Linebacker Chandler Martin had eight tackles, including 2.5 tackles for loss.

Florida State couldn’t run the ball, averaging 1.5 yards per carry. And the Seminoles were constantly faced with third-and-long situations, converting just 2 of 12 opportunities, although they did go 3 of 3 on fourth-down conversions.

“I’ve been extremely disappointed at times with the way we’ve played,” Florida State coach Mike Norvell said. “The things we work on and emphasize all week long, in the preseason and the offseason, things that are critical to success, aren’t happening as consistently as we need them to.”

“Offensively, it was obviously a very disappointing performance. We were never really able to do much. In the second half, we were able to move the ball, but had a few explosive plays and still had too many negative aspects.”

Ryan Fitzgerald attempted a 54-yard field goal for the Seminoles, his third kick of 50 or more yards in three games.