Iowa Hawkeyes Outmatch Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in Orange Bowl

The 10th-ranked Iowa Hawkeyes won their first major bowl game since the 1959 Rose Bowl, taking a 24-14 victory at the FedEx Orange Bowl.

Tuesday night’s contest produced the coldest Orange Bowl game in history with the kickoff temperature reaching 49 degrees.

"This was Hawkeye weather," Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz said in media release. "We feel right at home right now."

Iowa (11-2) outmuscled No. 9 Georgia Tech on all facets of the game. Offensively they totaled 403 yards. They allowed the Tech offense to collect only 156 total yards.

Georgia Tech averaged 442.7 yards per game, 307.2 of that on the ground. The Iowa defense gave up an average of 122 rushing yards per game.

"We haven't played many games like that," Georgia Tech head coach Paul Johnson said in a media release. "We couldn't seem to get anything going. We couldn't hit a pass play, couldn't hit a big play."

The Yellow Jackets attempted nine passes, completing only two for 13 yards.

Ferentz was named the Big Ten Coach of the Year, while Johnson was named the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) Coach of the Year.

Hawkeyes quarterback Ricky Stanzi was 17-of-29 for 231 pass yards with two touchdowns and an interception. Stanzi suffered an ankle injury towards the end of the season but looked effective on the night.

Running back Brandon Wegher led the run-game, rushing for 113 yards on 16 carries with a touchdown.

The Hawkeyes opened the scoring on a 3-yard pass from Stanzi to Marvin McNutt with 8:10 remaining in the first quarter. Stanzi then connected with Colin Sandeman four minutes later on a 21-yard touchdown pass to give Iowa a 14-0 lead.

Georgia Tech (11-3) showed signs of life with seconds remaining in the first quarter when Jerrard Tarrant intercepted Stanzi’s pass, returning it 40 yards for the score. Iowa led 14-7.

Coming out-of-halftime with a 14-7 lead Iowa added to the score with a Daniel Murray 33-yard field goal with 2:17 to go in the third quarter.

The Yellow Jackets’ Anthony Allen rushed from 1-yard out to make the score a three-point game early in the fourth quarter.

The Hawkeyes had a chance to clinch the game when Georgia Tech quarterback Josh Nesbitt’s pass was intercepted by A.J. Edds and returned 13 yards to the Yellow Jackets’ 15-yard line.

Inside the Georgia Tech red zone, Iowa had possession at the 3-yard line but could not punch it in. Then on 4th-and-goal, the Hawkeyes faked the field goal attempt, with Murray’s run to the end zone falling short.

The chip-shot field goal would have extended the Iowa lead to six points. Trailing by three points Georgia Tech had the ball with 6:45 remaining in the game but were forced to punt on a three-and-out.

Iowa received possession of the ball with 4:54 to go and put the game away. On a 7 play 63-yard drive, Wegher put the exclamation point on the team’s biggest bowl victory, with a 32-yard run into the end zone to make the score 24-14.

Following a turnover on down for Georgia Tech, Iowa and their faithful celebrated their chilly victory at Land Shark Stadium. This is their first Orange Bowl win, their first appearance in the bowl game and the BCS came in 2003, losing 38-17 to Southern California.
 
The duo of Nesbitt and Jonathan Dwyer were placed on hold by the Iowa defense. Each rushed for 48 yards and were kept out of the end zone, where combined went on to score 32 rushing touchdowns. 

Iowa benefited from the layoff to prepare for the spread option offense that is Georgia Tech’s forte.

The Iowa win adds to Big Ten Conference’s other marquee wins this bowl season. Both Penn State and Ohio State won their bowl games, easing the criticism the conference has sustained.

"It was great having Rick back. It was tough when he got injured," Ferentz said. "He did a great job leading us tonight—and what can I say about that defense?"