Iowa earns big win for Big Ten

MIAMI (AP) — Stymied by the Iowa Hawkeyes’ swarming defense, Georgia Tech found itself out of options.

No. 10 Iowa solved Tech’s explosive triple option and Ricky Stanzi threw two early touchdown passes for a 24-14 victory Tuesday night in the coldest Orange Bowl ever.

Temperature at kickoff was 49 degrees, and Tech’s offense was slow to warm up.

The ninth-ranked Yellow Jackets averaged 35 points during the regular season, but their only score in the first three quarters came on Jerrard Tarrant’s 40-yard interception return.

The Hawkeyes (11-2) earned their first Bowl Championship Series bowl win, matched the school record for victories and could claim their highest final ranking since finishing No. 3 in 1960.

It was the fourth victory over a top-15 opponent for the Big Ten this bowl season, with Iowa joining Ohio State (beating No. 7 Oregon), Penn State (beating No. 12 LSU) and Wisconsin (beating No. 15 Miami).