Tennessee stifles Iowa and records first bowl shutout since 1957
Tennessee Coach Josh Heupel, and quarterback Nico Iamaleava prepare to receive the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl Trophy after a 35-0 victory over Iowa Monday January 1, 2024 at Camping World Stadium. (Lynn Harrington/stayaliveinpower5)
ORLANDO, Fla. — The Volunteers stormed into Camping World Stadium Monday afternoon, and made a statement against a top-20 team from the Big Ten.
43,861 fans were on hand as Tennessee dominated Iowa from start to finish. Once the smoke cleared, the Volunteers won the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl 35-0, which was their first shutout in the postseason since 1957. Not only did Coach Josh Heupel put a notch in the belt for the SEC, but it was also Tennessee’s second-straight bowl win.
The lopsided score was sort of a head-scratcher to many in attendance, considering Iowa had one of the best defenses in the country and Tennessee was starting a true freshman quarterback. The Volunteers made the Hawkeyes look like a high school varsity squad, with the way they controlled the trenches, and signal-caller Nico Iamaleava put together a promising performance.
Heupel couldn’t have asked for a better result, and it was an impressive way to complete his third season with the program.
“Really proud of our team, I thought it during the course of our preparation, but they were very intentional, focused when they went into the meeting, went on the practice field,” Heupel said. “They were engaged and they competed hard.”
Tennessee (9-4) led Iowa in total offense, plays, first downs, and time of possession. Most importantly, the Volunteers took care of the ball on offense, and caused three turnovers on defense.
Iamaleava looked like a seasoned veteran behind center, instead of a wide-eyed freshman. The former five-star prospect was dangerous with his mobility, and generated three rushing scores. Not to mention Iamaleava connected with tight end McCallan Castle for an 18-yard touchdown in the fourth quarter. He made others around him better too.
The Californian completed 12 of his 19 passes for 159 yards. For his heroics, Iamaleava was named the MVP of the event, and Heupel thought he had an amazing debut.
“Nico played really well for a first-time starter, and there was nothing that was too big for him,” he said. “Never got rattled, very composed, in control, communication, controlling the run game, just did an unbelievable job, decision-making, and then made plays with his feet as well.”
Running back Dylan Sampson finished with a game-high, 133 yards on the ground. It was the second time this season that Sampson eclipsed the century mark in rushing yards. On top of that he averaged a jaw-dropping, 6.6 yards per carry against Iowa. Wideout Ramel Keyton had a game-high, 51 receiving yards on three catches.
On defense the Volunteers were just as phenomenal. Tennessee held Iowa (10-4) to 173 yards of total offense, including 2.8 per play. Defensive back Gabe Jeudy-Lally and linebacker Jeremiah Trelander recorded five tackles apiece. Linebacker Elijah Herring was active throughout the afternoon, with four stops, including two for loss and a sack.
Defensive lineman Tyre West also contributed four tackles and put the quarterback to the turf. James Pearce Jr. was a man among boys though, with a tackle for loss, a sack, a forced fumble, plus he picked off a pass and returned it 52 yards for a touchdown. Defensive back Andre Turrentine even got in on the action and tallied an interception.
“You look defensively, violent and disruptive on the line of scrimmage, handled the run game really the entire day, mashed things out on their boot game and got off the field on third downs,” the 45-year old coach said. “The front applied so much pressure during the course of it, and James did an unbelievable job the entire day.”
It was the Volunteers’ second shutout in their last 15 games. As a matter of fact, Tennessee has now recorded at least one shutout in each of the last three seasons. The bowl win will obviously generate positive momentum for the off-season. Heupel appears to have found his quarterback of the future, so everything appears to be trending up.
The Volunteers will likely finish their campaign in the top-20, and potentially be a top-10 team entering the 2024 season. That’s more than enough motivation to have the fans excited about the fall, in Heupel’s eyes. The program is on the verge of taking the SEC by storm again, and that’s the way Heupel likes it.
“That group has got a chance, if they do it the right way this off-season, fundamentally, continuing to change their bodies, football IQ, understanding of the game, to be a game-changing unit.”
