KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — No. 20 Tennessee handily defeated No. 17 Iowa 35-0 in a New Year's Day Citrus Bowl matchup inside Camping World Stadium on Monday afternoon.
Freshman quarterback Nico Iamaleava made his first career start as a Vol, and it was quite a start. Iamaleava was named MVP of the game. Former Tennessee quarterback Joe Milton was on the sideline, mentoring the team and guiding Iamaleava under center.
The Vols won the toss and deferred it to the second half. Elijah Herring sacked quarterback Deacon Hill on third down, forcing a quick three-and-out.
Iamaleava ran on the field, and it was time to see him have offensive freedom to show what he was capable of. His first completion in his first career start was a nine-yard play action pass to Jacob Warren.
However, a holding call and a false start pushed the Vols back, which made it first and 23. Iamaleava was then sacked on third and ten, forcing the team to punt inside its own 20.
The Hawkeyes were running all over Tennessee's defense on their next drive. But in the red zone, Iowa could not finish. Tennessee's Andre Turrentine picked off Hill after he threw into double coverage on third down.
With 4:55 in the first remaining, the score was 0-0. Tennessee's offensive line gave Iamaleava no time in the pocket on third and eight. Iowa's top 10 defense continued to kick the Vols off the field, and once again, Tennessee was forced to punt the ball.
Iowa wide receiver Kaleb Brown could not convert on third down after dropping a pass. Dee Williams returned the Hawkeye's punt to Iowa's 30, but it was called back after he was ruled down at Tennessee's 27-yard line.
Ramel Keyton dropped a pass up the middle from Iamaleava, but sophomore running back Dylan Sampson made up for it by getting into Iowa territory.
On the same drive, Iamaleava made history for himself. He put the first six points up for Tennessee with a designed run play, which resulted in a 19-yard touchdown to give Tennessee a 7-0 lead. This was Iamaleava's first career rushing touchdown.
On Iowa's next drive, Brown dropped another pass on third down, forcing the team to punt again.
Two Tennessee completions from Kaleb Webb and Cam Seldon moved the Vols down the field, which led to Iamaleava's second rushing touchdown on the day. The three-yard score put Tennessee up 14-0.
With 6:03 left in the first half, the Vols forced another Iowa punt. Tennessee started with the ball on their 20-yard line, but it was a quick three-and-out for the Vols when Iamaleava had little protection and got sacked on third down.
Hill had trouble connecting with his receivers throughout the half, so Tennessee regained possession of the ball. It was a great throw and catch from Iamaleava to Keyton for a Vols first down on second and eight, but the completion led to a Jackson Ross 43-yard punt.
It was a 14-0 score by halftime. Iowa's offense was only effective on one of its drives. Meanwhile, Iamaleava found success on his feet and gave a credible performance in his first outing under center.
In the second half, an 18-yard completion to Squirrel White gave Tennessee a first down, but a Keyton drop and an Iamaleava sack stalled the drive, giving Iowa a chance at some points.
The Hawkeyes forced their sixth-straight three-and-out from their own eight-yard line. Tennessee's offense didn't convert either after three Seldon run plays and a punt. The score remained 14-0.
On Tennessee's next drive, Iamaleava stiff-arms a defender for the first down. Soon after, the freshman QB was sacked on second and seven, and then right after, fumbled the snap on third down.
Luckily, Jackson Ross punted the ball to the 4-yard-line, giving Iowa little chance to convert.
Tennessee set up for first and goal at the Iowa 2-yard line, and Iamaleava scrambled for a two-yard touchdown, his third score of the day. The score was now 21-0. The play went under review, but it stood for the score.
At this point in the game, Tennessee had 288 yards of offense, compared to 87 from the Hawkeyes.
At the top of the 4th quarter, Hill throws directly into the hands of Pearce Jr., and he makes a 52-yard run into the endzone for a UT pick-six. The Hawkeyes remained scoreless, and Tennessee was up by 28.
Iowa couldn't convert on fourth and sixth. Dylan Sampson had two runs for 33 yards that led to an 18-yard McCallan Castles touchdown.
The Vols ended up shutting out Iowa, 35-0. It was the first time the Vols had shut out a team in a bowl game since Texas A&M in the 1957 Gator Bowl and it was the third bowl game shutout in UT history.