Stanzi has 2 TDs in opening quarter, and Iowa leads Georgia Tech 14-7 in the Orange Bowl

Stanzi gets Iowa off to quick Orange Bowl start

MIAMI — Ricky Stanzi threw for 157 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 10 Iowa’s defense clamped down on No. 9 Georgia Tech as the Hawkeyes took a 14-7 lead over the Yellow Jackets after the first quarter of the Orange Bowl on Tuesday night.

Playing for the first time since Nov. 7 after surgery on a badly sprained right ankle, Stanzi completed nine of 10 passes, though his lone mistake was a big one — an interception that Jerrard Tarrant ran back 40 yards for a touchdown with 24 seconds left in the period.

Other than that, the first 15 minutes were all Iowa, even with the Hawkeyes turning the ball over twice.

Georgia Tech’s offense was on the field three times, going three-and-out all three times. And that was simply stunning, considering the Yellow Jackets had gone three-and-out only 14 times in their first 13 games, the fewest in the country.

But Iowa’s defense, which had a month to get ready for Tech’s spread option, was more than up to the challenge early on. Iowa outgained Georgia Tech 185-17 in the first 15 minutes, and had all seven of the opening quarter’s first downs.

It was the chilliest Orange Bowl ever, played before 66,131 and coming amid South Florida’s worst cold snap in nearly a decade. The kickoff temperature was 49 degrees — eight degrees colder than the previous low two years ago — and the National Weather Service said the wind chill would be in the 30s by game’s end.

Maybe Marvin McNutt’s hands were cold.

McNutt caught a third-down pass from Stanzi on the game’s opening drive, good enough for a first down, but Tarrant punched the ball free and Sedric Griffin recovered for the Yellow Jackets, giving them the ball near midfield less than 90 seconds into the game.

And that set up the first matchup of Georgia Tech’s spread-option offense vs. Iowa’s staunch run defense.

Advantage, Hawkeyes. At least for starters.

Georgia Tech hadn’t punted in its last two games, a span of 22 possessions. No matter — Iowa forced the Yellow Jackets to punt four plays after the McNutt fumble, and Stanzi quickly took advantage with an 80-yard scoring drive.

A 54-yard pass to tight end Tony Moeaki was the big blow, setting up a 4-yard toss to McNutt that made it 7-0 midway through the opening quarter.

Another quick Georgia Tech punt, another quick Iowa score. Stanzi connected with Colin Sandeman for a 22-yard touchdown with 4:04 remaining in the opening quarter, putting the Hawkeyes up 14-0 and sending their black-and-gold-clad fans — who easily outnumbered Georgia Tech’s backers by a huge margin — into a frenzy.

But Tarrant’s interception changed all that, albeit briefly.

He stepped in front of a pass and turned it into Stanzi’s 15th interception of the season, cutting the margin to 14-7.