2010 Orange Bowl The 2010 FedEx Orange Bowl game featured the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets and the Iowa Hawkeyes on Tuesday , January 5 , 2010 , at Land Shark Stadium in Miami Gardens , Florida . Iowa won the game 24 – 14 , securing the Hawkeyes ' first major bowl win since the 1959 Rose Bowl . Georgia Tech was selected to participate in the Orange Bowl after a 11 – 2 season that culminated in a 39 – 34 victory in the 2009 ACC Championship Game . Iowa was selected as the other half of the matchup after a 10 – 2 season that ended with a 12 – 0 win against Minnesota . In the weeks between the teams ' selection and the playing of the game , media attention focused on Georgia Tech ' s proficient offense and Iowa ' s highly rated defense . The game was part of the 2009 – 2010 Bowl Championship Series ( BCS ) of the 2009 NCAA Division I FBS football season and the last game of the season for both teams . It was the coldest Orange Bowl in Miami ' s history with a kick - off temperature of 49 degrees . The game was televised in the United States on FOX , and marked the end of the broadcast agreement between the BCS and FOX , as ESPN took over all BCS broadcast rights in 2011 . This was Iowa ' s second Orange Bowl appearance ( first appearance in 2003 Orange Bowl ) , and Georgia Tech ' s sixth appearance , but first since 1967 . It was the first time that the two teams had played against each other . On July 14 , 2011 , the NCAA vacated Georgia Tech ' s appearance in the bowl game as a consequence for violations committed by the football program . Team selection . The Orange Bowl is one of five Bowl Championship Series ( BCS ) bowl game s that have been played at the conclusion of every college football season since 2006 . As defined by contract , the bowl matches the champion of the Atlantic Coast Conference ( ACC ) against an at - large pick chosen by a special committee . On December 5 , 2009 , the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets defeated the Clemson Tigers in the 2009 ACC Championship Game , thus winning an automatic bid to the 2010 Orange Bowl Game . The at - large spot in the Orange Bowl was filled via a round - robin selection procedure defined by the other Bowl Championship series games ( the Sugar , Fiesta , and Rose bowls ) and the automatic bids . The order of at - large selections rotates annually among the BCS bowls . In 2010 , after the bowls who lost host teams to the 2010 BCS National Championship Game chose their replacements , the Orange Bowl picked first , followed by the Fiesta Bowl , then the Sugar Bowl . Having lost their SEC tie - in ( Alabama Crimson Tide ) to the national title game , the Sugar Bowl chose the Florida Gators as the replacement . Likewise , the Fiesta Bowl picked the Texas Christian Horned Frogs to replace the Big - 12 champion 2010 Texas Longhorns . The Orange Bowl then selected the Iowa Hawkeyes , while the Fiesta Bowl picked the Boise State Broncos to set up a battle of the unbeatens . The Sugar Bowl was thus left to select Big East Conference champion Cincinnati Bearcats , fulfilling the BCS ' contractual obligation to provide a game for the conference ' s champion . Iowa . The Hawkeyes entered the 2009 season after a 9 - 4 overall 2008 record that included a 31 - 10 win in the 2009 Outback Bowl over South Carolina . Iowa ' s first game over Northern Iowa would be a sign of things to come in the season . With just 7 seconds left in the game , Northern Iowa attempted a 40 yard field goal that would be blocked . Iowa avoided touching the ball thinking the ball had crossed the line of scrimmage , while in fact it did not . Northern Iowa ' s recovery allowed for another attempt with 1 second left . But once again , the attempt would be blocked , giving Iowa a 17 - 16 victory . Iowa would win their next 7 games , including a 21 - 10 win over top - five ranked Penn State , a last minute stop to beat Michigan , and a last second touchdown to get a win over Michigan State . On November 7 , Iowa appeared to be headed for a 10 - 0 record when they took an early 10 - 0 lead against the Northwestern Wildcats . However , early in the second quarter , quarterback Ricky Stanzi was knocked out of the game with an ankle injury , in a play that resulted in the Wildcats ' first touchdown . Iowa would not score again in the game , and would lose 17 - 10 . The Hawkeye ' s following game , vs . Ohio State , would determine which team would earn a berth to the Rose Bowl . Down 24 - 10 with 11 : 11 left , Iowa would stage a comeback to force overtime . But redshirt freshman quarterback James Vandenberg , filling in for the injured Stanzi , would throw an interception in first overtime series . Ohio State would take advantage and seal a 27 - 24 victory with a 39 yard field goal . Iowa would end the season strong with a 12 - 0 shutout over the Minnesota Gophers . Iowa stayed at the Fountaine Bleu in Miami , before the Orange Bowl . Georgia Tech . The Georgia Tech ended the 2008 college football season with a 9 - 4 record under first year head coach Paul Johnson , including a share of the ACC Coastal Crown , a win over Florida State , rival Georgia Bulldogs and a 38 - 3 loss in the 2008 Chick - fil - A Bowl . The Yellow Jackets opened the 2009 college football season with a 37 - 17 win over . Georgia Tech ' s second game against the Clemson Tigers saw the Yellow Jackets build up a 24 - 0 lead , only to see Clemson crawl back to take a 27 - 24 lead in the fourth quarter . GT would survive , winning 30 - 27 on a last minute field goal . In Tech ' s first road game of the year , the Yellow Jackets would leave Land Shark Stadium with a 17 - 33 loss to the Miami Hurricanes . Following the loss , Georgia Tech would win 8 straight games , including a win over # 4 Virginia Tech . The win would be GT ' s first home win over a top - five team since 1962 . In Tech ' s final game of the regular season , the Clean , Old - Fashioned Hate rivalry game vs Georgia , GT would lose its second game of the season . Down 6 with less than two minutes remaining , the Yellow Jackets gave up their run offense and had four consecutive incomplete " Hail Mary " passes . On 4th and 10 at Georgia ' s 46 yard line , quarterback Josh Nesbitt ' s pass to a wide open Demaryius Thomas was dropped , sealing a 30 - 24 win for the Bulldogs . In a week 2 rematch , GT faced Clemson in the 2009 ACC Championship Game . In an exciting , high scoring game that saw no punts , the Yellow Jackets barely eked out a 39 - 34 victory to earn their first BCS berth . Pregame buildup . Iowa offense . Iowa entered the Orange bowl ranked 83rd ( of 120 Division I FBS teams ) in total offense . The team was ranked 42nd in passing offense and 95th in rushing offense . Georgia Tech offense . At the conclusion of the regular season before the Orange Bowl , Georgia Tech ' s offense was among the best in Division I , ranked 10th in total offense , 2nd in rushing offense , but only 116th in passing offense ( out of 120 teams ) . The triple option was able to rack up an average of 306 . 23 rushing yards per game before the Orange Bowl . Iowa defense . Iowa ' s defense was considered among the best in Division I , ranking 10th in total defense . The Hawkeyes ranked 34th in rushing defense and 4th in passing defense . Georgia Tech defense . The Yellow Jackets were ranked 54th in total defense , 68th in rushing defense , and 45th in passing defense . Game summary . First Quarter . The first drive of the coldest Orange Bowl ever started with an Iowa fumble at its own 47 yard line . Despite having good starting field position , Georgia Tech was forced to punt . On Iowa ' s second drive of the game , quarterback Ricky Stanzi drove 80 yards , culminating in a 3 yard touchdown pass to Marvin McNutt . The Yellow Jackets ' second drive ended in another punt . Iowa scored another touchdown on the following drive , with Stanzi hitting Colin Sandeman for 21 yards , giving the Hawkeyes a 14 - 0 lead . On the ensuing drive , GT punted for the third time in a row . On Iowa ' s next drive , Stanzi was intercepted by Jerrad Tarrant . Tarrant returned the interception for a touchdown , cutting Iowa ' s lead in half . Second Quarter . The second quarter started with 6 straight punts . With less than one minute left in the half , Iowa faced a 4th and 5 on Georgia Tech ' s 43 . But Stanzi ' s pass fell incomplete to Marvin McNutt . With only 12 seconds left , GT quarterback Josh Nesbitt was sacked , ending the quarter . Third Quarter . Georgia Tech started the third quarter off with the ball . Their first drive ended in a 41 - yard field goal attempt that was missed by kicker Scott Blair . On the next drive , Iowa ' s Daniel Murray connected on a 33 - yard field goal to give Iowa a 17 - 7 lead . Fourth Quarter . On the first drive of the fourth quarter , Georgia Tech ' s Anthony Allen rushed for a 1 yard touchdown to cut Iowa ' s lead to 17 - 14 . Iowa was forced to punt on its following drive . On the first play of the next drive , Nesbitt was intercepted , giving Iowa great field position at Georgia Tech ' s 15 . On a 4th and goal on the 3 yard line , Iowa attempted a fake field goal . Kicker Murray fumbled the ball on the attempt giving GT possession . On the first play of the next drive , while trying to evade defenders , Jonathan Dwyer ended up in his own endzone . He narrowly avoided a safety by dodging tacklers and reaching the 1 yard line . But the 11 yard loss hurt the Yellow Jackets and they were once again forced to punt . Iowa ' s next drive ended with a Brandon Wegher 32 yard touchdown rush , giving the Hawkeyes a 24 - 14 lead . Down 10 , with less than 2 minutes left , Georgia Tech was forced to go for it on a 4th and 8 on their own 32 . Nesbitt ' s pass to Demaryius Thomas fell incomplete , allowing Iowa to run out the clock . A final sack of Nesbitt by Iowa Defensive End Adrian Clayborn helped to seal the deal for the Hawkeyes , giving them their first major bowl victory in 51 years . Awards . Iowa ' s win gave them the 2010 Orange Bowl trophy , and Iowa defensive end Adrian Clayborn was named the MVP . Clayborn and Stanzi , during the press conference at the end of the game , both announced their intention to return to Iowa for their senior years .