It was Stanford’s first bowl victory in 14 years, a tremendous accomplishment for the football program.

Quarterback Andrew Luck threw for almost 300 yards and four touchdowns in what could have been his last college game.

Uncertainty now looms with regard to the future of both head coach Jim Harbaugh and the star quarterback.

Harbaugh has generated a lot of interest from other colleges and NFL teams while Luck could be the top pick in the upcoming draft.

When Stanford and Virginia Tech take the field at Sun Life Stadium on Jan. 3 for the Orange Bowl, both teams will try to win their 12th game of the season.

But the paths taken to the verge of a dozen victories were quite different for each squad.

Stanford (11-1) fell only to national finalist Oregon in its fifth game of the season, rebounding to win the next seven in a row by an average of 22 points per game to finish second in the Pac-10 Conference. Virginia Tech (11-2) lost twice in the first six days of the season, then reeled off 11 consecutive victories to claim the Atlantic Coast Conference title.

Offense won’t be a problem for either team; both are ranked in the top 20 in the nation in points scored and rushing yards. The No. 5-ranked Cardinal are averaging 40.3 points per game (eighth in the nation), while the 11th-ranked Hokies are scoring at a 35.5 point per game clip (19th in the country).

Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck is one of four finalists for the Heisman Trophy. Luck has completed 70.2 percent of his passes this season, totaling 3,051 yards through the air with 28 touchdowns. Luck also has 438 rushing yards, averaging 8.6 yards per carry. Running back Stepfan Taylor has 15 rushing touchdowns and 1,023 yards on the ground, averaging nearly five yards per carry.

Virginia Tech has a dynamic quarterback in its own right in Tyrod Taylor, who has passed for 2,521 yards and 23 touchdowns. He’s also rushed for 637 yards and three scores. Running back Darren Evans has rushed for 11 touchdowns and 817 yards.

—30—

In the matchup of explosive offense vs. gritty defense, the guys from the Midwest shut down the powerful running attack from the South.

No. 10 Iowa used a staunch defensive showing and two early touchdown passes from Ricky Stanzi to knock off ninth-ranked Georgia Tech 24-14 in the Orange Bowl on Jan. 5 at Land Shark Stadium in Miami.

Georgia Tech, the ACC champion, came into the game featuring one of the nation’s highest-scoring offenses. But the Iowa defense stuffed the Jackets’ much-ballyhooed triple option attack time after time. The Jackets finished with just nine first downs and 155 total yards, both season lows.

That defense more than made Stanzi’s two early TD passes hold up. Playing for the first time since spraining his right ankle, Stanzi finished 17-for-29 for 231 yards. Running back Brandon Wegher rushed for 113 yards and a touchdown on 16 carries.

Iowa, which brought one of the top defenses in the nation into the game, completely disrupted Tech’s timing-predicated offensive attack. Jackets’ quarterback Josh Nesbitt completed just two passes for 9 yards, and Tech running back Jonathan Dwyer mustered just 43 yards rushing on 14 carries.

Tech only scored one touchdown on offense. Its first score came on Jerrand Tarrant’s 40-yard interception return for a touchdown, the Jackets’ only touchdown in the first three quarters.

Iowa defensive end Adrian Clayborn earned MVP honors, finishing with nine tackles and two sacks.

—30—

It was not the way Ricky Stanzi hoped to end the regular season, not with Iowa unbeaten and dreaming of a berth in the BCS championship game.

And while the Hawkeyes dropped two of their final three games, Stanzi is back and looking to end the season on a positive note when Iowa takes on Georgia Tech in the Orange Bowl, Jan. 5 at Land Shark Stadium.

The junior signalcaller injured his right ankle in Iowa’s first loss of the season, a 17-10 setback against Northwestern on Nov. 7. Under Stanzi’s steady leadership, the Hawkeyes had won 13 games in a row with Stanzi under center before the Northwestern game. Eight times during that stretch, Stanzi rallied Iowa for come-from-behind victories.

The high ankle sprain forced Stanzi to sit out Iowa’s final two regular-season games, but the quarterback is working back into shape and expects to be 100 percent when the Hawkeyes meet the Yellow Jackets in Miami. And while Georgia Tech’s high-octane offense meets Iowa’s stingy defense in the game’s focal point, Stanzi would love nothing more than to steal the storylines and the spotlight.

Stanzi has passed for 2,186 yards and 13 touchdowns this season, after throwing for 1,956 yards and 14 scores as a sophomore in 2008.

—30—

It’s a classic case of strong offense vs. strong defense in this year’s Orange Bowl.

Iowa brings its stout defense from the Big Ten conference into the matchup against Georgia Tech’s high-octane triple-option offense. Needless to say, which team fares well in this matchup figures to walk out of Land Shark Stadium on Jan. 5 with a victory.

It won’t be the Yellow Jackets’ first time playing in this venue this season, although Tech certainly hopes for better results. On Sept. 17, Tech sputtered on offense throughout the evening, losing to Miami for the first of only two losses the Yellow Jackets would suffer in 2009.

The Hawkeyes, who had designs of playing for the national championship until losses in two of their final three games derailed an undefeated season, bring to Miami a tremendously stingy defense. Iowa finished the season ranked No. 11 in the nation in total defense and 10th in scoring defense.

On the other side of the ball, the Jackets bring the 11th best offense in terms of total offense and scoring offense to the Orange Bowl. Tech, which won the ACC championship, led the conference in scoring at 35 points per game, and also paced the ACC in total offense, rushing offense and passing efficiency.

Oh, and the coaches aren’t too shabby, either. Georgia Tech coach Paul Johnson won ACC coach-of-the-year honors for the second year in a row. Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz earned Big Ten coach-of-the-year honors this season.

And if this game is anything like the only other Orange Bowl in history to pit the Big Ten against the ACC, it will be a barnburner. Back in 2006, Penn State edged Florida State 26-23 in triple overtime.

—30—