The January 2, 1 p.m. Eastern (ABC) kickoff of the Outback Bowl means Florida vs. Iowa will be the first college football game of 2017.
It'll be the fifth Outback Bowl appearance for each school, and actually the third time the Gators and Hawkeyes have met in this game (Iowa beat Florida 37-17 in 2004 and Florida returned the favor 31-24 in 2006).
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This might be the lowest-scoring bowl of the 2016-17 postseason. Iowa and Florida are both very strong defensively — ranking No. 10 and 11 in scoring defense respectively. Each has allowed 17.9 points per game this year. On offense, Florida ranks No. 110 in scoring at 23.4 points per game while Iowa clocks in just a bit better at 26.8 ppg — No. 77 in the FBS overall.
This Iowa team is exactly what you've come to know from Kirk Ferentz-coached teams: ground-and-pound, defensive football. Senior cornerback Desmond King is one of the Top 25 NFL Draft prospects in college football, according to many draft experts. He leads the Big Ten in interceptions with eight, and has been fantastic in the return game as well.
If you like defensive football you're in for a treat, because King won't be the best corner on the field January 2. That distinction belongs to Florida's Teez Tabor.
Assuming nothing crazy happens between now and the NFL Draft (April 27-29), the 6-foot, 201-pound lockdown corner will be a top-10 pick.
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Prediction: 13-10 Iowa
Like many college football games between evenly matched opponents, this one will come down to turnovers. Whichever team can stay committed to the run long enough to open up the pass game will be successful.
The Gators haven't scored more than three touchdowns in a game since mid-October. Iowa allowed a combined 23 points in their final three regular season games. They haven't turned the ball over once in six of 11 games, and only nine times all season. That trend continues and the Hawkeyes win in absolutely classic Iowa fashion.[divider]
Who will win the Outback Bowl?
