On paper, heading into Wednesday, the 2025 ReliaQuest Bowl had all the makings of a great game. You had your classic Big Ten-SEC matchup between Iowa and Vanderbilt. In addition, you had an elite offense facing a strong defense. For a half, it looked like the Hawkeyes were going to dominate. However, they had to withstand a furious Commodores rally to get the victory. Let’s recap it all as Iowa holds on for a ReliaQuest Bowl win, 34-27 over Vanderbilt.
Defense Starts Strong and Holds On
Getting Nothing Going
Despite having Heisman runner-up Diego Pavia under center, the nation’s 12th-ranked offense did little against Iowa in the first half. In fact, they only gained 118 yards versus the seventh-toughest defense. In addition, Iowa held Vandy to only eight yards rushing to go along with 110 through the air.
Kirk Ferentz’s squad took the opening kick and needed only three minutes to score. Kamari Moulton took it the last three, and Iowa led 7-0. Vanderbilt punted on their first two possessions before finally getting on the board. A seven-minute drive ended with a 41-yard Brock Taylor field goal to cut the margin to 7-3. It looked like that was going to be the margin heading into the half. However, that’s when things got weird.
Stranger Things
Facing a fourth and 27 from their own 15-yard line, Vandy lined up to punt. Nick Haberer did the rugby-style punting that’s popular these days. However, he kept running past the line of scrimmage before he kicked.
That’s the first time yours truly has ever seen that in 40-plus years of watching football. As a result, it was a five-yard penalty from the line of scrimmage plus possession to Iowa.
On the ensuing play, Mark Gronowski found Reece Vander Zee, and it was 14-3 at the half.
Vandy’s punter just punted it past the line of scrimmage
You can’t make this up pic.twitter.com/jn3yUlBHTK
— Unnecessary Roughness (@UnnecRoughness) December 31, 2025
Finally Getting Going
Another Gronowski TD pass put Iowa up by 18. It was at that point that Pavia finally got untracked. Needing only one play, Pavia found Tre Richardson for a 75-yard strike on one of the prettiest throws you’ll ever see. Following an Iowa field goal, Pavia hit Joseph McVay, and it was 24-17.
A Gronowski one-yard run, his 16th rushing touchdown of the year, put the Hawkeyes up by two scores again. Pavia’s 11-yard scamper made it 31-24. Another Iowa field goal made it 10 again with four minutes to play.
On Vandy’s next possession, Clark Lea made the unconventional call to kick a field goal on second down deep in Iowa territory, which cut the lead to seven. However, the onside kick was recovered by the Hawkeyes, and that was your game as Iowa holds on for a ReilaQuest Bowl win 34-27 over Vanderbilt.
Crunching The Numbers
Pavia finishes his final game throwing for 347 yards and two touchdowns. In addition, he ran for another 36 and scored. Overall, the Commodores ended up with 398 yards, just a little less than their 468-yard average. Commodore fans can’t help but wonder if the loss of All-American tight end Eli Stowers would have made a difference. He opted out of the ReliaQuest Bowl.
On the other side of the ball, Gronowski ended his collegiate career with 212 yards passing with two touchdowns and one pick. Furthermore, he gained 54 yards on the ground with another score. He also added to his title of the winningest college quarterback, earning number 58.
Final Thoughts
With the loss, Vanderbilt finishes 2025 with a 10-3 record. The ten wins are a school record. Of course, the next step for Lea is to keep the momentum going next year. As it stands right now, things are looking up, as they are reportedly set to bring in several top players through the transfer portal.
We talked in our game preview that year in and year out, Iowa is one of the most consistent teams in college football. The 2025 campaign was no exception, as they finished 9-4 on the year and played in their 13th straight bowl. The win over Vanderbilt breaks a 14-game losing streak dating back to 2021 against ranked opponents.
One last thing, with Vandy’s loss it continues a rough bowl season for the SEC. As of this writing they are 2-6 in bowl games with the only wins being Alabama over Oklahoma and Ole Miss beating Tulane. There’s still time to turn it around but so far it’s been a dismal showing.
However, on this day all the credit goes to Ferentz and his Hawkeye squad as Iowa holds on for a ReliaQuest Bowl win over Vanderbilt 34-27. As a reminder Last Word On College Football has previews and recaps of every game leading up to the championship.
Main Photo: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images
