The Iowa Hawkeyes will play 15th ranked LSU in the Outback Bowl in Tampa on New Years Day. It will complete a bounce back year for a program that missed out on a bowl in 2012 with a 4-8 record. The Haweyes are 8-4, after finishing the regular season with three straight wins, and will take on an LSU team that is 9-3. It will be the second time Iowa and LSU have met in a bowl game.

Back in the 2005 Capitol One Bowl Drew Tate hit Warren Holloway with a 56 yard touchdown pass as time expired for a 30-25 Iowa win. The Tigers will be without senior quarterback Zach Mettenberger, who suffered a knee injury in the regular season finale but Hawkeyes Coach Kirk Ferentz says in the 2005 meeting the Tigers played three different quarterbacks.

Ferentz says it will be a great opportunity for the Hawkeyes. Iowa became the fourth choice out of the Big Ten and wins over Michigan and Nebraska the final two weeks moved the Hawkeyes up the pecking order. Iowa AD Gary Barta believes fans are anxious to travel to a bowl game after missing out last season. Iowa has always been an attractive bowl team because of the number of fans it brings but Barta says the difference this season were the results on the field.

This will be Iowa’s fourth trip to the Outback Bowl and the first one since a lopsided win over South Carolina in 2009.

(Radio Iowa/Learfield Sports)