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Greene caps banner year as Iowa rolls

Jan 1, 2009 - 9:18 PM TAMPA, Florida (Ticker) -- Iowa running back Shonn Greene went out in style.

The junior running back rushed for 121 yards and three touchdowns on 29 carries Thursday as the Hawkeyes routed turnover-prone South Carolina, 31-10, in the Outback Bowl.

Following the game, Greene, who won the Doak Walker Award this season as the nation's top running back, announced that he would enter the NFL draft. He has been projected as a late first-round or early second-round pick.

"I don't blame him," Iowa linebacker A.J. Edds said. "What else does the guy have to prove? If I'm in his shoes, I do the exact same thing."

The second-leading rusher in the Football Bowl Subdivision, Greene surpassed 100 yards in all 13 games this season, finishing the year with 1,850 yards.

"I'm probably prouder of the way he's handled his acclaim," Iowa coach Kirk Ferentz said. "It's a great story and we had a team of great stories."

Iowa (9-4) finished the season with a four-game winning streak, a run that started with a 24-23 upset of then-No. 2 Penn State.

Taking advantage of five turnovers, Iowa spoiled the homecoming for South Carolina coach Steve Spurrier and Gamecocks freshman quarterback Stephen Garcia.

Spurrier returned to the city where he started his coaching career with the Tampa Bandits of the old USFL in the early 1980s.

However, Spurrier watched his quarterback, a Tampa native, make one mistake after another in a disastrous first half in which he committed four turnovers.

Garcia, who did not play in South Carolina's regular-season finale against Clemson, looked skittish, throwing three interceptions and fumbling once. He completed just 8-of-18 passes for 79 yards, and his struggles landed him on the bench in the second half.

"We threw it right to them, then we fumbled right to them and got behind early," Spurrier said. "I like the way Iowa plays. They're a good team. Coach Ferentz and his guys did a good job. Give Iowa credit for kicking our tails today."

Iowa pounced on the Gamecocks (7-6) early, driving 64 yards on 13 plays on the game's opening possession before Richard Stanzi tossed a 6-yard touchdown pass to Trey Stross.

The Hawkeyes converted the four turnovers into 14 points as Greene scored on a pair of 1-yard TD runs to extend Iowa's lead to 21-0 at the half.

It could have been even worse for the Gamecocks as Stanzi threw two interceptions in the first half, including one in the end zone, and Iowa's Daniel Murray missed a 45-yard field goal.

"I'm certainly very, very proud of our football team," Ferentz added. "The credit goes to our players ... they've done a fantastic job. The staff did a good job getting our guys prepared. We hoped we could execute and we did. The defense played hard and we were sound fundamentally."

Chris Smelley started the second half for South Carolina, but things got no better for the Gamecocks as Moe Brown fumbled on the first play after a 9-yard reception.

The Hawkeyes converted that turnover into Murray's 18-yard field goal after Greene was twice stopped for no gain from the 1-yard line.

Greene found the end zone again on a 11-yard TD run on Iowa's next possession, giving the Hawkeyes a 31-0 cushion. It was Greene's 20th touchdown of the season, extending his school record.

South Carolina, which dropped its final three games, finally got on the board on Smelley's 10-yard TD pass to Jared Cook with 13:35 remaining.