1994 Gator Bowl
The 1994 Gator Bowl was an American college football bowl game between the Tennessee Volunteers and the Virginia Tech Hokies at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium in Gainesville, Florida, on December 30, 1994. The game was the final contest of the 1994 NCAA Division I-A football season for both teams, and ended in a 45–23 victory for Tennessee.
| 1994 Outback Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| 50th Gator Bowl | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Outback Gator Bowl logo | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Date | December 30, 1994 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 1994 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Ben Hill Griffin Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Gainesville, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | RB James Stewart, Tennessee QB Maurice DeShazo, Va. Tech | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | Tennessee by 7 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Mike Pereira (WAC) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 62,200 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | TBS | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Gary Bender, Pat Haden, Craig Sager | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
The 1994 Gator Bowl saw Tennessee face off against regional rival 17th-ranked Virginia Tech at Ben Hill Griffin Stadium on the campus of the University of Florida. The game was moved to Gainesville in 1994 due to renovations to the Gator Bowl for the Jacksonville Jaguars. The Tennessee Volunteers came entered the game with a regular-season record of 7–4 under head coach Phillip Fulmer that included a 5–3 record in Southeastern Conference competition. Virginia Tech came into the game with an 8–3 regular-season record that included a record of 5–2 in Big East Conference competition.
The game kicked off at 8:00 PM. From the start, Tennessee's high-scoring offense dominated. The Volunteers scored two touchdowns in the first quarter and three in the second, while Virginia Tech was able to muster a lone touchdown and field goal in the second quarter. At halftime, Tennessee had a commanding 35–10 lead, behind the strong play of Freshman QB Peyton Manning.
The Hokies struggled back in the third quarter, scoring six unanswered points to close the score to 35–16. In the fourth quarter, however, Tennessee answered Virginia Tech's effort with 10 points, putting the game out of reach for the Hokies, who managed only a single touchdown in the fourth quarter. The Hokies fumbled the ball five times—losing it once—and threw two interceptions, allowing Tennessee to cruise to an easy victory, 45–23. Tennessee running back James Stewart was named the game's most valuable player.