TransPerfect Music City Bowl

No. 19 Missouri (9-3) vs. Iowa (8-4)

1:30 p.m. CST Monday (ESPN)

Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee

1 Missouri QB has started four consecutive bowls – Brady Cook when the Tigers take on Iowa on Monday. Cook has completed 68-of-101 passes for 596 yards with three TDs and no interceptions and run for 157 yards and one TD on 42 carries as Missouri lost to Army 24-22 in the Armed Forces Bowl in 2021 and Wake Forest 27-17 in the Gasparilla Bowl in 2022 and defeated Ohio State 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl last season.

1 Music City Bowl did not include an SEC team — Virginia’s 34-31 victory over Minnesota in the 2005 game. The SEC has a 9-15 overall record in the Music City Bowl. The Big Ten has a 6-4 record in the Music City Bowl – 6-3 against SEC opponents. Iowa owns one of those Big Ten victories – a 21-0 victory over Kentucky on Dec. 31, 2022.

2 Consensus All-Americans for Iowa in the 2024 season – LB Jay Higgins and RB Kaleb Johnson. Johnson will not play in Monday’s game after running for 1,537 yards and 21 TDs on 240 carries. Kamari Moulton, who ran for 377 yards and two TDs on 70 carries is at the top of the depth chart at running back for the Hawkeyes.

2 Interceptions have been thrown by Missouri QB Brady Cook on 289 passes this season. No player in the nation with as many passes as Cook has two or fewer interceptions.

3 QBs have started for Iowa this season, with Brendan Sullivan returning from a three-game absence because of an ankle injury to start against Missouri. Sullivan got the job when Cade McNamara sustained a concussion in the eighth game of the season and started two games before Jackson Stratton stepped in. Sullivan has completed 24-of-35 passes for 344 yards with two TDs and two interceptions and run for 144 yards and four TDs on 35 carries this season. Stratton has completed 21-of-35 passes for 219 yards with one TD and no interceptions and run for 4 yards on six carries in 2024.

3 Rushing TDs have been scored against the Iowa defense this season, the fewest in the nation. Missouri has scored 25 rushing TDs this season, with 12 by RB Marcus Carroll.

6 Victories and eight losses for Iowa against SEC opponents. All the meetings except one have come in bowls. On Aug. 30, 1987, Iowa lost to Tennessee 23-22 in the Kickoff Classic in East Rutherford, New Jersey, in the Hawkeyes’ only regular-season meeting with an SEC opponent. Iowa’s most recent game against an SEC opponent is a 35-0 loss to Tennessee in the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1, 2024.

6 Consecutive games with a sack for Missouri DE Johnny Walker Jr. Walker has 7.5 sacks this season.

7 Victories for Missouri and six victories for Iowa in the Tigers-Hawkeyes series. Monday’s game will be only their second meeting since 1910. Iowa defeated Missouri 27-24 on Dec. 28, 2010, in the Insight Bowl. The Tigers and Hawkeyes were supposed to square off in the 2020 Music City Bowl, but that game was cancelled because of the number of COVID-19 cases for Missouri entering the contest. Missouri and Iowa met 12 times from 1892 through 1910.

10 Bowl wins for Iowa under coach Kirk Ferentz, who is tied with former Penn State coach Joe Paterno for the most bowl victories as a Big Ten coach. In his 26th season as Iowa’s coach, Ferentz has been in his position longer than any other current NCAA FBS coach and has compiled a 10-10 bowl mark. With one more victory, Ferentz will tie Ohio State’s Woody Hayes for the most wins by a Big Ten coach at 205.

13 Consecutive games with at least two receptions for Missouri WR Theo Wease Jr., who has a reception in all 25 games that he’s played for the Tigers. Wease has 55 receptions for 809 yards and three TDs this season.

18 Victories, 17 losses and one tie for Iowa in bowls. Missouri has a 16-20 bowl record.

19 Yards per punt return have been yielded by Iowa in 2024, tied for the worst in the nation entering the bowl season. The Hawkeyes’ opponents have returned eight punts for 152 yards. Two of the punt returns went for touchdowns. Missouri has 37 yards on eight punt returns this season.

36 Penalties for 342 yards have been marked off against Iowa this season. Both figures are the lowest in the nation.

37 Victories for Eliah Drinkwitz as Missouri’s coach, tied with Dan Devine for the most in the first five seasons for a Tigers’ coach. Devine had a 37-12-4 record from 1958 through 1962, the first five of his 13 seasons at Missouri. Drinkwitz had a 37-24 record since coming to Missouri in 2020.

37 Victories, 42 losses and four ties for Missouri against Big Ten opponents. The Tigers’ most recent game against a Big Ten opponent came on Dec. 29, 2023, when Missouri defeated Ohio State 14-3 in the Cotton Bowl. In the Tigers’ other bowl matchups against Big Ten opponents, Missouri defeated Northwestern 30-23 in the Alamo Bowl on Dec. 29, 2008, and Minnesota 33-17 in the Citrus Bowl on Jan. 1, 2015, and lost to Iowa 27-24 in the Insight Bowl on Dec. 28, 2010.

72 Games have been played by Iowa LB Nick Jackson, the most in NCAA FBS history. Jackson played four seasons at Virginia before joining the Hawkeyes in 2023.

131.7 Passing yards per game have been averaged by Iowa during the 2024 season, the lowest in the nation for any team other than the three service academies. Army, Air Force and Navy also are the only teams in the nation with fewer passes this season than Iowa’s total of 242.

312 Punt-return yards for Iowa WR Kaden Wetjen in 2024. Wetjen was one of the two players in the nation with 300 punt-return yards entering the bowl season. Wetjen have averaged 12.5 yards on 25 punt returns. Missouri has given up 66 yards on 10 punt returns this season.

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Mark Inabinett is a sports reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on X at @AMarkG1.