A poor day from the Northwestern offense and an inability to stop Tennessee's rushing attack did in the Wildcats in the Outback Bowl, as Tennessee's defense picked off Clayton Thorson twice en route to a 45-6 victory.
The Volunteers dominated Northwestern's offense and limited Thorson to just 57 yards passing -- the fewest of his career, even fewer than he had in less than a half against Penn State -- while holding Jackson relatively in check.
In the second half, Tennessee proved to simply be superior in the trenches, as Thorson received a heavy dose of pressure and Tennessee running backs Jalen Hurd and Alvin Kamara combined for 183 yards.