Throwback Thursday: Andrew Luck Dominates Virginia Tech in the 2011 Orange Bowl

Winning MVP honors for the game, Luck completed 18 out of 25 passes for 287 yards, four touchdowns and an interception, guiding the Cardinal to a 40-12 victory over Tyrod Taylor and the Hokies.

After the Cardinal scored their first touchdown of the game on a rush, Luck threw his first touchdown of the game with just under seven minutes left in the second quarter when he connected with tight end Zach Ertz for a 25-yard score to make it 13-9 Cardinal.

After the Hokies cut the lead down to just one, converting on a 37 yard field goal as the first half clock expired to make it 13-12, the Cardinal came back out after the break and wasted no time in taking over-, holding the Hokies scoreless for the entire second half.

With just under nine minutes left in the third quarter, the Cardinal made it 19-12 after Owen Marecic scored a one-yard touchdown to cap off a nine play drive.

The following drive, Taylor threw an interception that gave Stanford possession back and provided even more momentum to the Cardinal. In what ended up being only a two play drive for the Cardinal, Luck connected with Coby Fleener on the second play for a 41 yard touchdown, extending Stanford's lead to 26-12 following the converted PAT.

Virginia Tech was unable to respond when they got the ball back, punting it away. Luck then drove the Cardinal down the field before the third quarter ended. At the start of the fourth, and still having the ball on that drive, Luck got the team to the Stanford 42 yard line before throwing his third touchdown pass of the game-- a deep 58 yard connection to Fleener for his second touchdown catch of the day.

But Stanford was not done yet. After the Hokies punted it away again, Stanford got the ball back with around seven minutes to go in the fourth. The Cardinal started the drive off with two straight runs by Stepfan Taylor--one going for no gain and the other going for 34 yards.

Then on 2nd and 10 and on the Hokies 38 yard line, Luck dropped back to pass and found Fleener wide open for a 38 yard score, giving Fleener his third touchdown catch of the day and after the converted extra point from Nate Whitaker, the Cardinal extended their lead to 40-12.

That touchdown was the final score for either team in the game, giving Stanford the massive win and cementing Luck's place as a top quarterback prospect. In fact, had Luck not opted to stay at Stanford for his senior season in 2011, most analysts projected that Luck would be the No. 1 pick in the 2011 draft.

The following season, Stanford went 11-2 with an overtime 41-38 Fiesta Bowl loss to Oklahoma State. After putting together another strong season, Luck was the unquestioned top prospect heading into the 2012 draft, where he was ultimately selected No. 1 overall by the Indianapolis Colts.