Tampa, FL -- (Sports Network) - With Joe Paterno missing from the sideline of a Penn State bowl game for the first time in his illustrious career, Tony Hunt rushed for 158 yards to lead the Nittany Lions to a 20-10 victory over 17th- ranked Tennessee in the Outback Bowl.

Paterno had surgery to repair a broken shinbone and two torn knee ligaments in his left leg, an injury he suffered in Penn State's November 4th loss to Wisconsin. He missed the team's win over Temple before watching the Nittany Lions' win over Michigan State from the press box, which is were he sat on Monday.

"I have a great staff," said Paterno. "They've been with me for a long time. They need me like they need a hole in the head. All I do is get in the way. I've got to yell once in a while so people think I'm earning my money. But I don't like it (in the booth) really, it's not much fun."

Paterno picked up his 22nd bowl win in his 33rd postseason appearance, both of which are the most among coaches.

Hunt was named the Outback Bowl MVP, while Tony Davis swung the game's momentum with a huge 88-yard fumble return for a touchdown in the fourth quarter.

"I don't really think they were that physical of a team," said Hunt. "They really boast and brag about their speed and I think we brought something to the table that they really couldn't handle."

Quarterback Anthony Morelli had one of his best games of the season, completing 14-of-25 passes for 197 yards and a touchdown for the Nittany Lions (9-4), who finished the season of with three wins in a row and improved to 25-12-2 in bowl games.

"I thought Anthony was a real big-time quarterback today," said Paterno. "He had great touch on the ball, ran the football team. I just thought he grew up today in a lot of different ways."

Erik Ainge threw for 267 yards with an interception and no touchdowns for the Volunteers (9-4), who fell to 7-7 in bowl games under head coach Phillip Fulmer.

Arian Foster rushed for 65 yards on 12 carries for Tennessee, while LaMarcus Coker scored on a 42-yard run in the second quarter.

Penn State has beaten Tennessee in three consecutive bowl games: the 1992 Fiesta Bowl (42-17), the 1994 Florida Citrus Bowl (31-13) and this year's Outback Bowl.

With the score tied 10-10 early in the fourth quarter, Nittany Lions kicker Kevin Kelly's 50-yard attempt was tipped at the line of scrimmage and Tennessee took over with the ball at midfield.

A play later, Ainge found a wide open Chris Brown for a 53-yard gain that brought the Volunteers down to the Penn State 14-yard line. However, on the very next play, linebacker Sean Lee stripped the ball from Foster and Davis picked it up and ran it back 87 yards for the TD. Kelly's extra point put the Lions up 17-10 with 10:01 left to play.

"(The fumble recovery for a touchdown) was huge," said Penn State linebacker Paul Posluszny. "It was great awareness of (Davis') part and once he took off no one was going to catch him."

The Nittany Lion defense then came up with a huge three-and-out of Ainge and the Tennessee offense before Penn State burned almost six minutes off the clock with a 10-play, 44-yard drive capped by Kelly's 22-yard field goal with 3:29 left in regulation. Hunt led the way on the drive, carrying the ball seven consecutive times for 40 yards.

With one last chance to get back in the game, the Volunteers could get no further than their own 40-yard line before turning the ball over on downs.

"We wanted to come out and see if they could handle us if we ran right at them," said Hunt. "They kind of struggled with that so we just kind of stuck to that, got a big defensive play and just ran the ball down there throat, killing the clock."

Consecutive catches of 15 and 24 yards by Jayson Swain set up the first score of the game, a 44-yard James Wilhoit field goal that gave Tennessee a 3-0 lead with 4:58 left in the opening quarter.

The Volunteers attempted a double-reserve to Swain early in the second quarter, but Foster bobbled the handoff to the versatile wideout and Penn State recovered the ball deep in Tennessee territory.

"I think (the double reverse) wad definitely headed for a long play," said Fulmer. "But that's football. You've got to be able to execute those things consistently."

Faced with a 3rd-and-10, Morelli hooked up with Derrick Williams for an 11- yard gain and a first down on the Tennessee eight-yard line. The drive stalled from there for the Nittany Lions and Kevin Kelly atoned for a 45-yard miss on Penn State's first possession of the game with a 34-yard kick to even the score.

Then, buried on their own eight-yard line, Penn State put together its longest scoring drive of the season with an eight-play 92-yard march for a touchdown.

Runs of 24 and 10 yards brought the Nittany Lions out to their own 44-yard line before Morelli hit Matt Han for an 18-yard strike. Morelli then connected with Deon Butler for a 31-yard completion down to the Tennessee two-yard line to set up Andrew Quarles' two-yard touchdown reception that put Penn State up 10-3 with 3:30 left in the half.

The Volunteers appeared to be buried on their next possession with a 3rd- and-23 on their own 25-yard line. Brad Cottam, though, hauled in a 25-yard catch to move the chains and one play later, Coker exploded for a 42-yard touchdown run that tied the game 10-10 with just 42 seconds remaining.

The Nittany Lions had a chance to respond before halftime, but Kelly's 54-yard attempt missed wide left as time expired.

"There were a few plays in the game that made a huge difference," said Fulmer. "Everybody will want to point to the fumble, but there were a lot of plays during the course of the ballgame that could have made a difference."

Game Notes:

Swain finished with seven catches for 84 yards for the Volunteers...Butler ended with three receptions for 73 yards for Penn State...Hunt rushed for 100-plus yards in eight games this season.