Orange Bowl Preview - Oklahoma O vs. Clemson D

Yesterday, we took a look at one side of the ball and broke down the Clemson offense against the Oklahoma defense. In today's post, we'll flip the script and see how the Sooners' Air Raid attack matches up against the Tigers' vaunted defense.

Oklahoma Sooners Offense
Total Offense Rank: 7th
Total Yards Per Game: 542.9
Yards Per Play: 6.95
Rushing Offense Rank: 16th
Rushing Yards Per Game: 235.0
Passing Offense Rank: 18th
Passing Yards Per Game: 307.9
Scoring Offense Rank: 3rd
Points Per Game: 45.8

Clemson Tigers Defense
Total Defense Rank: 7th
Total Yards Per Game: 295.7
Yards Per Play: 4.68
Rushing Defense Rank: 23rd
Rushing Yards Per Game: 128.8
Passing Defense Rank: 5th
Passing Yards Per Game: 166.9
Scoring Defense Rank: 18th
Points Per Game: 20.2

A couple things to point out here. First, Clemson's and Oklahoma's defense each allowed 4.68 yards per play this season. The key for Clemson has been limiting the amount of plays opposing offenses run. Getting off the field on third downs has been the Tigers' forte and a big reason why defensive coordinator Brent Venables is talked about as one of the best DCs in the game.

Second, this looks like the epitome of the unstoppable force against the immovable object. Oklahoma scored 50-plus points in five of the final seven games, including two 60-plus point games. Following the debacle of a loss to Texas in the Cotton Bowl, newly minted offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley began to utilize the strength of the Sooners: their running game.

Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon bring a one-two punch unmatched in the sport. Perine is a physical, bruising back who simply does not go down. Mixon adds a little more speed and shiftiness, along with the ability to catch passes out of the backfield, much like we discussed with Clemson's Wayne Gallman. Both Perine and Mixon are capable of taking it to the house from anywhere on the field.

Perine carried the ball for 1,291 yards and 15 touchdowns, averaging 6.1 yards per carry. Mixon had 749 yards, seven rushing TDs and averaged 6.8 yards per carry. Mixon was also the fourth leading receiver for the Sooners, grabbing 25 receptions for 345 yards and four scores.

Prior to the seven-game winning streak down the stretch, OU fans already had caught a glimpse of the magic of Baker Mayfield. The walk-on quarterback, who won Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year in 2013 for Texas Tech, has been Johnny Manziel-esque in Crimson and Cream this season.


via GIPHY

Mayfield accounted for 42 touchdowns (35 passing, seven rushing). He completed 68.6 percent of his passes for 3,389 yards and added 420 yards on the ground. Mayfield's best downfield target has been the ever-reliable Sterling Shepard. The senior leads the team with 72 receptions for 1,201 yards and 11 touchdowns. Dede Westbrook and Duron Neal each have 42 catches, with Westbrook hauling in four TDs and 674 yards, and Neal with three scores and 527 yards. Tight end Mark Andrews is second behind Shepard with six touchdowns. Depth is certainly a strength at the receive position for OU and Mayfield loves to spread the ball around similarly to Deshaun Watson for the Tigers.

Perhaps the Achilles' heel for OU is its offensive line. How can that be with such a great running game and Mayfield able to put up the stats he has? For one, Mayfield was sacked 34 times. Compare that to Watson who was sacked just 12 times. Perine, Mixon and Mayfield each have an uncanny ability to make a play when it's simply not there. Many times this season, Mayfield has had to scramble out of the pocket on a designed pass. And many times, he's made a bigtime play.

How do the Tigers counter? After losing nine starters on defense (eight to the NFL), Venables went to work to ensure there wasn't much of a drop-off from the No. 1 defense in 2014. Clemson reloaded up front and relied on a veteran secondary to play coverage and give the front seven time to get to the quarterback.

Defensive end Shaq Lawson anchored the line and leads the nation with 22.5 tackles for loss and added 9.5 sacks. Opposite him is Kevin Dodd, who came into his own this season, totaling eight sacks. The linebacking corps consists of a two-headed monster in Ben Boulware and BJ Goodson. The duo have wreaked havoc in offensive backfields and play like their hair is on fire. The Tigers have depth up front, but pretty much rely on the starters to play the majority of the game.

Ben Boulware (10) will lead the Tiger defense in its toughest test this season.
(Photo courtesy TigerNet.com)

That fact became troublesome down the stretch when Clemson played 10 straight games without a bye week. In Clemson's first seven games of the season, the Tigers gave up just 105.4 yards rushing per game. In the final five weeks of the season, Clemson allowed 156 yards on the ground. The Tigers were bruised and banged up, with several players commenting after the season they were needing the break to get fully healthy. The good news is this group will have rested up for its toughest test to date.

The Tigers' strength on defense lies in its defensive backfield. Mackensie Alexander and Jayron Kearse were widely known as two of the best defensive backs in the nation leading into the season. Cordrea Tankersley, TJ Green, Jadar Johnson and Travis Blanks, among a host of others, give this unit the most depth and experience on the field. Alexander's stats are low mostly because quarterbacks refuse to throw his way. Kearse proclaimed he still hasn't played his best game and he believes the defense has been slacking in the final games of the season.

So who has the advantage in this epic clash of high-flying, high-powered offense against stout, rugged defense? The key lies in the Sooners' ability to extend plays. Whether that's Mayfield escaping the pocket and giving his receivers extra time to get open or Perine and Mixon shedding tacklers to turn a short gain into a long one. As good as Goodson and Boulware have been for the Tigers this season, the area of concern is their coverage of running backs out of the backfield. If Mayfield and Mixon are able to hook-up a few times, it could spell danger for the Tigers.

Advantage: Oklahoma

-BtW