Clemson - The Semi(wood)'s

Well sports fans, here we are at the penultimate game for college football. The Sooners come into this game having Steamrolled (it's the name of this blog) the Big 12 powerhouses in a November that can only be described as badass. Somehow, after losing to a decidedly shitty texas squad in October, the Sooners "got their shit together" and kicked everyone's ass thereafter. So much so, that even though Clemson is #1 and undefeated, OU is favored in this game and also predicted by many to win it all. I, not surprisingly, have less confidence. Lest we forget, this same Clemson squad demolished OU but 1 year ago. Hopefully, the locker room bulletin board is overloaded with reminders of this.

The matchup is a wet dream for the NCAA and media outlets everywhere. The rematch, the balanced teams, the coaching undertones with Venables, the undefeated darlings, and the old time power all simmer together and make the most delicious matchup. I'm nervous, the Sooners have a recent history (approximately the last decade) of wilting when the lights are hottest. Clemson, no doubt, feels slighted that they, the #1 and undefeated team, come in as underdogs. There is no shortage of motivation for either side, In short, this is huge.

Offense

All week, the story has been Mayfield and Watson. I even read an ESPN puff piece on Mayfield's intramural days at OU. Both are dynamic and both will probably influence the outcome of this game more than any one player on their respective teams. That said, I'm not going with Mayfield here. Perine and Mixon are going to both be huge, they are as essential to the hopes of Sooner nation as Mayfield. But, one player has scarcely been mentioned all week. I think Sterling Shepard hauls in 10 balls, and scores twice. I think Clemson doesn't have an answer for him tonight.

Defense

Whoa doctor, this is where the rubber meets the road. Deshaun Watson is as dynamic of a player as there is in college football. I was looking at some advanced metrics on him and in most categories his two most similar comparisons historically are Cam Newton and Russell Wilson. Yikes. The idea is simple, the execution? Nearly impossible. Shut down Watson and OU will win this game. Who will step up for the Sooners today? Whew, my hope is everyone but if pinning it down to one individual, I'm going with Charles "Ass" Tapper. He's really developed into a monster this year. I think his foot is squarely in Watson's ass all day.

Score

Many years ago, my buddy Mitch and I were driving around in my home town, during a weekend I had coaxed him to make the drive 4 hours up I-44. It was cold, and with little else to do, we stopped at a Blockbuster Music Store and purchased a CD (ladies and gentleman, my submission for most dated sentence of 2015). Why do I remember this apparently mundane sequence of events so vividly? It was both of our first exposures to a band called Parliament. I'm not saying I remember everything perfectly after that point, but I do know we listened to it on repeat about 5 times. Last night I had the great pleasure of seeing George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic live. As I proceeded to boogie, my mind turned to that long ago night, and I only felt good vibes for Sooner nation. Sooners beat Clemson today 34-24.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin' Sooner.

Oklahoma Sooners vs. Clemson Tigers

If I woke up tomorrow with my head sewn to the carpet I wouldn't be more surprised than I am now. As of early September 2015 I had zero expectations for the season. After the inexplicable Texas defeat, I was wondering if there was any chance to stay above .500. I have the heart of a champion.

It takes a lot to make it this far but I've got three keys. The first is good health. The Sooners endured a head shot to Baker Mayfield that knocked him out of the TCU game. Needless to say without a healthy Shake N Bake the Sooners are not in the Playoff. Zack Sanchez was out against Iowa State and Kansas, the two games they could most afford to lose him. Which leads to the second key.

Luck. Let's face facts here. The Sooners ran a November gauntlet against the Big 12's best teams and didn't have to face any of them at full strength because of, ahem, injuries. You could also look back to last year and see the effect in reverse. How might have the Sooners been impacted had Baker Mayfield been cleared to play and/or Joe Mixon had not been suspended? NCAA rules vagueries and punching a woman in the face are conscious decisions, not luck, but in the sense that off the field choices impacted the on field product I'd call that bad luck for the football team.

Finally, you just have to be good. Since Texas the Sooners have been good. The D has been solid. Moving Steven Parker to Safety looks like a stroke of genius. Jordan Thomas has improved immensely. The defensive line is the best in years. Offensively they are a borderline juggernaut. They have the best one-two running back combo in college football. Baker and Sterling Sheperd are a nightmare. There is no more complete team in the four team field.

OFFENSE

The key here is for the O-Line to lock in. Listening to Clemson talk they have visions of last year and terrorizing an overmatched Trevor Knight. I saw one sound bite where the Clemson player said it was as simple as getting to the man with the ball. The running game will mitigate that pin your ears back mentality but if the O-Line can be on point it could be a long night for the Clemson D. They haven't seen anything like what our offense brings.

What I would love to see is for the passing game to "do it's thing" and open up the run game such that Semaje and/or Mixon can run roughshod on national TV. Mayfield is understandably getting his propers but seeing a total team effort on offense would be sublime.

If I could flip and flop here a little bit though I am picking Baker for my OPOG. Spoiler, if the Sooners make it to the championship I'll probably pick him again. He's just the damn man.

DEFENSE

Deshaun Watson is the QB that haunts the dreams of Sooners everywhere. I cringe to think of Clemson in 3rd and long, the secondary does its job only to have this guy take off up the middle of the field. It's bound to happen a few times but let's not make it an ongoing deal please.

If he does have a weakness it appears he can be turned over. Going back to the luck factor it certainly helps the Sooners that Clemson's second best wide receiver got sent home this week.

After getting embarrassed last year the D will be locked in. The key is to not be stupidly over aggressive. No tearing helmets off, no taking people to the ground 15 seconds after the whistle, no late hits out of bounds or roughing the passer etc. Don't give the Clemson offense new life and chances to extend drives.

I'm taking Zack Sanchez as my DPOG in the hopes that the Sooners turn Watson over more than once. Zack seems to play well on big stages and none are bigger than this.

SCORE

Revenge is on the mind of the Sooners. I still can't believe Jerry Jones couldn't finagle an OU-Bama matchup in the Cotton Bowl but the opportunity for the Sooners to avenge last year's bowl debacle is the best motivator you could ask for. This has the feel of a business trip. There is no doubt this is the best healthy team the Sooners have faced but the Sooners confidence should be sky high. They are playing their best football of the year at the right time.

I think the Sooners hold the Tigers two scores below their scoring average and the Sooner offense proves too much over the course of the game.

I like the Sooners 38-24 in a game that's closer than this score would indicate. Let's do this.

Boomer to the Motherfuckin Sooner!