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Sugar Bowl: #3 Ohio State 49, #2 Clemson 28, Jan 1 in New Orleans

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mendensa said:
I have watched them numerous times this year. They def haven't looked like the same running team to me. Carmen is the only returning OL from last years team and I don't feel they are as dominant as a group at the WR position. Rogers is pretty damn good though, in the return game as well.

The 2 timss I watched them play ND, the DL didn't look at disruptive as last years DL (could have been bc ND does have a pretty damn good OL?) and I think some big plays can be had in the passing game vs. their secondary. I think that if we can establish the run, JF doesn't hold onto the ball too long and avoids the big negative plays that put us behind the sticks, uses his legs to get out of pocket and create havoc on their defense on the perimeter, the Bucks can hang.

It ultimately comes down to our DB's and how Coombs calls the game. Do they hold up or does Goldilocks pick them apart in the back end? I think the DL matches up well and will hold their own.

Looking forward to a good game.
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Bresee is athletic but young. The rest of their pass rush is inconsistent. Two of their LBs (out of 4) are very average athletes, and safety turner is a bit of a throwback (who will miss the first half).
 
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Clemson is officially on notice.



I'll be texting Ryan Day today about some plans I have to work Dawand Jones into the passing game.

:lol:

COIN FLIP. Clemson's going to enter this game as more than a touchdown favorite and I downright guarantee the public will be betting heavy on the Tigers at that line.

That's all cool and good, but predictive metrics are seeing this as much more of a coin flip.



So, the line is off. And so is public perception. But you're not going to hear me complaining. Personally, I am more than fine with Ohio State getting as much disrespect as everyone wants to give.

Let the world write off one of the most talented teams in the country, led by arguably the best quarterback in the nation, the best receiving duo in the country, and a dude who just rushed for 331 yards his last game. That's fine.
 
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RYAN DAY


  • "Everyone here is very, very excited about the opportunity to play in the Sugar Bowl. It's been a unique season in so many ways." Says he has an "unbelievable amount of respect" for Swinney and the Clemson program.
  • Day says he thinks it's "fairest" for teams to have to win their respective conference in order to be eligible for the playoff but calls it unrealistic in a four-team system.
  • He says Trevor Lawrence is "very, very athletic" and it didn't surprise him that much how well he ran the ball last year versus the Buckeyes.
  • Asked about injuries: "The good thing for us is we haven't played in that many games." He says most of the issues have been COVID-19-related rather than with injuries.
  • Day with a short answer on Justin Fields' thumb injury: "Justin will be fine."
  • On the Clemson loss last year: "We just didn't get over it in one day. That took time."... "The goal was to get back in this situation." He says the journey to get back to that point is "just amazing" and says some of the best story-tellers of all-time couldn't have come up with this.
  • "We're going to need to play our best game to beat these guys."
  • Asked about how them playing just six games impact them in the College Football Playoff: "I don't know because it's never really been done before." He says it'll ultimately come down to execution and toughness. "Both teams are going to play hard. I mean, everything's on the line. It's who executes better."
  • Day says some guys who missed Saturday's game might be helped by a reduction of the Big Ten's 21-day rule: "Guys like Chris and Baron and some guys we'll find out when we get the final word on."
  • "I think we have an opportunity to write one of the greatest stories in the history of college football."
DABO SWINNEY


  • Part of his opening statement: "To have a chance to be in the playoffs is a very special opportunity for our team. It's an incredible opportunity any year, but especially this year."
  • "We look forward to competing against a great Ohio State team. We all know how talented they are, how well-coached they are."
  • Swinney If you're going to pick the four best year in a year out, there's probably six or seven teams out there that really have a shot every year." He says he includes Ohio State, Notre Dame, Alabama and Clemson among those teams.
  • "I didn't have a problem with the BCS, even though it was just two teams." He says the playoff has "taken that and made it better."
  • Swinney on if he thinks the Buckeyes are a rival to Clemson: "Ohio State? Absolutely. If we're playing Ohio State, it's a playoff or a BCS bowl back in 2013 in the Orange Bowl. Any time we play Ohio State, it's probably some type of meaning." He says he respects Ryan Day and how he operates his program, and notes Ohio State is a team the Tigers compete with both on the field and in recruiting.
  • He thought Clemson's "most complete game" of the season was played on Saturday against Notre Dame in the ACC championship game.
  • If Swinney thinks a team has an edge if they play more or fewer games: "I think the games matter. I think the mental and physical toll of a season, there's nobody out there that would say somebody who's played 11 games versus somebody who's played six is better physically." He says "it's been a grind" both physically and mentally.
  • He says the more the playoff expands, the less games matter. He worries about the regular season mattering and teams resting players. "I'm a little bit more of a traditional guy."
  • Swinney says he's grateful Clemson has been able to play. "I know football brings joy to a lot of folks."


 
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Considering where we were at in August / September I’m thrilled we won a 4th straight B1G championship and we’re in position to play for it all. I’m thrilled for the guys that fought so hard against many obstacles to be here. Day, Fields, Wade, Olave, Davis, Hilliard have earned an opportunity to avenge last year’s bitter defeat. A few points:

- Dabo has a lot of selling to cry and whine about disrespect to his boys
- Dabo has provided lots of material to work with along with Vegas and the media
- We need to spend our limited time focused on red zone execution - we’ve been lousy in this phase of our game against legit defenses. We have to capitalize every time we have a RZ opportunity to put Clemson away.
- Our OL is stronger this year - we have to establish the run, pound the ball and setup our passing game...Justin has to be a difference maker with his legs and get his head into the game. If we do that, we’ll setup the passing game for success. Day has to build that into his game plan and be willing to adjust to what’s working
- I feel better about this years front 7, our DL’s ability to not over pursue and hold their run game in check
- We need to spy Trevor more effectively this year and take that edge off the table
- Our weakness is our back 4 and they’re still very good at the receiver position but not as strong as last year. Keep them in front of our DBs, Wade has to lock down one side, we need to actually hang on to a few of the picks Trevor will throw and hope for a bend no break outcome. Hold them to 3’s
- We can win this game and I’m optimistic we’re at full strength with minimal injuries (Dabbies likely compliant vector)
- I’m feeling another 35-32 classic and considering dropping $3K to see it live!
 
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BuckeyeBiz said:
Considering where we were at in August / September I’m thrilled we won a 4th straight B1G championship and we’re in position to play for it all. I’m thrilled for the guys that fought so hard against many obstacles to be here. Day, Fields, Wade, Olave, Davis, Hilliard have earned an opportunity to avenge last year’s bitter defeat. A few points:

- Dabo has a lot of selling to cry and whine about disrespect to his boys
- Dabo has provided lots of material to work with along with Vegas and the media
- We need to spend our limited time focused on red zone execution - we’ve been lousy in this phase of our game against legit defenses. We have to capitalize every time we have a RZ opportunity to put Clemson away.
- Our OL is stronger this year - we have to establish the run, pound the ball and setup our passing game...Justin has to be a difference maker with his legs and get his head into the game. If we do that, we’ll setup the passing game for success. Day has to build that into his game plan and be willing to adjust to what’s working
- I feel better about this years front 7, our DL’s ability to not over pursue and hold their run game in check
- We need to spy Trevor more effectively this year and take that edge off the table
- Our weakness is our back 4 and they’re still very good at the receiver position but not as strong as last year. Keep them in front of our DBs, Wade has to lock down one side, we need to actually hang on to a few of the picks Trevor will throw and hope for a bend no break outcome. Hold them to 3’s
- We can win this game and I’m optimistic we’re at full strength with minimal injuries (Dabbies likely compliant vector)
- I’m feeling another 35-32 classic and considering dropping $3K to see it live!
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You touched on a few things I was thinking about.

1. Our OL vs their DL is really heavy in our favor. Even more so than last year. We have got to lean on this Clemson team for a variety of reasons. First to keep their offense off the field, second to set up play action, and third to wear that Clemson front out.

By the 4th quarter we should really do a number on them.

What we can't do is what we did against IU and NW with throwing early and often.

2. Our Front vs their OL may actually be in our advantage too. Their returned just Carmen from last season and we should be able to have success there.

Thinking on the game more we should have the advantage up front on both sides of the ball again. I like the Clemson DL a lot but they're young and against a very physical OSU OL that's a tall order for them. Typically the team who wins up front wins the game so gosh I guess who knows.

The X factor to me is always Venables. That guys ability to throw exotic blitzes and to keep offenses off their game is 2nd to none. Without him I think Clemson is nothing more than a slightly better Oklahoma eventually.

We have got to capitalize in the Red Zone early as BuckeyeBiz said and we have got to keep pace all game. We can't go 2 quarters without scoring like we basically did last year. So that means we've got to adjust to Venables better and fast than we did last year.

Back 4 concerns me though against Travis, Roger's, and their bigger WR.
 
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I’m interested to see how a couple of the young guys perform in some tough matchups.

Harry Miller vs. Tyler Davis stands out to me as one matchup that could be a problem for us if we want to establish the running game.

And of course, our young safeties vs. their receiving corps. This is where I think a 6-game schedule has really hurt us. It’s possible that our best safeties are a combination of Proctor, Hickman, and Ransom. But the latter two have so little game experience that it’s hard to trust how they’ll react in a game of this magnitude.
 
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jwinslow said:
Bresee is athletic but young. The rest of their pass rush is inconsistent. Two of their LBs (out of 4) are very average athletes, and safety turner is a bit of a throwback (who will miss the first half).
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They’ll dial up blitzes against Fields to generate a pass rush. Indiana had probably the best blitz scheme I’ve ever seen deployed against Ohio State. You never knew who was coming and from where. Venables will be watching that film and he’s smart enough to copy what worked best.

How do we adjust to it? We’ve been saying it for years but I truly believe you got to go more to your TEs on roll outs. Screen passes to a RB. Quick slants and crossing routes. Draw plays. And Fields has to be a willing runner when that first read isn’t there. There are ways to combat a blitz.
 
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