Sugar Bowl 2015: Keys to Victory in Ohio State vs. Alabama Clash
Urban Meyer vs. Nick Saban. The North vs. the South. The Ohio State brand vs. the Alabama brand. The Buckeyes’ spread offense vs. the Crimson Tide’s powerful defense.
The storylines for the 2015 Sugar Bowl practically write themselves. When Ohio State and Alabama take the field on Jan. 1 in New Orleans after the Rose Bowl is finished, there will only be three teams remaining with national championship aspirations.
Here are some keys to victory that will ultimately determine who is still standing when that number becomes two.
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Youth Movement
Ohio State has 24 players listed as starters for either the offense, defense or special teams, and 13 of them are freshmen or sophomores, per Ben Axelrod of Bleacher Report. The fact that Meyer already has this squad that is so clearly built for next year in college football’s version of the Final Four is astounding, especially since the Buckeyes are down to their third-string quarterback.
Ohio State is ahead of schedule, which portends well for the future, but this is by far the brightest stage the players will compete on in their young college careers. The closest thing we have seen to a dynasty in years in college football will be standing on the opposite sideline behind the current king of college football, Mr. Saban.
Ohio State cannot be intimidated.
It is not that difficult to imagine a scenario where nerves and youthful mistakes would get the most of the Buckeyes on such a big stage. If a couple of things go poorly in the early going, be it a costly interception from Cardale Jones in just his second career start or a 60-yard touchdown catch from superhuman Amari Cooper, the game could snowball in the wrong direction for the Buckeyes.
Fans will likely remember that exact scenario happening against Meyer’s Florida team in the 2006 season’s national championship game.
Of course, the youth movement at Ohio State could also set up a passing-of-the-torch narrative if the team is able to avoid those mistakes and come away with the upset victory. The Buckeyes could very well be No. 1 in the country next season, regardless of what happens in these playoffs, with all that talented youth, and Alabama could hand over its king-of-college-football torch if things go Ohio State’s way in New Orleans.
The only way the Buckeyes can win this game is if they avoid being caught up in the moment and committing critical mistakes.
Containing Amari Cooper
Erick Smith of USA Today had an interesting take on Ohio State’s defense going into the matchup with Alabama:
One reason for that is cornerback Doran Grant. He tallied two picks against Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game and also held Michigan State’s game-breaking receiver, Tony Lippett, to 64 receiving yards and zero touchdowns in Ohio State’s most important win of the regular season.
Grant may be talented, but the only football players skilled enough to stop Heisman Trophy finalist Amari Cooper one-on-one play on Sundays. It will take a team effort from the likes of Grant, safety Vonn Bell and the rest of the secondary to contain Alabama’s go-to guy in the passing game.
Auburn was in control of the Iron Bowl until the Cooper show took over. He ended up with 224 receiving yards and three touchdown catches in that one and finished the season with 1,656 receiving yards and 14 touchdown catches. Alabama’s second-leading receiver was DeAndrew White, who only finished with 439 receiving yards and four touchdowns.
Crimson Tide offensive lineman Austin Shepherd put it rather bluntly when discussing Cooper, via John Zenor of The Associated Press: “I’d have the whole defense on him.”
The Crimson Tide rely more on Cooper than perhaps any team in the country relies on a single wide receiver. The Buckeyes aren’t going to completely stop him (nobody can), but if they prevent him from going off for monumental numbers, it can turn Alabama’s offense much more one-dimensional. That will allow Joey Bosa, Michael Bennett and the Ohio State linebackers to focus on containing running backs T.J. Yeldon and Derrick Henry.
Ohio State is 17th in the country in passing yards allowed per game and finished fourth in the country with 21 interceptions. It is capable of containing Cooper if it plays its best game of the year. It will be needed in New Orleans.
Force Cardale Jones to Win the Game
The Buckeyes put on a show in the Big Ten Championship Game with 59 points, and Jones received the game’s MVP award. While he certainly deserved recognition, especially since it was his first career start, that distinction overlooked Ezekiel Elliott, who torched the Badgers for 220 rushing yards and two touchdowns.
Elliott’s early 81-yard touchdown run against the Badgers opened up the entire field later in the game for Jones because Wisconsin started to press up on the line of scrimmage. Jones took advantage of the openings with a number of deep strikes to Devin Smith and company.
Alabama is going to have to stop Ohio State’s rushing attack, which is 11th in the nation, without devoting extra defenders to the box. That will make it much more difficult for Jones to read the field, and he won’t be able to simply rely on chucking it deep in single coverage to Smith.
Alabama’s defense is fourth in the country in points allowed per game and gave up a measly 2.81 yards per carry on the season, per CFBStats.com. If there is a defense that is perfectly set up to stop Elliott on the run and Jalin Marshall on the dump passes behind the line of scrimmage, it is Alabama’s.
The Crimson Tide’s best route to victory is by taking away the running game and forcing the young Jones to make veteran-type plays all game.
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