Peach Bowl 2014: Keys to Victory in TCU vs. Ole Miss Clash
TCU’s reward for getting its heart ripped out during the College Football Playoff selection show is a date with the nation’s top scoring defense from the SEC in the 2014 Peach Bowl, in Atlanta on Dec. 31 at 12:30 p.m.
Ole Miss beat three teams with double-digit victories and four eventual conference champions this season. In fact, it had playoff ideas of its own when it was No. 3 in the country before ultimately falling off down the stretch.
While it may not be a playoff matchup, the Peach Bowl is one of the best bowl games on the entire schedule. Here is a look at a couple of the keys to victory.
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Motivation Factor
Ole Miss stunned Alabama, partied with Katy Perry and had the inside track for an SEC West title and eventual spot in the College Football Playoff at one point this season. After all, even if the Rebels ended up tied with the mighty Crimson Tide at the end of the year, they held the tiebreaker.
However, a devastating three-game losing streak in the SEC down the stretch ended those dreams. The slide started with a 10-7 loss at LSU when Bo Wallace threw an interception in the end zone in the final seconds and finished with a 30-0 beatdown at the hands of a resurgent Arkansas squad.
There is certainly a level of disappointment with the three-loss finish for the Rebels, but they did salvage some of the season by ruining archrival Mississippi State’s playoff chances on the final day of the regular season.
TCU experienced its biggest heartbreak while watching a television screen instead of being on the field. It finished the season 11-1 and looked golden to make the College Football Playoff field after destroying Iowa State in its final game. Considering the Horned Frogs were No. 3 at the time, chances were they would be preparing for Alabama or Oregon the rest of December.
Instead, Ohio State leapfrogged the Horned Frogs with a head-turning 59-0 win over Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game.
TCU will either use that slight as motivation and come out with a singular mission in the Peach Bowl or wallow in the disappointment of missing the playoffs and come out flat against Ole Miss.
The disappointment is much fresher for TCU, but neither squad envisioned the Peach Bowl as its ultimate destination. Whichever team musters up the proper amount of motivation for this marquee showdown could end up with the victory.
Something Has to Give
Jeff Roberson of Scout.com set the stage for the biggest storyline of the Peach Bowl:
Ole Miss coach Hugh Freeze talked about the matchup between his defense and TCU’s offense, via Alex Scarborough of ESPN.com: “It's a bit ironic [TCU coach Gary Patterson is] bringing in one of the top offenses and we're bringing in a top defense. He's the guru on the defensive side I've wanted to learn from."
TCU scored at least 30 points every single game this season and even reached 82 in its contest against Texas Tech. Its second-ranked scoring offense features a balanced attack that relies both on the pass and run, which makes it even more difficult to prepare for in advance.
The Horned Frogs were seventh in the nation in passing yards and 37th in rushing yards per game, and quarterback Trevone Boykin is one of the most dynamic players in the entire country. He threw for 3,714 yards and 30 touchdown passes, and ran for another 642 yards and eight touchdowns.
Sure, Boykin is not afraid to use his legs when a play breaks down, but he doesn’t get enough credit for his playmaking abilities with his arm inside and outside the pocket.
Josh Doctson, who finished with 959 receiving yards and nine touchdown catches, was his favorite target on the season.
Boykin did throw seven interceptions this year, which means Ole Miss’ secondary players, like Cody Prewitt, Senquez Golson and Tony Conner, could have opportunities to swing the momentum of the game.
That Ole Miss defense will be Boykin’s biggest challenge of the year. It only allowed 13.8 points a game, which was best in the nation, and gave up 17 points to No. 1 Alabama, 13 to an underrated Boise State squad, 10 to LSU and only 17 to Mississippi State.
The Rebels have enough speed along the defensive front to funnel outside runs from Boykin or the TCU runners back to the inside, and they held opponents to a 31 percent conversion rate on third downs and 3.4 yards per rush.
This is a classic matchup of strength vs. strength, and whichever side between TCU’s dynamic offense and Ole Miss’ suffocating defense can dictate the tempo of the game will ultimately take home the Peach Bowl trophy.
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