Orange Bowl 2018: Factors That Will Decide Alabama vs. Oklahoma Playoff
The two most talked-about players leading up to the Orange Bowl play quarterback.
While Oklahoma's Kyler Murray and Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa are important pieces for their respective teams, they aren't the only reasons why they qualified for the College Football Playoff.
Murray has a collection of stars alongside him on offense that could be the difference-makers against the No. 1 seed on December 29.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Tagovailoa and the Alabama offense received a lot of praise for their dominant play in the regular season, but they wouldn't be in that position without the standout showings from the Crimson Tide defense.
Factors That Will Decide Orange Bowl
Oklahoma's Rushing Attack
A majority of Alabama's defensive focus should be centered on containing Murray in all facets of the game.
While the Heisman Trophy winner's done most of his damage through the air, he is also a key piece of Oklahoma's impressive rushing attack.
In order to keep the Crimson Tide off balance for 60 minutes, the Sooners need a high level of production out of their running backs and Murray when he scrambles.
Kennedy Brooks leads the Sooners with 1,021 rushing yards, but Trey Sermon is close behind him on the team leaderboard with 928 yards on the ground.
Brooks and Sermon combined for 24 touchdowns, while Murray added 11 of his own during the regular season.
Brooks was the more effective of the two running backs in November, as he earned over 165 yards on the ground in three straight games.
Sermon received more carries in the Big 12 Championship win over Texas, but neither player made as much of an impact as they usually do.
At their best, Brooks and Sermon have run for over 100 yards against TCU and Oklahoma State, but it'll be difficult to achieve those numbers against Alabama's 21st-ranked rushing defense that's conceded seven touchdowns.
The key for Oklahoma's running back tandem is to provide a nice complement to Murray on every drive, whether it be by gashing a 20-yard run through the Alabama defense, or a four-yard scamper to set up 3rd-and-short.
As long as Brooks and Sermon are able to provide consistency, and Murray breaks free for a few big runs of his own, the Sooners stand a chance of pulling off the upset of the top-ranked program in the FBS.
Alabama's Pass Rush
Alabama enters the Orange Bowl with the 23rd-ranked passing defense in the FBS.
The unit that gives up 178.4 yards per game through the air recorded 42 sacks, which makes the Crimson Tide the fifth-best team at getting to the quarterback.
The high amount of pressure on opposing signal-callers allowed Alabama to intercept 14 passes.
Murray doesn't turn the ball over much, but he threw an interception in two of his last three games, and he's thrown multiple interceptions once this season against Texas Tech.
If Alabama's defensive line gets pressure on Murray, it'll force the Sooners into long-yardage situations in which they'll become more predictable, even with the elusive Heisman winner at the controls of the offense.
Disrupting Murray's rhythm at all costs should be the main motivation for the position group led by Quinnen Williams, who has arguably been the top defensive player in college football this season
Williams, Raekwon Davis, Isaiah Buggs and LaBryan Ray need to make Murray feel uncomfortable in order to get Oklahoma off the field and allow the Alabama offense to strike quick against a tiring Sooners defense.
If the Alabama pass rush is ineffective, Murray will be in line for yet another head-turning performance that could lead to a victory.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
