On Thursday, we had our two semifinal games, the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl. In the Rose Bowl, we had #2 Oregon versus #3 Florida State while the Sugar Bowl featured #1 Alabama versus #4 Ohio State. Going in, the consensus was that it would be #1 Alabama and #3 Florida State facing off in the Championship game on Monday, January 12th. However, Oregon and Ohio State had other thoughts.
Rose Bowl
The Rose Bowl proved that the saying “stats don’t lie” is false. If an individual did not watch the game or did not know what the score of the game was, there would be no way that they could tell that there was a blow out.
Here are some of the stats:
Total Yards: Oregon had 639 yards and Florida State had 528 yards in the game.
Passing Yards: Florida State threw for 348 yards and Oregon threw for 338 yards.
Rushing Yards: Oregon ran for 301 yards while Florida State ran for 180 yards.
The Score: Oregon 59 – Florida State 20
Marcus Mariota played a fantastic game and proved once again why he was the Heisman Trophy winner.
Mariota finished 26-of-36 for 338 yards and 2 TDs passing. In addition to his passing, he rushed the ball 7 times for 60 yards with a TD. He even had the opportunity to stand on the sideline with his baseball cap because Oregon took their foot off the gas and put it on cruise control. When Mariota was not throwing the ball or running the ball, he was handing the ball off to Thomas Tyner. Tyner ran the ball 13 times for 124 yards and 2 TDs.
The difference-maker in the game was the third quarter. Oregon scored six straight times in the second half, four times following Florida State turnovers. The game was close with 8:50 remaining in the 3rd quarter as the score was 25-20 but then Oregon ran off 34 straight points to blow the game open.
Jameis Winston and David Cook were turning the ball over seemingly on every possession in the 3rd quarter, and Oregon capitalized. There was no looking back and the Seminoles had no answer.
Once again, just looking at stats, you would think that Winston had a pretty good game. He was 29-of-45 (64%) for 348 yards and 1 TD and 1 INT with a QB rating of 132. As for Cook, take away his fumbles and he had a very respectful night with 15 rushes for 103 yards (6.9 average) and 3 receptions for 24 yards.
Turnovers, turnovers, and more turnovers doomed Florida State. The fast-paced Oregon offense was too much for Florida State to handle and in the end, it was an easy victory for the #3 team in the nation.
Sugar Bowl
There were so many questions coming into this game:
(1) How would Cardale Jones respond ?
(2) Could Ezekiel Elliott run against the Alabama defense ?
(3) Would the Crimson Tide continue to light up the score board on offense ?
(4) Would Nick Saban or Urban Meyer coach the better game ?
(5) Did the Ohio State Buckeyes belong in the Semi-Final Game ?
(6) Would Ohio State finally pick up a win against the SEC in bowl play ?
In the beginning ….
About 20 minutes into the game, it looked like the sports world might be experiencing the second semifinal blowout of the night. Alabama’s defense was bending but not breaking and the offense was scoring at will, pulling out to an early 21-6 lead. Two early turnovers by Ohio State inside their own half and their inability to punch the ball into the end zone after multiple possessions where they had 1st and goal to go put them in a hole early. However, Ohio State woke up and closed the gap to 21-20 at half time on a momentous trick play with 18 seconds remaining.
Ohio State would then take charge and even though Alabama made a few attempts to come back, the Buckeyes held on and secured the win.
The questions got answered ….
(1) Jones responded very well. At times, the Alabama defense put pressure on him. However each time the pressure came, it seemed that he was able to orchestrate one of the following three responses:
- Find an opening and gain positive yards with his legs
- Check off to a second or third receiver and gain positive yards; often a first down
- Throw the ball away
His completion rate was only 51%, but most of the incomplete passes came from brilliant decision making from Jones. Thus, his 18 of 35 for 243 yards was more impressive than it may seem. In addition to managing the passing game efficiently, he used his legs extremely well, especially in critical moments. Once again, the 43 yards on 17 carries do not seem earth-shattering but they were important yards.
(2) Elliott can, and did, run on the Alabama defense. He absolutely shredded them and the scary aspect is that Ohio State may have underutilized him during this game, with Jones perhaps making more pass attempts than he really needed to.
For the game, he ran 20 times for 230 yards and 2 TDs. He was also the safety valve on short pass plays.
(3) Alabama did put 35 points on the board and gained a respectful 407 yards on offense, but they were far from dominant. Their playcalling was erratic and did not take advantage of their strengths. The Tide did not look for Amari Cooper deep. They also did not line up and play a power running game with Derrick Henry or T.J. Yeldon in the backfield behind Jalston Fowler.
Blake Sims was out of rhythm and completed 22-of-36 passes for 237 yards. He managed to throw for 2 TDs but that was offset by his 3 INTs. He was also sacked 3 times. On the ground, he attempted 10 carries for a measly 29 yards.
From a running standpoint, Henry had 13 carries and on those carries, he gained 95 yards and had 1 TD. The Tide had a back averaging 7.5 yards a carry but chose not to feed him.
Cooper, a Heisman Trophy finalist, had 9 catches for 71 yards for a 7.9 yard average and a long of 15. He did grab 2 TDs. However, there were many times that it seemed like he was not on the field. Lane Kiffin did not dial him up on streaks or post plays during the game.
(4) The winner of the coaching battle ….
Urban Meyer and the Ohio State coaching staff outcoached Nick Saban and the Alabama staff. They made adjustments when necessary and played to the strengths of the team especially in the situational match-ups as the game developed. At 21-6 in the second quarter, the game could have gone south for Ohio State, especially with an inexperienced QB at the helm, but Meyer has to be given credit for leading the turnaround.
(5) In the first 20 minutes of the game, it looked like the selection committee may have made the wrong decision, especially with how TCU played earlier in the week in their bowl game. As the game rolled on, the Buckeyes absolutely proved that they belonged. As a team, the Buckeyes racked up 537 yards against Alabama’s defense, and with the win in the end, the committee’s selection was vindicated.
(6) It finally happened, Ohio State knocked not just an SEC team, but the #1 team off of its perch in a bowl game:
Ohio State upset Alabama and now sets their eyes on Oregon whom they will face on Monday, January 12th. Their attitude on their shirt says it all. Stayed tuned:
