Just when we all thought that the 2014 BCS Bowls couldn’t get
any more dramatic, here came the Discover Orange Bowl at Sun Life Stadium down
in Miami, and boy, did we see some wild and exciting football?
You figured Clemson would come in with a chip on their
collective shoulder. Sun Life Stadium has not been a happy hunting ground for
the Tigers. In their previous appearance in the Orange Bowl, in 2012, they were
horrendous, and paid the price, routed by a rampant West Virginia Mountaineers
squad 70-33.
Nothing went well for Clemson that night, and those players
still on the Tiger team, star QB Tajh Boyd amongst them, would have almost
certainly come into the 2014 incarnation of the Orange Bowl wanting a measure
of redemption. Well, they got it, and Clemson, in the last year of the current
and controversial post-season era, recorded their first BCS win.
After a penalty-filled start, including a brain-fade
personal foul given up by Clemson’s All-American Defensive End Vic Beasley
which extended a drive that resulted in Ohio State’s opening touchdown (a 33
yard run by star Ohio State QB Braxton Miller, who was 18-26 for 246 yards and
two touchdowns through the air), both teams settled in, and offensive fireworks
ensued. Early on, neither defense was getting any traction.
Then, ironically, a safety, but this one was all about the
offense. Clemson WR Sammy Watkins set an Orange Bowl record – no mean feat for
a game that’s been played for eighty years – with 227 yards receiving on
sixteen catches, which doubles as a personal best. Ohio State had their own big-time
receiver, with Corey ‘Philly’ Brown catching eight balls for 116 yards. It
seemed that every time Clemson needed a big play, Watkins provided. Likewise,
when the Buckeyes needed a spark, it came by way of Brown.
Boyd (30-39 for 371 yards and five touchdowns) erased all
the memories of the Orange Bowl disaster of two years ago, throwing for 378
yards and five touchdowns, including the game-winner, a 5-yard pass off a
brilliant play call to Stanton Seckinger, untouched and alone in the end zone. As
if that wasn’t more than enough, he added 128 yards and a score on the ground.
So, Boyd’s final game as a Clemson Tiger will be remembered
for being the first quarterback in Orange Bowl history to throw for 300 yards
and rush for 100 yards. He also brought his team back from nine points down in
the third quarter – there was a fumbled punt, followed by a Miller interception
– courtesy of touchdown receptions to Watkins and the equally-impressive Martavis
Bryant.
Thankfully for Boyd and Clemson after Boyd tossed a
late-game interception, Ohio State gave it right back, the quarterbacks playing
a game of duelling turnovers, when Braxton Miller threw his own pick, Stephone
Anthony gratefully accepting the second interception thrown by Miller in the last
3:12 of the game. From there, Clemson ran out the clock, preserving a wild 40-35
victory in a game that seesawed tremendously throughout.
Defensively, Clemson did better than I expected in terms of containing
Miller. That isn’t an easy thing to do – just ask pretty much every other
defense that the Buckeyes have played this year. Yes, they gave up 30 points to
the Buckeyes, but, compared to what Ohio State has done to other teams, that’s
a mere drop in the ocean. I saw him live at Michigan Stadium in November, and
it’s an impressive sight to behold.
All season, Miller had made a living out of shredding
opposition with his legs, dazzling people in the stands and watching on TV with
his incredible athleticism and, moreover, his ability to escape and elude. It’s
Manziel-like. Clemson limited him to 35 yards on eighteen carries, when you
take away yardage from. A good result, even if two of those rushes went for
touchdowns.
Overall, the Tigers had success limiting the Buckeye running
game – just 181 yards on the night – which, of course, put the onus back on
Miller to make throws or use his own legs to generate yards and plays, but the
Tigers always seemed to be there, harassing and hassling. Vic Beasley, the
All-American, seemed to be right there in Miller’s grill every single play. It
seems silly to say that the Tigers defense was good when they gave up 427
yards, but they did enough when their team really needed it to deserve kudos.
With the conclusion of the Orange Bowl concludes the ‘minor’
BCS Bowls. I can’t remember a more entertaining series of football games than
what we’ve seen since New Year’s Day. I guess a little more defense wouldn’t have
gone astray, but there’s been plenty of drama and action to go around
nonetheless.
Now, the college football world’s focus now turns to Monday
night’s BCS National Championship Game at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena,
California. Based on what we’ve seen over the last few days from the Orange,
Sugar, Fiesta and Rose Bowls, it’s anyone’s guess as to what might transpire
between No. 1 Florida State and No. 2 Auburn out west.
If you’re wondering what
I think: Florida State by ten.
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