Oklahoma confident in offensive improvement going into College Football Playoff -- should Alabama be worried?
Sooners coach Brent Venables says his offense has improved leading into the College Football Playoff, but will it be enough to spark a run?
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Oklahoma coach Brent Venables is not one to stretch the truth, but you have to wonder what he's seen in practice to boast so much confidence in his offense leading into Friday night's first-round showdown with Alabama in the College Football Playoff.
Perhaps he's simply showing support for a unit that struggled down the stretch, but his strong convictions surrounding Ben Arbuckle's scheme and John Mateer's execution level might give the Crimson Tide pause before their arrival in Norman.
"This is kind of how the last week and a half has gone, the offense is just taking these big steps that get me fired up and excited," Venables said on his weekly coaches show. "And it ain't been doing it over against the scout team. They're doing it against good people and maybe where they haven't had as much consistent success, they've had more of it since we played last."
Venables spoke of a nifty two-minute drill in Monday's practice that led to a practice-winning field goal, a much-needed momentum boost for a team that has struggled scoring points despite winning four straight to end the regular season.
Snap-to-snap consistency and avoiding turnovers will be at the heart of Oklahoma's game plan for Alabama after beating the Crimson Tide in the first matchup despite being out-gained 412 to 206 yards and struggling to finish possessions.
Oklahoma had 47 offensive possessions over four games in November with 25 finishing in punts, five resulting in turnovers and one ending on downs. Nine finished with a successful field goal and seven ended in touchdowns. And of those touchdown possessions, only two spanned five or more plays.
"What does that look like? Well, get the ball out on time," Venables said on on-field improvements opening the postseason. "Be accurate. Catch the ball in tight coverage, being physical through the top of the route. It's moving the double-team, like physically watch the double-team get knocked off the ball.
"And it goes both ways. I'm like, 'What in the hell? Get your pads down. Fight back. Get your cleats in the ground.' And you don't want nobody getting knocked off the ball but you do. And running backs running with more purpose."Am
Oklahoma ranks last among the 12 CFP teams in total offense at 353.7 yards per game (90th nationally) and scoring offense at 26.4 points per game (78th). James Madison and Alabama are the only teams worse than the Sooners in passing offense and rushing offense, respectively.
Playoff teams' offensive rankings
Total offense | Scoring offense | Passing offense | Rushing offense | |
No. 1 Indiana | 472.8 YPG (8th) | 41.9 PPG (5th) | 251.6 YPG (45th) | 221.2 YPG (11th) |
No. 2 Ohio State | 429.5 (24th) | 34.9 PPG (18th) | 266.8 YPG (26th) | 162.7 YPG (64th) |
No. 3 Georgia | 406.9 (45th) | 31.9 PPG (33rd) | 220.3 YPG (77th) | 186.6 YPG (34th) |
No. 4 Texas Tech | 480.3 YPG (5th) | 42.5 PPG (3rd) | 289.4 YPG (11th) | 190.9 YPG (27th) |
No. 5 Oregon | 465.5 YPG (13th) | 38.2 PPG (9th) | 246.8 YPG (49th) | 218.4 YPG (14th) |
No. 6 Ole Miss | 4981.1 YPG (3rd) | 37.3 (t10th) | 309.6 YPG (3rd) | 188.5 YPG (31st) |
No. 7 Texas A&M | 454.4 YPG (20th) | 36.3 PPG (14th) | 261.8 YPG (34th) | 192.7 YPG (25th) |
No. 8 Oklahoma | 353.7 (90th) | 26.4 PPG (78th) | 229.9 YPG (63rd) | 123.8 YPG (106th) |
No. 9 Alabama | 389.4 (69th) | 31.2 (39th) | 273.2 YPG (23rd) | 116.2 YPG (117th) |
No. 10 Miami | 425.8 (27th) | 34.1 PPG (t20th) | 275.8 YPG (19th) | 150 YPG (77th) |
No. 11 Tulane | 410.7 YPG (40th) | 29.1 PPG (58th) | 240.5 YPG (57th) | 170.2 YPG (55th) |
No. 12 James Madison | 448.3 (22nd) | 37.3 PPG (t10th) | 202.5 YPG (94th) | 245.7 YPG (5th) |
Oklahoma has overcome challenges on offense down the stretch with a strong defense and special teams. The Sooners can't count on forcing three more Alabama turnovers like they in the first meeting.
However, the primary reason the Sooners are the 8-seed with a chance to move on is the other side of the football. Venables' decision to call this defense this season completely revamped Oklahoma's efficiency numbers The Sooners are No. 1 in the SEC in total defense and scoring defense.
Should both sides meet in the middle with success in the opening round, a date with with top-seeded and unbeaten Indiana in the Rose Bowl quarterfinals could be inevitable.
"Coachable teams fix mistakes," Venables said. "(It's) a hungry, driven football team which is what we've developed as one of the things that kind of defines this team and its identity is this is a group of guys that have got great self-awareness. Nobody is too big for their britches. Even through all the success, man, this has been a group of guys that are like, 'Man, coach me like I'm a freshman.' And they've taken on that personality.
"So I love that. That gets you excited to get to game day as much as anything because of this incremental improvement that you'll have and experience as a result of having that kind of an attitude."
Oklahoma's offense will have to pick its spots considering the Crimson Tide's prowess against the pass. Alabama ranks sixth nationally in pass defense this season, third-best in the playoff field behind Ohio State and Oregon. Both of these defenses have limited explosive plays, too.
