The Oklahoma Sooners had Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield leading the way all year, and now look for the same in the College Football Playoff.
There were certainly times throughout the 2017 college football regular season where the Oklahoma Sooners looked more than vulnerable. Before anyone realized that the Iowa State Cyclones were more for real than anticipated, their loss to that squad looked quite bad. Meanwhile, they let teams like Baylor, Texas and Kansas State hang around much longer than they should have.
However, as the dust has settled on the regular season and on the conference championship games, there are a few truths that remain about the Sooners. First, quarterback Baker Mayfield is the 2017 Heisman Trophy winner and deservedly so. Next, they have just one loss on their record this season (the aforementioned defeat at the hands of Iowa State) and won the Big 12 by beating TCU for the second time. And lastly, they are in the College Football Playoff with a shot at a National Championship.
Despite entering the the College Football Playoff as the No. 2 seed, some might consider OU to be the least formidable of the four teams competing for the title. Having said that, whenever you have a leader and player with the fire and talent of Mayfield, absolutely anything is possible. Even better for those in Norman, this team has proven that time and again this season.
Now they are ready for the 2018 Rose Bowl as they’ll take on the SEC Champion Georgia Bulldogs for a shot at playing for the title. With that, let’s break down this Oklahoma team to see what they have to work with heading into the final four of college football.
Coaching Advantage
As a first-year head coach, it stands to reason that Lincoln Riley would be the less experienced of the two coaches in a College Football Playoff matchup. However, when facing off against Kirby Smart and the Georgia Bulldogs, that’s just barely the case as the former Nick Saban assistant took the post in Athens just last year. With that said, though, there’s still reason to believe that Riley can bring some advantages to the table.
For starters, he and Smart both bring something the to the table that neither Dabo Swinney or Nick Saban — the two coaches in the other CFP matchup — don’t have to offer: being too dumb to know any better. Granted, that could be both a gift and a curse. In the case of Riley, though, it should work to both his and the Sooners advantage in this type of situation.
As good as this Oklahoma team is, they are most certainly not a group without flaws. They have shown their warts at times throughout the season. Subsequently, they may be in a position against an uber-talented Georgia team where they need to be risky and take chances. That’s where the “too dumb” element comes into play. Whereas a more experienced coach might be more calculated, Riley could perhaps be more reckless, which the Sooners may need.
On top of that, let’s not discredit what this OU offense has looked like with Riley at the helm. As good as Baker Mayfield has been throughout his career, he’s been even more prolific and dynamic under Riley. That’s not by accident. Thus, Riley’s tutelage could be key against a vaunted defense that has been suffocating all season.