National Championship Game: 5 keys to victory for Clemson beating LSU

Clemson enters the College Football Playoff National Championship Game as an underdog but, if they’re to upset LSU, these five things need to happen.

Anyone that was once doubting Dabo Swinney‘s Clemson Tigers is probably just finishing wiping the egg off of their face. Despite “not playing anybody” in the ACC during the regular season, the Tigers went into the Fiesta Bowl and completed a phenomenal comeback from a 16-0 deficit to take down Ohio State. Now it’s onto the National Championship Game — but their tallest task yet awaits.

With a matching 14-0 record on the season, the LSU Tigers have looked the part of a juggernaut. Heisman Trophy-winner Joe Burrow has broken one school and SEC passing record after another this season, including accounting for eight touchdowns in the College Football Playoff semifinal rout of Oklahoma. And though the defense has been far from perfect, it’s littered with NFL talent.

Clemson, of course, has a superstar quarterback in their own right with Trevor Lawrence and the playmakers around him are not to be slept on either. While that may be true, Lawrence’s Tigers are underdogs in the titanic National Championship Game against Burrow’s Tigers. That doesn’t mean that Clemson can’t still come out on top and become back-to-back title-winners.

But what will it take for Dabo’s crew to pull off the upset in New Orleans? These are five keys to victory for Clemson in the National Championship Game.

5. Keep Simmons moving

There are few defensive athletes in college football as impressive as Clemson’s do-it-all weapon, Isaiah Simmons. Defensive coordinator Brent Venables has deployed Simmons as a MIKE linebacker, at other linebacker positions, coming off the edge as a blitzer and even dropping him into coverage as a safety. He’s the rare physical talent not only capable of being moved around like that but capable of making plays no matter where he’s lined up.

For Clemson to try and slow down Burrow and the LSU offense, Simmons is going to be critical to their efforts. Venables must deploy the hybrid linebacker in numerous ways so that at least some of the quarterback’s attention is focused on where the playmaker is on every play.

Not only will utilizing Simmons in the numerous roles he’s capable of playing on defense keep Burrow guessing and put the defensive star in position to possibly make splash plays but it will also open up the rest of the defense to perhaps capitalizing on a lack of focus from Burrow and make plays of their own.

4. Create big-play opportunities for Etienne

Travis Etienne was not a huge factor on the ground in the Fiesta Bowl victory over Ohio State. In fact, he was out-gained by Trevor Lawrence by 71 yards in the game as the running back managed only 36 yards and a touchdown on 10 carries. However, the speedy weapon was still able to have a massive impact on the game as a pass-catcher out of the backfield.

While he may have been out-rushed by his quarterback, Etienne paced all Clemson pass-catchers in the win over the Buckeyes with three catches for 98 yards, two of which went for long touchdowns.

Anytime that the ball is in Etienne’s hands, he’s a threat to break off the big one. Even if LSU gets out to an early lead or if they bottle up the running back on the ground, Swinney and the Tigers can’t let Etienne disappear from the game plan as they must replicate what they did in the CFP semifinal matchup by giving him opportunities to make big plays.

3. Come up with turnovers

If there’s a way to stop the LSU offense, it’s simply to take the ball out of their hands. That’s why Etienne having a say in the action will be key as it will allow Clemson to control the clock a bit but it’s also why they must create havoc and, thus, create turnovers.

To be sure, turning over LSU is much easier said than done. Burrow has only six interceptions on the season through 14 games and the team has only fumbled 12 times on the year, losing just five of those fumbles. But even if that means the odds are not in favor of Clemson retaking possession with splash plays, they must do all they can to make that happen.

Whether it’s by disguising coverages with guys like Simmons down the field, by bringing exotic pressures from the secondary to try and catch Burrow holding the ball insecurely or something just as simple as emphasizing punching at the football, Brent Venables’ defense must be ready to try and get their hands on the rock to try and limit the damage LSU can put on the scoreboard.

2. Don’t start slow

Many jokes have been made at the expense of the Buckeyes for blowing a 16-0 lead against the Tigers in the Fiesta Bowl. However, credit is still due to Clemson for what they had to accomplish to make their comeback victory possible. After a slow start, the offense found their rhythm and the defense tightened the clamps on OSU down the stretch to take the victory and National Championship Game berth possible.

However, the Tigers can’t hope for the same game-script against LSU. As potent as the weapons for Clemson are and as talented as the defense is, Burrow, Clyde Edwards-Helaire, Ja’Marr Chase and Justin Jefferson, among others, have been a near-flawless unit this season. If the No. 3 team in the College Football Playoff falls behind early, they aren’t going to have enough to come back against the LSU offense.

1. Lawrence needs to be a star again

When Clemson trailed 16-0 against Ohio State, it was Trevor Lawrence that put the Tigers on his back. By the end of the Fiesta Bowl victory — which was capped off by a 34-yard touchdown pass and a two-point conversion from the quarterback –, the sophomore signal-caller had 259 yards passing (18-of-33) with two touchdowns and led the team in rushing with 107 yards and another score.

As much as we can talk about the ways that Swinney’s team can try to slow down Burrow, the LSU offense has proven time and again that they can’t be fully stopped. And if they aren’t going to be blanked, that means that Clemson is going to have to step up and take the National Championship Game themselves.

That’s Lawrence’s job. In this titanic quarterback matchup, the long-haired prototype must be the superstar he’s billed as. With his arms and legs, he needs to be the factor that LSU’s defense simply doesn’t have an answer for. And if that happens, he can go toe-to-toe with Burrow and earn his second-straight title.

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