What’s it going to take to get to the 2019-2020 College Football Playoff? Here are the five things Oklahoma has to do to get in.
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What has to happen for Oklahoma to get into the College Football Playoff? Along with the obvious – just win everything, and get in – here are five key steps for the Sooners to make it.
– 2019 Oklahoma Sooners Preview
5. Make Sure This Grinch Thing Works
Oklahoma has pumped out two of the greatest offensive seasons in the history of college football.
Its quarterbacks have been amazing, the fireworks never stopped, and the attack was dangerous right up until the very end of the Orange Bowl loss to Alabama. But for those seasons, the Sooners couldn’t take that one extra step to get to the national title because the team was so tilted to one side.
But for now, the goal is to just get back to the College Football Playoff for a third straight run. To do that, OU can’t take the chance that the O will bail out the D time and again. It’s become time in the Lincoln Riley era to start tackling someone.
114th in the nation in total defense. 101st in scoring defense. Dead last in pass defense. Dead last in first downs allowed. 120th in takeaways. 118th in third down conversions …
Enter Alex Grinch.
The 39-year-old new defensive coordinator did a great job of getting the wheels in motion at Washington State before serving last season at Ohio State. Okay, that’s not too inspiring – just ignore the absence of tackling in the Purdue loss or the problems filling the gaps against Maryland – but he really is a top young defensive coaching star.
He gets back nine starters and most of the top tacklers. He has athletes to work with, and he has low bar to get over. Just put together a defense that’s not totally miserable, and everything will be okay.
NEXT: Let Jalen Be Jalen
4. Let Jalen Be Jalen
No, he’s not Baker Mayfield or Kyler Murray.
To start, he’s bigger with a better pro-style frame. Murray and Mayfield aren’t even close to being 6-2 and 218 pounds, and both of them will forever dream about what it’s like to play in a College Football Playoff national title, much less win one of them.
Hurts has been a part of three national championships in three seasons – it’s not like the pressure of being the Next OU QB Star Up is going to be a problem.
But being the Sooner quarterback does mean he has to be consistent and he has to be able to crank up the passing game. From all indications so far in practices and workouts, look … out.
Sort of lost in his time at Alabama was how he wasn’t that bad a passer. He’ll never be Tom Brady in the pocket, but he’s amazing on the move and he can get the ball down the field, hitting 63% of his career throws averaging eight yards per pass.
Use his experience, his leadership, his moxie and his special ability that made him Nick Saban’s starting quarterback as a freshman, and the hero who could come in off the bench and win an SEC title as a junior.
Rely even more on the great running game, get more from the defense, and let Jalen do the rest.
NEXT: Don’t Look Ahead To Texas
3. Don’t Look Ahead To Texas
The 2016 Oklahoma Sooners had an amazing season.
They won the Big 12 title and throttled Auburn in the Sugar Bowl. Every clicked in Baker Mayfield’s second season … after the first few weeks.
2016 was the only time in the last four seasons that Oklahoma didn’t get into the College Football Playoff, and that’s because it got its doors blown off by Tom Herman’s Houston team to start things off. Win that, and the blowout loss to Ohio State a few weeks later wouldn’t have mattered – the Sooners would’ve ended up in the CFP.
OU roared on a run of ten straight wins to close out the campaign, and looking ahead to how this year should shape up, everything is in place to take home a fifth straight Big 12 Championship.
The league isn’t as strong as it was last season. Kansas State might be a wee bit more dangerous, and Baylor on the road is scary, but West Virginia, Iowa State and TCU are home games. The regular season finale at Oklahoma State might be a concern, and there might be one loss along the way on a bad day, and that means there can’t be a blip.
Just like in 2016, Oklahoma opens up against Houston. This time, though, it has to deal with head coach Dana Holgorsen leading what looks to be a devastating offensive attack. Two weeks later is a trip to UCLA.
Beating the 2019 Bruins isn’t exactly like having to face the 2016 Ohio State team that OU lost to 45-24, but go ahead and be at least a little scared of what Chip Kelly can put together.
Houston, South Dakota, at UCLA, Texas Tech (after getting a week off to prepare), at Kansas. If this really is a College Football Playoff team, Oklahoma has to be 5-0, and then …
NEXT: Beat Texas
2. Beat Texas
It didn’t matter … sort of.
Texas might have pulled off the 48-45 Cameron Dicker The Freshman Kicker victory last season, but OU got through the rest of the slate before taking care of business in the Big 12 Championship with a solid 39-27 victory.
So yes, in the end, Oklahoma ended up in the College Football Playoff despite the loss to the Longhorns. This time around, beating Texas might not mean all that much, either, considering the Sooners might have to do it all over again in the Big 12 title game. However, losing in the regular season for the third time in five seasons would be playing with fire.
For one, lose in Dallas, and there’s no margin for error. Last year’s team survived Oklahoma State in a 48-47 thriller. It managed to slink out of West Virginia with a 59-56 win, and it got pushed way too hard by Army early on and Texas Tech in Lubbock.
Life in the Big 12 is scary, and while Oklahoma is far, far better than everyone else in the conference, it needs a buffer. It needs to be able to budget in that Iowa State loss in 2017 – just in case.
To make life a whole lot easier, don’t mess with Texas. Take care of business, and it’ll be a much better ride back to the Dallas area eight weeks later. Also, a win is a must, just to be safe, because …
NEXT: Oklahoma Needs To Go Unbeaten
1. Win The Big 12 Championship, Again, And …
Go unbeaten doing it.
Irony time. If Jalen Hurts doesn’t turn in one of the most legendary performances in the history of the SEC – or if Justin Fields looks down the field and throws the ball to one of his wide open targets on the fake punt – Georgia is in the College Football Playoff, and Oklahoma is out.
It’s the problem of living life in the Big 12 – you don’t necessarily control your own destiny.
Last year, had the Bulldogs held on, Oklahoma would’ve been off to the Sugar Bowl to likely play LSU, and the CFP would’ve been Clemson vs. Georgia, and Notre Dame vs. Alabama. Go 12-1 this year, and risk the possibility of two SEC teams getting in, and Clemson, and a Big Ten champ.
13-0 Big 12 Champion Oklahoma is in the College Football Playoff. The other four Power Five conference champs won’t go unbeaten, and even if they did, the Sooners would almost certainly get the nod over the Pac-12 champ.
This is the best team in the Big 12, and the schedule is light and breezy compared to what teams in the SEC West and Big Ten East have to deal with.
Of course 12-1 once again gets OU right there, but with a seemingly down Big 12, the team can’t risk it. From the Department of Far Easier Said Than Done … just be perfect, Sooners.
