Well there is no doubt this game in going to be interesting. Any time you pit an ACC team v/s an SEC team it demands attention. Kentucky’s coaches have been saying all week that Clemson is an SEC team in the ACC. They are loaded with size, speed, and talent. Overall on paper this game shouldn’t even be close. Clemson is by far the superior team but will the fact they went from ACC championship game to ACC bowl #5 keep their motivation low. This is basically a home game for the Wildcats and Nashville will be a sea of blue.
What to watch for:
Clemson’s Perimeter Running Game: Kentucky has been very good stopping the interior running game but teams have had success on the corners. With CJ’s lighting speed and above average blocking tight ends and WR look for Clemson to go to the corner early and often. That is where they seemed to find success against GT. Dabo has already said he is going to ride CJ all day long. CJ is determined to finish his career with a bowl victory. He needs right at 350 all-purpose yards to be the NCAA all time leading yardage record holder and Dabo seems ready to do everything possible to get him there. Kentucky better have a game plan for #28, and they will have to do it without their best linebacker, Sam Maxwell who is out for this one.
Wildcat’s Wildcat: SEC most versatile player Randall Cobb could be the wildcard this game. Clemson has struggled mightily against the wildcat offense and running QB. They spent a large part of their bowl practices trying to overhaul their wildcat defense. Sophomore and former Freshman All-American Brandon Maye has taken responsibility for not getting the job done. He is the quarterback of the Clemson defense and will have to call a perfect game. Clemson’s aggressive defense seems to over run and miss the correct gaps often against the Wildcat. If they do that against Cobb, they could be in for a long day because he has big play ability.
Clemson’s Defensive Line Depth: Normally strength of the Tigers, Clemson comes in with talented lineman Jamie Cumbie and Rennie Moore suspended for this game. Brandon Thompson and Jarvis Jenkins will not be spelled as much and will have to pull double duty. Clemson is talented enough in their 3 deep to go to the bench but they don’t want to have to do it often with Kentucky’s rush attack. They need to be a staple along with Bowers and Sapp in the back field to disrupt Freshman QB Morgan Newton, who was Clemson’s top QB recruit in last years class. Look for Clemson to use multiple packages moving Bowers interior and Malliciah Goodman on the end to upgrade spped and try to confuse and disrupt the young QB.
Teams Motivation: The talk of the town is Clemson being disappointed about playing in Nashville but Kentucky isn’t exactly excited about being there either. It will be interesting to see which team comes out ready to play. I can tell you this; if Clemson wins the toss I bet you will see #28 and #6 awaiting a kick-off from the Wildcats. Dabo is different than most coaches and likes to talk the ball first to set the tone. With spiller, he knows he doesn’t need his defense to get a stop to begin the field position battle! With Spiller and Ford’s big play ability, they could easily set the tone for the ball game. I also wouldn’t be surprised to see Cobb very early to try and control the clock with the Wildcat and keep the high powered Clemson offense on the sidelines.
This game has the make-up to be a good one. The two teams met in this same bowl 3 years ago where Kentucky manhandled the Tigers in a 28-20 win that was not near as close as the score indicates. Spiller and teammate James Davis were held to next to no yards. Spiller only had 5 touches which almost lead to his transfer to Florida. Between the two they only had 12 touches and Clemson fans were irate. Do not look for that to happen tonight! That being said, Clemson rides Spiller to a 38-24 win in Nashville and Spiller comes up just short of the All-Time NCAA All-Purpose record but does eclipse the 250 yard mark with 3 touchdowns to end his collegiate career!