Clemson Offense is Looking Forward to a Challenge

The Clemson offense will once again have its hands full when the Tigers take on the Ohio State defense Saturday Dec. 28 (8 p.m., ESPN) in the Fiesta Bowl.

The Clemson offense will once again have its hands full when the Tigers take on the Ohio State defense Saturday Dec. 28 (8 p.m., ESPN) in the Fiesta Bowl.

The Buckeye defensive unit ranks second in the nation in total defense (allowing 247.6 yards per game), seventh in rushing defense (allowing 99.54 yards per game), second in pass defense (allowing 148.1 yards per game) and third in scoring defense (allowing 12.5 point per game).

However, it is a challenge that the Tigers feel they are looking forward to.

“I mean, obviously, you look at where they’re ranked nationally — so that right there tells you they’re right up there in the top three or four in the country and then you turn on the video and it backs it up,” offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said. “It will definitely be a great challenge and one our guys are looking forward to.”

On the season, the Tigers have played seven teams ranked in the top 80 in total defense. So playing good defenses, and having success against those defenses, is not new to the Tigers.

“We are confident no matter who we are playing,” wide receiver Justyn Ross said. “We know that they have a great defense and a great secondary, but we have played our best games when we have been facing the best defenses.

“We believe in our guys and I have full confidence that when the game starts, we will be able to execute and play to the same standard we have all year.”

If the Tigers do play to the standard that they have over the last five games of the season, averaging more than 50 points per game and close to 550 yards per game, there is little doubt that the Tigers’ chances of leaving the Valley of the Sun victorious this year will increase exponentially.

That is if the Tigers can do one thing that they have excelled at for the majority of the season — not turning the ball over.

“We can’t turn the ball over. It’s as simple as that,” wide receiver Tee Higgins said. “I mean, if we take care of the ball and play our game, I don’t think there is anyone in the country that can beat us — when we don’t, then it becomes a little more up the air.

“But if we take care of the football, we will be OK.”

The Tigers coaching staff echoed the sentiment of Higgins, saying that the Tigers’ ability to protect the ball will be crucial if they expect to leave with a victory.

“Absolutely, it is maybe the most important thing,” co-offensive coordinator Tony Elliott said. “The one thing that you don’t want to do is to give a great opponent extra at-bats, and that is exactly what a turnover does — gives them extra at-bats. In a game in which you have two very talented teams playing one another, the margin for error is so small that every turnover, every mistake, every little thing is magnified.

“If we are going to give ourselves the best chance to win the game, we have to take care of the ball and be mindful that every good series ends with a kick. Whether that’s a punt, a field goal or an extra-point — every good series ends with us kicking the ball.”