The Oklahoma Sooners drew a tough task in the bowl season when they travel to Orlando to face the 9-3 Florida State Seminoles. Florida State, who saved Mike Norvell from the hot seat, lost only to NC State, Wake Forest, and Clemson this season and looks to be a team on the upward swing.
They made significant strides on both sides of the ball, and will be a stiff challenge for Brent Venables and the Sooners, who are hoping to avoid their first losing season since 1998.
Over at ESPN, Adam Rittenberg looked at the bowl matchups and provided an early prediction for each game. For Oklahoma vs. Florida State, he sees the Seminoles coming out on top in a shootout. Rittenberg predicts Florida State to win the game 44-37, which would drop Oklahoma to 0-5 on the season in one-score games.
Here’s what Rittenberg had to say:
The Seminoles thought they were free of Brent Venables, the longtime Clemson defensive coordinator who had a difficult first season as OU’s coach. All the ingredients seem to favor FSU, which ended the season on a five-game win streak and has a short trip to the game site. The Seminoles’ improved defense must slow down Dillon Gabriel, the former UCF quarterback who returns to Orlando. But Oklahoma won’t have answers for quarterback Jordan Travis, running back Trey Benson, wide receiver Johnny Wilson and the Noles. – Rittenberg, ESPN
The biggest problem Oklahoma will face defensively is quarterback Jordan Travis. The Sooners have done a good job against traditional rushing attacks but have had a hard time slowing down running quarterbacks.
According to Pro Football Focus, who doesn’t take away rushing yards due to sacks, Seminoles quarterback Jordan Travis has run for 471 yards and seven touchdowns. Those seven touchdowns were tied for third in the ACC. His 7.6 rush yards per attempt leads all quarterbacks in the Power Five with at least 25 attempts on the season. 62% of his rushing yards came on designed runs.
We’ve seen how Oklahoma’s defense has struggled against the quarterback run game all season long. With several weeks to prepare, hopefully, the Sooners find some answers to slow down Travis and the Seminoles’ running game.
Running back Trey Benson ran for 969 yards and nine touchdowns, averaging 6.9 yards per carry, and Johnny Wilson is their version of Marvin Mims. Wilson averaged 19.9 yards per reception with 35 catches for 695 yards and five touchdowns.
Florida State’s offense averages 36.2 points per game in 2022, good for 17th in the nation. Their defense is what’s improved so much. They’re only allowing 19.7 points per game, which improved from 26.5 points per game a year ago.
It’s going to be a difficult 2022 finale for Brent Venables and company. But if they can limit the damage in the quarterback run game, they’ll have a shot to close the first season of the Brent Venables era with a winning record and on a high note.
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