COLUMBUS, Ohio - The Clemson Tigers, led by full-time motivator and occasional head coach Dabo Swinney, have banged the underdog drum most of the season, but based on their level of competition, Swinney may just have a point.
It's been well publicized that Clemson's weak schedule, specifically the out-of-conference opponents in Texas A&M, Charlotte and the FCS's Wofford, led to the Tigers not rising above No. 3 in the nation even with an undefeated record.
It's even possible that just one loss, especially if Utah had been able to best Oregon, may have kept Clemson out of the College Football Playoffs for just the second time, but the Tigers were able to eek out a one-point win over North Carolina in their only close game of the season to remain undefeated.
Now, with Clemson preparing to face an Ohio State team that has run roughshod over every single opponent this season, it's a serious concern whether the Tigers have been appropriately prepared for an opponent of this caliber.
The Tigers completed each of their 13 wins this season with an average margin of victory of 35.9 points and scoring 46.5 points per game, fourth best in the nation. However, looking inside the defensive numbers of their opponents reveal an interesting trend among the Tigers' victims this season.
Of Clemson's 12 wins against FBS opponents, only one was top-50 in scoring defense, and that was Texas A&M who was ranked 38th. Beyond the Aggies, other teams like North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia all fell in the top-60 scoring defenses, and three of Clemson's opponents (Georgia Tech, Charlotte and Louisville) were all bottom-30 scoring defenses. None of Clemson's games this season were against teams allowing fewer than 20 points per game.
The top passing defense faced by Clemson was Charlotte who only allowed 198.3 passing yards per game, and the best rushing defense was by Texas A&M who allowed just shy of 130 rushing yards per game.
These defenses aren't even in the same stratosphere as Ohio State's defense which will present an entirely new challenge for the Tigers.
Even though they haven't played many good teams, it's still difficult to deny Clemson's success on offense, especially after some early-season struggles. The Tigers are averaging nearly 300 passing yards and over 250 rushing yards per game, and their 547 yards of total offense per game rank top three along with offensive juggernauts and fellow College Football Playoff participants Oklahoma and LSU.
After throwing five interceptions in Clemson's first three games, Trevor Lawrence has responded by throwing just three in the Tigers' last 10 games. Averaging 244 passing yards per game, Lawrence has certainly improved as the season has gone on, and that's a good thing for Clemson as he'll have to be on top of his game against Ohio State's secondary.
You may not have gotten this takeaway from watching ESPN's college football awards, but Ohio State has one of the best (if not the best) secondaries in the country with four sure-fire NFL draft picks in Jeff Okudah, Damon Arnette, Shaun Wade and Jordan Fuller making the passing game a nightmare for opposing teams this season.
Even with the skill the Buckeyes have in the secondary, Lawrence and Clemson's receivers aren't something to take lightly. Lawrence hasn't really had to sling the ball this season, but given his 20-of-32 for 347 yards and three touchdowns against the Crimson Tide defense in the National Championship last season, he is no stranger to big game atmospheres against great teams.
All things considered, it's an unheralded battle for each team with Lawrence not having faced as good a secondary as Ohio State's while the Buckeyes have not faced a quarterback this season that is nearly as good as Lawrence.
It's also important to point out that while Ohio State hasn't faced as good a defense as Clemson, the Buckeyes have still been tested by some of their opponents.
Of Ohio State's 13 opponents thus far this season, seven of them (including both matchups against Wisconsin) have come against top-40 scoring defenses, and Northwestern (43rd) and Indiana (49th) sit just outside of that mark.
Clemson will be an entire other monster, but the Buckeyes will go into the Fiesta Bowl having at least prepared for a good defense at previous points this season. With two teams partly defined by their explosive offenses in 2019, it may just come down to which defense plays better to decide who moves on to the national championship game.
