The Ohio State offense moved the football with relative ease early against Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinal before Clemson adjusted with a 3-3-3 stack. Yet the Buckeyes readjusted to that odd front in the fourth quarter –coming up just short on a interception off a miscommunication between Justin Fields and Chris Olave on an otherwise open post route.

The Ohio State offense’s early success was a result of tempo, ball control passing, and explosive run plays. While Clemson defensive coordinator Brent Venables is perhaps best known for his cover 4 schemes, he largely opted to deploy single high safety (cover 1 and cover 3) looks on early downs against Ohio State – with the safety opposite running back J.K. Dobbins often coming down in the box to provide force support against the Buckeyes’ base outside zone play – before frequently playing Tampa cover 2 on passing downs.

But the resulting off-corner coverage from these early down one-high looks provided Ohio State passing game opportunities. Head coach Ryan Day repeatedly called for the opposite hash outside comeback and out routes that the Buckeyes so effectively used all year.

Ohio State was also able to target Clemson’s interior defenders in man coverage. Below, as he often does, Day sent a receiver – here slot K.J. Hill – in motion to identify coverage, before singling Hill up on an out route against a safety.