Trench Warfare | Sugar Bowl (4th Quarter)
Posted on: July 30, 2014
While this may be seven months late, it’s always a good time to talk about OU’s Sugar Bowl win over Alabama. Since the pads will start popping here in a day or two and the season is just around the corner, we figured this would be a good time to finally give y’all the 4th quarter of the Sugar Bowl trench warfare that many of you have asked about.
For a refresher here are the first 3 quarters:
Bringing Saunders in motion, and moving Sterling off of the snap could really give you a quadruple option if we wanted it. Dive, keep, forward pitch to Shep, pitch out to Saunders. Really an innovative look, and a lot for a defense to account for.
How much are we going to miss Saunders? Guy gives up about 50 or 60 pounds to most players on the field or more, and is one of the more physical players you’ll see. On the pitch out to him he gets four yards, but finishing off the run, he pushes Landon Collins with his right arm, and sent em flyin. Love the attitude.
On the very next play, the o line gives Trevor another clean pocket to check things out. It’s a good thing that Trevor got rid of it quick since Dionte and Daryl’s guys were both starting to break loose..
In offensive meetings, I always heard the term that: “if the defender has his back turned to the ball, the receiver is wide open.” When you think about it, it makes a lot of sense. The offensive player is the only one who can make a play on the ball since the defender can’t see it. Also, if you teach the receiver to come back through the defender and create contact, it’s an automatic pass interference. Shepard does a great job here, just going up and getting the ball. This was a huge play since we had only generated about 32 yards in the second half leading up to this one.
A little something to point out here was how engaged the sideline was. I’ve rewatched this game and it’s highlights so many times, and one of my favorite moments is/was watching Dakota Austin come stomping down the sideline to congratulate Sterling after the catch. Look at Trent and A.D getting hype next to em. The guys weathered the storm of the third quarter, and after this play could smell blood in the water.
Really innovative formation. Daryl Williams is in the slot, and Bronson came over to the left tackle spot. McNamara is at right tackle with Saunders off the ball on the right. This allows McNamara to go out for a pass back right in what’s essentially a “tackle eligible” formation. Scheming to numbers though, there’s a clear advantage back left, and it’s an easy pitch and catch for Trevor and Sterling.
Sterling does an excellent job staying inside just along the numbers and then cutting outside of Bester’s block. This kept the defender in between the two blocks, and caught him up in traffic when Sterling got on the sideline.
Shep was definitely one of the unsung heroes of this game. This was a tightrope act like I’ve never seen…
I’m not sure where he stepped out, because you can still see green next to his foot in this shot. If he hadn’t got whistled and was able to cut back, there’s a lot of room to roam.
After a couple of penalties, we were at a 1st and 30. We came back with a couple of short passes to Shepard and Clay to get us here at 3rd and 15. This was a big play since Alabama had just scored, and got us to 3rd and long. The momentum was ready to swing the other way, but our guys were able to stem the tide. Like I said earlier any time you throw a long ball, you have to have good protection. Trevor has a pretty solid pocket on this play, but it started breaking down late.
But then it didn’t matter, since Trevor threw the ball on time. He was really good all night making sure the ball got out quickly, and to the right guy most of the time. Bester has his guy beat, and you can see the ball in flight.
Trevor just dropped a great pass in there to Bester on 3rd and 15. Are you kidding me?! How often do you see a team go long on 3rd and 15? Normally it’s a short pass that gets stopped short of the first down, and it leaves you scratching your head as to why they didn’t go farther than the sticks. Not the case here at all! Bester does a good job possessing the ball, and getting his feet in bounds for a huge first down. This was at minimum a three point play. It got us to 1st and goal at the 9. Even if you don’t get another yard, it’s a field goal, but our guys had more in mind.
Bama ran a twist to the playside. The d-end slanted down inside, and the nose looped out around the end. The football gods were on our side, because that little thing helped in a huge way. Rather than having a faster defensive end containing Trevor, he’s got an sec plugger in hot pursuit. Maybe that little bit of speed gave him enough time to pump fake and get the ball off. It’s good that that little extra time was there, because his initial reads are all covered. The only person open is Clay, but Knight doesn’t have eyes in the back of his head…
I didn’t realize how many bama defenders were over on that side of the field with Trevor at the throw. There’s eight in this picture, with another two in the end zone. Nessler said it best when he said that it looked like Joe Montana to Dwight Clark…
It was a 25 yard laser on the run. I wanted to get a good shot of Sterling putting his hand up calling for the ball, but couldn’t. Trevor’s arm strength really helped, and Sterling coming back to the ball really made this play. If he stays deep, Collins gets to it, but with Sterling getting closer to Trevor, it closed the distance the ball had to travel. It put us up by two scores, and man did we need it!
During our in game thread some of us were talking about how if we had run the ball on 2nd and 3rd down on the previous possession, we would have had the clock down around 4 minutes already. We threw an incompletion on a long ball prior to this play as well, and while you want to run out the clock, you have to guard against getting too conservative. On the biggest third down of the game, we come back to the screen on the right with Clay. Bama was sending pressure, and the screen was the perfect call…
This play epitomized both Gabe Ikard and Brennan Clay’s careers as Sooners. There’s not a better in space blocking offensive lineman in college football. Gabe stayed in contact with Pagan the whole time, so the block in the back is negated. Brennan who has been clutch for us for a couple of years now, does a great job making the catch, staying under control and cutting back inside Gabe’s block. Two highly intelligent football players making a play with the game on the line.
3rd and 9, 5:24 to go in the game. We’re up by one score. As Brennan got hit on the 20 yard line, it was one of those moments that the world just stopped. Look at the expressions of everyone watching the play. It’s one of those slow motion moments in a movie. Brennan spun at just the last second as Clinton-Dix came up to make the tackle…
89 Comments
when I refreshed and saw this was up I may or may not have dribbled a little…. just sayin
I’m so glad you enjoyed it. Makes it worth all of the work.
If you were to recommend a source for learning X’s and O’s at a technical level, what would it be?
thefootballbraniacs.com 🙂
Why, I oughtta……..
heh.
coaches clinics and watching ball until your head explodes
Helps if you have one of these
yes. Great job JY.
I agree totally with everything you said about Clay. I spent quite a bit of time way back defending him against those who thought his playing time was based upon some sort of coach’s “loyalty,” rather than the things both tangible and intangible that he was producing on the field. He was Mr. Clutch in so many ways, and it was clear that the coaching staff had full confidence in his ability to make plays in critical moments.
Regarding Heupel’s “quantum leap,” I think it may have also have been a case of our finally getting to see Heupel run the offense he had planned for, from way last summer, with pretty much all the pieces healthy and in their proper place.
Can’t help but wonder what could have been had Millard been healthy.
Amazing! Thank you for putting the time and effort into making this. Very much appreciated.
Thanks sir.
Finally, I can sleep in peace. Thanks JY.
You are very welcome
Good timing JY and nice breakdown
appreciate it
Another selling point to OTs would be “you might get to play some slot” lol
I sense a “comment of the day”!
I will gladly nominate it!
Do I win a months worth of secret insider info if I win…perfect timing with a month of fall camp starting up 😀
I think it should be a free hay cut and storage.
Ha…I’m done w squares…I survived the other day…down hill with round bales from here on out..I think I’ll make it
If we keep getting this good summer rain no telling how many more cuts you will get.
shut up lol my mind and body is getting into fall camp and football season mode…think I’m gonna plant some wheat this year so that’s coming up
Okay then, but I have already checked a few reliable sources about the coming winter forecast. You will be glad to have all the hay you can stuff in the barn…lower than average temps…above average snow/precipitation.
i’ll be doing rounds but no more squares please…I’m running out of storage…got over 100 surplus rounds so far..I already have to put up some fence for more storage
Dang, son!
The Good Lord has been looking out for you this year.
Yep. Been a good year all around..hope it continues on saturdays this fall
I am anticipating much hootin’an’hollerin’ this season.
I like this team and the favorable home schedule.
At long last…
Thanks E
JY you couldn’t be more correct about that screen pass to Brennan. Perfect example of a great competitor just willing his way for 2 of the most important yards you’ll see in a football game. The game plan the coaches designed and the play calling and in-game adjustments were as good as I’ve seen on the Offensive side of the ball in years! That is one of the things I am most excited about for this season. I believe with everyone, players and coaches alike, having a year to get used to and develop this offense they could be a nightmare to defend.
It could be a special year. I’ve got my heart broken before, but you never know.
Special years take everything coming together and a lot of luck too. If they can stay healthy at the key positions and some of the pups can develop and contribute… I don’t even want to finish that sentence and jinx anything!
It’s already a special year for you, JY. If the trend continues your boy will have a perfect nick…Champ.
Yes sir. He’s a good kid and I couldn’t be more blessed. Thanks for the perspective.
I have no doubt he is.
I have kids and grandkids…I gave my grandson the nick “buzzsaw” at the age of 2.
Anyway, this is one piece I have referred to hundreds of times over the years.
On Children.
The offensive play calling that game was the best I think I’ve in the stoops era. Kevin Wilson obviously was here when we set the record for points scored but I never really thought his play calling was unique. Early on he was blessed with AD and then in 2008 he had a loaded team. But when watching the critical 3rd downs and the 4th down from the bama 40 when they were changing formations not just moving one guy in motion. I think if everyone is healthy then heupel will impress everyone with his growth from last year to this year.
Completely agree. I think the Sugar Bowl was a result of everyone finally feeling comfortable with the offense and with TK finally being the man. Time and time again you hear the coaches talking about how well he had performed in the practices leading up to the game. Last year was a transition year and with new schemes and injuries at the QB position it took all year for both the coaches and players to get things figured out.
I had a sense that the play calling showed the coaches had more confidence in their players to make plays.
I hope that is the case, because it also gives the players more confidence in their coaches and their own abilities.
“This was such a huge play, and one that probably won’t go down to most people as that big a deal.” The impact of this play has been long overdue to be put into writing. Fantastic effort right when we needed it.
Yep…..I still remember feeling an incredible sense of relief the moment when he just managed to spin across the 1st down marker. Everyone at that moment knew that play was huge.
Love it, cant wait for this season to start! Any chance you guys will recruit someone to do some breakdowns for the defense this year? Or heck, skill positions, special teams…. I need more Braniacs!
Yes sir. That is in the works.
Awesome breakdowns! Thanks JY
Thank you for the breakdown! Great job. Couldn’t agree more with the Brennan Clay run that broke their will. He’s tough as nails!
The Finch middle screen could have been a nail in the coffin type play had he took it the distance
Every time I rewatch the game and this play comes on I’m like “GO GO GO” just like most everyone else I wanted Roy to succeed I felt bad for how far down they buried him.
Funny thing was that it looked to me like Alabama read screen, but didn’t expect Finch to go middle.
Yeah Mosley was going out to cover Finch but (like the pic shows) Finch ran a great route
And what’s annoying is espn and most everyone outside ou fans say “Alabama didn’t want to be there”
I would rather them say we got lucky because some would be offended by that but they always say luck is when hard work meets opportunity and that’s a perfect description of that game.
Preaching to the choir buddy! They got out coached and out played..simple as that
Seneca the Elder is credited with that quote…luck is when preparation and opportunity meet. Many have used it over the last two thousand years because it is true.
Some of the comments from Bama players and coaches since then have been unfortunate. Nothing worse than lying to yourself.
I don’t know if I’ve ever been more proud of a Sooner than I was of Brennan that night. Dude just refused to be denied.
Yup. And it’s not the sort of thing that stands out on the box score for a future generation. When we went for it on 4th and 1 and he got 1.5 against Bama’s vaunted run defense, that was huge, but it counts on the box score just like he got stuffed on 1st and 10.
Watching the reactions by some of the Bama defenders in the 4th indicated to me that the Sooners had them beat, in particular their lb #30.
From my perspective controlling the last 6:22 of the game and only allowing Bama one play, which sealed the victory, was the best possible outcome. Had we scored on Finch’s screen, they would have had a lot of time to work with. Keeping their defense on the field, making first downs while burning the clock and their time outs was a satisfying way to end a great game.
I really liked how OU didn’t try for 110-120 plays per game in 2013. I think that our offense’s ability to score so quickly forced the defense to have to defend more plays. With an elite defensive coordinator like Mike Stoops, and having great recruiters on staff like himself, Jerry Montgomery, etc., time of possession isn’t as crucial. But in the BV years when the coaching of fundamental skills, quality of recruiting and talent evaluation ability declined, we weren’t doing ourselves any favors by scoring so much. We gave up a lot of points…too many.
I talked to a Bama fan a few months ago and when I mentioned time of possession his eyes got big and said OU really burned his boys with it.
They weren’t used to having so many long sustained drives on them.
Great post and breakdown, really enjoyed reading it!
That middle screen to Finch was one of the best play calls in Heupel’s career to date, IMO. I think I said out loud at the time “where has that play call been?!?!”
I was watch this game on DVR about once a month (much to the delight of my wife and daughter) and I don’t know if I will erase it for quite some time.
Thanks for putting in the work, JY.
I posted about this game on Scout’s message board months ago regarding the play of Brennan Clay and commented here as well, especially on that 3rd down. He has that knack of knowing exactly where the 1st down marker is and has that toughness to get that first down. I always forget which quarter it was in Stoolwater, I think 3rd qtr, where Clay runs 9-10 yards with loSurs hanging on him, trying to pull him down & he just would not stop moving the pile.. I think when the 8th player (lavey?) dove in he finally went down. You wondered how did a guy his size generate so much power? I really appreciate Brennan Clay, wish we had him one more year. Great hands catching, protects the football as well as anyone since Q, tough runner who comes through in the clutch….the kind of running back that you need to win championships. He’s reliabks as they come. He will be greatly missed. I want sooooo much for him to make a pro team and get a nice payday.
Clay always gutted it out. There were several plays in the Sugar where he made several yards after contact and punished the tacklers.
I too will miss Clay and his consistency and determination. A little while back I looked up his career stats at OU…he never fumbled, not once in his four years. That stat alone speaks volumes about who he is and why the coaches trusted him.
His senior year he became one of my favorite sooners. Up until then he really didn’t achieve what was expected of him but he made so many big plays this year and like you said about the fumbles he never made bad plays.
The only year of his, in my view, that was a waste was his freshman year. After that dirty hit from FSU and his concussion, he didn’t play much that year and seemed he lost confidence.
Most forget he was the starter his soph year(2011) then Whaley came along and took the job. He was the starter in 2012 and Williams came along. But Clay was always there contributing when he played, like the Bedlam 18 yard game winner.
Clay was as solid as a RB can be, running, receiving and protecting the ball. About the only thing I can criticize him for was he wasn’t as consistent a blocker as I would have liked.
I’m glad you guys said that about Josh Heupel’s quantum leap in play calling. I felt EXACTLY the same way. I thought the Sugar Bowl was his offensive masterpiece. I thought he did a really nice job vs oSu too, but this was on a whole different level. I honestly questioned his playcalling ability and wondered if he was given too much too soon. I was hoping Bob would put Norvell in the #1 seat on offense, especially after the Texas game & that lousy game plan. Now, I’m not one of those fans who constantly criticizes the offensive coordinator. I cringe when I hear people say dumb things like Kevin Wilson was a bad OC, or Mangino. These guys forgot more about Offense than 98% of the people who read here will ever know. The only OC I was ever glad about losing was Chuck Long. When I, John Q Fan, can sit in the stands and predict what play will be run correctly about 80% of the time (and we’re not running the Veer), that’s a problem. Long had no imagination either.
Anyway, I always wanted Heupel to succeed but there were times when even Bob criticized our play calling and lack of a running game. But I think Josh took a giant leap forward as you guys said. I think we really made strides this year in using time of possession to our advantage to keep our D off the field. I love the hurry up & wait approach…keep them from substituting but run that play clock down & kill their spirit by scoring on a long, time-consuming drive. I hope that trend continues.
Agree about Chuck 3rd and Long! I think the run game suffered because of the O line being recruited and coached to pass block and not concentrate on run blocking. Coach Bedenbaugh is changing the whole attitude of the O line and the run game gets better because the blocking is better and Coach Heupel gets to show his chops.
The coaching changes are making demonstrable visable changes from the previous position coaches. BOOMER.
JY…this was an excellent read. Along with recruiting information, this is something I think readers love and puts TFB into a dimension other sites can’t touch.
I know I love the in-depth analysis on offensive & defensive line play. I love the game & love to learn as much as I can through articles like this. Well done, sir!
Really appreciate it. Both comments.
thank you.
It’s pretty clear to me that Alabama simply doesn’t know what to do on defense if an offense doesn’t just snap the ball and run into the pile on 1st and 2nd down and play their game. They didn’t know where the ball was going next all night and I don’t think they ever got a read on us. We just don’t play that old school football they’re built to stop.
I’m like most general fans…….have watched fb all my life but just follow the general play flow and where the ball is……your breakdown shows what I missed……..took some work to do all this and wanted to say thxs…………I would second the poster that perhaps the defensive side of some game could get the same breakdown.
Feel the same way! This site is a real education. The game has changed so much since the 60’s!
**VIEWING ALERT**
2013 Bedlam on espnu at 6 central.
I’ve been watching it and my Josh Heupel fury came back. Watching him try to run from the damn pistol inside the 5 yard line and then again out of his OWN endzone from HIS OWN 1 yard line nearly made me lose it again. Their linebackers were free to just meet Clay in the hole without a lead blocker every time he tried that nonsense and it was infuriating and incompetent.
I know what you mean.
We can only hope he has moved on from that nonsense.
Great breakdown!!! Been lurking all off season and am glad for the beginning of the season, thx !!
Thanks for reading and posting!
Nice, JY! Missed seeing your posts on here! I remember watching Clinton-Dix get up and fist pump after hitting Brennan on that screen only to turn around and see that he had made it past the first down marker anyway. Watching him throw his head back in a dejected manner was awesome!
EDIT: You’re absolutely right, that was the play that ended it for them!
Anyone know if landthieves is down?
Anyone care?
Negative.
They are having a problem, likely a server down.
Grown to dislike that site. Pretty trashy and nowhere near the high-end stuff I get here. Just my 2Cents…
Thanks for the breakdown of the 4th Quarter JY, great stuff, as always.
Great job on this. It gives you another perspective on how things go into a game/play. I love reading these. I say the best thing to happen during this game was when our defense was out there and I believe it was Julian Wilson didn’t know where to go and we had to call timeout and the players were getting onto him and taking responsibility for what was happening and the coaches just let them take care of it. That is trust in their players and that is when I knew that this team was going to be really good.
very cool breakdown.
I tell you what, this site makes OU football even better to follow. Never ending thanks to all at TFB!!!
Thanks for reading!
It’s been a long 205 days of anticipation of this breakdown & couldn’t come at a better time this week. Thank you JY.
Great breakdown! Very insightful. Heupel earned his pay that night. So did the O-Line. Much appreciated.
Duuuuuude. Seriously?!?! This is the kind of stuff you supposedly get on the pay sites and to be frank, you don’t. I am sitting here at work reading this and I feel like I am in the coaches office breaking tape like a friggin staffer. I consider myself a pretty savvy, knowledgeable fan but this site is taking it to the next level. I would recommend to any of you that have a friend, wife, whatever that wants to get a more intimate understanding of the game within the game you send them to this site. I can’t say enough good about this site and it has become one of my first stops on the web every single day. I say it every time and will again today…keep it up boys and thanks for the obvious hours and hours of work you put into this site.