Marcus Mariota. Jameis Winston. Say those two names over and over again and you\u2019ll be up to date on the primary narratives coming into the College Football Playoff showdown between the Oregon Ducks and the Florida State Seminoles. However, there are other intriguing matchups in this highly anticipated Rose Bowl that will have as much or more to do with what happens in the game. Let\u2019s take a look at three of them below.<\/p>\n
We\u2019re going all in in our coverage of the College Football Playoff. You can read a full game preview of Oregon vs. Florida State here<\/a>, or peruse our complete preview of Alabama vs. Ohio State here<\/a>.<\/p>\n[sc:NCAAFArticles ]\n [sc:NCAA240banner ]We all know how overwhelming Oregon\u2019s offense is. It\u2019s been doing so great that the Ducks\u2019 defense\u2014a solid one\u2014is being overlooked by a lot of people. To give you an idea how adept Oregon\u2019s defensive unit is in limiting its opponents\u2019 attacks, consider that the Ducks rank \u00a0a respectable 58th<\/sup> in yards per play (5.40), 57th<\/sup> in yards per rush (4.12), and 25th<\/sup> in turnovers forced (25).\u00a0But the one that will likely be the most crucial aspect of the Ducks\u2019 defense against Florida State is how their secondary will fare against Winston\u2019s receivers\u2014Rashad Greene in particular.<\/p>\n Greene has been Winston\u2019s favorite target, as the wide receiver leads the Seminoles in receptions (93), receiving yards (1306), and touchdowns (7). His 100.5 receiving yards per game rank 13th<\/sup> overall in the nation.<\/p>\n It won\u2019t be an easy task to handcuff the Seminoles\u2019 receivers but it also won’t be a a walk in the park for Green and company to get past Oregon\u2019s defensive backs. For one, the Ducks have the Pac-12 conference\u2019s leader in interceptions in safety Erick Dargan, who finished the regular season with six picks. There\u2019s also cornerback Troy Hill who topped the conference with 17 passes defended.<\/p>\n The Ducks like to run. Marcus Mariota and company can beat teams by relying more on rushing the ball than tossing it, which is something they could use to the hilt against the Seminoles\u2019 defense that has looked very vulnerable on the ground in their most recent game. Florida State\u2014ranked 60th<\/sup> in the nation in rushing defense with 160.08 yards allowed per game\u2014was thoroughly abused by the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets\u2019 backfield in the ACC Championship Game.<\/p>\n Georgia Tech made a mockery of the Seminoles\u2019 defense, as the Yellow Jackets rushed for 331 yards and four touchdowns. Oregon probably will not go as hard on the ground as the Yellow Jackets against the Seminoles, but it looks like the opportunity is there for the likes of running back Royce Freeman (1,299 rushing yards, 16 touchdowns) and Mariota (669 yards, 14 touchdowns) to get their ground game going whenever they want to.<\/p>\n For all the havoc wreaked by Mariota on the field, he could have done even more had the Ducks\u2019 offensive line played consistently throughout the season. Mariota was sacked 29 times this season, which tells a lot about the susceptibility of his protection unit.<\/p>\n Mariota was sacked seven times in the Ducks 38-31 win over the Washington State Cougars on September 20. That was followed by another discouraging performance by the Ducks\u2019 offensive line in their 31-24 loss to the Arizona Wildcats on October 2, wherein Mariota was sacked five times and was held down to just 276 passing yards.<\/p>\n Granted that Mariota wasn\u2019t 100 percent healthy<\/a> against the Cougars and that in the Arizona game, the Ducks were up against the Wildcats\u2019 pass rush fronted by Scooby Wright III\u2014among the most effective linebackers in the nation\u2014those were still not enough to be an excuse for Oregon\u2019s offensive line\u2019s shortcomings.<\/p>\n That being said, Oregon\u2019s protection of Mariota has since seen improvement. When Oregon beat the Wildcats 51-13 in the Pac-12 Championship Game, Mariota was able to pass for 313 yards and two touchdowns. Furthermore, Mariota was also able to rush for 33 yards and three touchdowns. In the two teams’ first meeting, Mariota only had one yard rushing with no touchdowns.<\/p>\n All those improvements by the Ducks\u2019 offensive line will have to show up against Florida State. Although the Seminoles have only 17 sacks in the regular season, the team nevertheless have two imposing linebackers in Mario Edwards Jr. and Eddie Goldman ready to pounce any chance they get. Both players have combined for seven sacks this season.<\/p>\n You wouldn’t want to miss this game, right? Add excitement to to your College Football Playoff viewing by putting a bet or two in these games. Create a betting account now.<\/a><\/p>\n[sc:NCAA490banner ]\nThree Key Matchups in Oregon Ducks vs. Florida State Seminoles CFP Game<\/h2>\n
1. Oregon\u2019s Secondary vs. Florida State\u2019s Receivers<\/h3>\n
2. Florida State\u2019s Rush Defense vs. Oregon\u2019s Rush Offense<\/h3>\n
3. Florida State\u2019s Pass Rush against Oregon\u2019s Offensive Line<\/h3>\n