The Showdown in Death Valley

Georgia at Clemson

It doesn’t get any bigger than Georgia’s season opener.  Two top ten teams with national title aspirations, renewing a historical rivalry, squaring off in one of the best venues in all of college football. There will be a moment, just before the games starts, that is a perfect example of why college football is so fantastic. Georgia will enter the stadium just before Clemson runs down the hill touching Howard’s Rock. As fans of both schools go crazy cheering for their team, take a moment to appreciate the tradition of college football.  

Two schools, separated by less than 100 miles, and two passionate fan bases, starving for a championship.

The Georgia/Clemson rivalry dates all the way back to 1897. Georgia leads the all time series, 41-17-4. Georgia holds a record of 8-6-2 at Memorial Stadium, also known as Death Valley. The last meeting was in 2003, when Georgia, the defending SEC champion, shut out Clemson 30-0 on their own field.  Georgia has won the last five games played between the two teams. The last Georgia loss came at Clemson in 1990.

The 2013 edition of the Georgia/Clemson game will be the second biggest in the history of the rivalry.

I say this is the second biggest because of the magnitude of the 1982 game.  The game was played on Labor Day night, and it was a matchup of the last two national champions. Georgia, the 1980 champions defeated 1981 national champion Clemson 13-7 in Athens. Georgia was led by an injured Herschel Walker, who would go on to win the Heisman Trophy that same year.

As for this year’s game, the storylines are endless.

For Georgia, the 2013 season will be all about trying to get back to the SEC title game and finish the job. I still think about that loss at least once a week, and I’m sure the players think about it daily. How does Georgia respond? Do they step up, or do they fall apart after getting so close?

For Clemson, they are trying to prove to themselves and the rest of the country that they belong in the national title conversation. They are riding high after beating LSU in the Chick-fil-A Bowl in 2012, and their top 10 ranking gives them a realistic shot to play for a national title if they can run the table. They have a favorable schedule, and expectations are high. How will they handle the pressure?

All of the questions won’t be answered on Saturday night, but a few will.

All of the hype leading up to the game has been about the quarterbacks. Both Tajh Boyd and Aaron Murray returned to their respective schools for their senior season to try and win a title.

 In his first year as a starter, Boyd led the Tigers to the ACC championship, but that season is most remembered by the unholy beating that Clemson took in the Orange Bowl, a 70-33 loss to West Virginia. Boyd has been remarkably consistent the past two years, and his ability to throw the ball down field to superstar wide receiver Sammy Watkins has been keeping Todd Grantham up at night.

For Murray, the 2013 season, and this game in particular is all about changing the narrative that has followed him his entire career. Murray has led the Dawgs to 2 straight SEC title games, but hasn’t been able to win either of them. The record speaks for itself. Murray is 3-14 in his Georgia career against Top 25 teams. Murray has won a lot of games, but the best win on his resume is against Florida last year, in a game that he didn’t even play particularly well in. Murray has the stats to be an all time quarterback, but he still has much to prove to the Bulldog Nation. Can Murray win the big game? We will find out on Saturday night.

There are many similarities when you look at these two teams.

Both teams have senior quarterbacks leading offenses that should score almost every time they touch the ball. Both teams have dynamic receivers. Both teams have offensive minded head coaches, and both teams have serious questions on the defensive side of the ball.

It would be easy to say the obvious. The team that doesn’t turn the ball over is going to win the game. To me, that is like saying the team that scores the most points is going to win the game. You can’t predict turnovers.

If either Boyd or Murray throws three picks, well, their team is probably going to lose.

I don’t think either of these quarterbacks is going to lose the game.

In my opinion, each team has a decided advantage in one area.

For Clemson, they have a huge edge in the kicking game. Some people might roll their eyes, but in a game that most people think will be very close, it could come down to a kicker. Senior Chandler Catanzaro was 18 of 19 on field goal attempts and only missed two of the 59 extra points he attempted last year.

Compare that with Georgia kicker Marshall Morgan who was only 8 of 14 last year and missed four extra points. Obviously, Georgia loses when it comes to the starting kickers, but the real problem for the Dawgs is that Morgan, presumably Georgia’s best kicker, won’t play on Saturday night because he was boating under the influence. Jimmy Buffet would be so proud. No other Georgia kicker has attempted a kick of any kind of consequence. Hopefully they won’t have to attempt one on Saturday night in Death Valley.

Georgia’s edge in this game is very simple: Todd Gurley. Todd Gurley might be the best running back in the country. Todd Gurley is the kind of running back that you can hand the ball to 25 times in an atmosphere like Death Valley and take the air out of the stadium. There is nothing on paper that tells me Clemson will have any chance of slowing down, let alone stopping Todd Gurley. In the Mark Richt Era, Georgia has lost only four games where a back has gone for over 100 yards. Perhaps the best thing about Georgia’s running situation is that they have a backup that was more highly recruited than their starter. Keith Marshall has taken a backseat to Gurley and his power running game, but Marshall’s change of pace and ability to catch the ball out of the backfield will be just one more thing Clemson, and every other team Georgia plays this year, will have to prepare for.

I don’t think there is any doubt that Georgia will be able to run the football, but what about Clemson?

In 2013, you can’t be one dimensional on offense and expect to win. Last season, Clemson was balanced on offense because they had Andre Ellington. Ellington ran for over 1000 yards last year, and he was enough of a factor in the backfield that teams had to respect the run. This year, Clemson will be depending on Roderick McDowell and Zac Brooks to shoulder the load at running back, but in their careers they have combined for less than 800 yards rushing. If Clemson can’t run the ball early against Georgia, and they become strictly a passing team, then it will make it much easier for Georgia’s young defense to do their job. Tajh Boyd is very good, but he can’t win the game by himself.

One thing the Georgia defense will want to keep an eye out for is Sammy Watkins on trick plays. If Clemson struggles running the ball early, I think they will try a reverse or some other type of trick play to get the ball in Watkins’ hands. If I have thought of this, then so has Todd Grantham. Hopefully Georgia’s defense will be ready.

So, what is going to happen?

Georgia’s ability to run the ball will be the difference. I see a back and forth game in the first half, but slowly, Georgia pulls away in the second half because of their ability to throw off play action fakes. Fakes set up by Todd Gurley and Keith Marshall running up and down the field on Clemson’s defense.

Murray will play well, but Gurley will be the person everyone is talking about on Sunday morning. By the end of the night, Georgia will have rushed for over 200 yards and will approach 500 yards of total offense.

This is not going to be an easy game for Georgia. Clemson is extremely talented, and that stadium will be rocking. Georgia has played in big games before, and that experience will be invaluable on Saturday night.

Georgia 45   Clemson 34

GO DAWGS!