Win the field position battle and don’t turn the ball over
The Sooners have one of the best in the business in all-purpose kicker Austin Seibert. The junior kicker is 15 out of 18 in field-goal attempts, 75 of 75 in extra-point tries and averages 42.6 yards per punt. Perhaps his best stat, however, is the percentage of his kickoffs that reach or go through the end zone and result in touchbacks. Seventy-nine of his 103 kickoffs in 2017, or 61.4 percent have been touchbacks.
Ten of Seibert’s 36 punts have been downed inside the opponent’s 20-yard line, and 10 have been for greater than 50 yards.
With two teams as talented and highly ranked as Oklahoma and Georgia, field position can play a huge role in the final outcome. Keeping Georgia deep in its own territory to start drives not only will force them to go long distances to score, but also potentially could result in a shorter field for the Sooner offense to operate in when the field is flipped on a possession exchange.
Both teams are plus-five in the turnover category (and tied for 29th in the FBS). Oklahoma has protected the ball well this season, committing only 12 turnovers all season (seven lost fumbles and five interceptions). Generally, the team that wins the turnover battle is in the best position to win the game.
The Sooners don’t want to give a team as good as Georgia additional opportunities or breaks caused by a turnover.