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Oklahoma football: Numbers to know before CFP battle with No. 1 Bama

By Chip Rouse

NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 02: A general view of the scoreboard after the Oklahoma Sooners defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 45-31 during the Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 2, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
NEW ORLEANS, LA - JANUARY 02: A general view of the scoreboard after the Oklahoma Sooners defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 45-31 during the Allstate Sugar Bowl at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on January 2, 2014 in New Orleans, Louisiana. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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The 2018 Oklahoma football season has come down to at least  one more game, and hopefully two. For the Sooners to play two more games, though, they will have to knock off top-seed Alabama in the College Football Playoff.

Something that is not as inconceivable as it might sound, despite the fact that Las Vegas oddsmakers currently list the Sooners as 14-point underdogs to the defending national-champion Crimson Tide.

This much-anticipated Playoff matchup, the second of the two national semifinal games to be contested on Dec. 29, will feature the nation’s No. 1 offense , led by OU Heisman-winning quarterback Kyler Murray, against Alabama’s widely acclaimed big, bad defense, ranked as the 10th best among FBS (Football Bowl Subdivision) teams in total defense, but No. 4 in the nation in scoring defense, allowing opponents just 14.8 points a game.

Most every fan wants to see how the high-powered Oklahoma offense, which averages 577 yards and nearly 50 points a game, will fare against one of college football’s best defensive teams. But the Alabama offense is equally explosive and loaded with talented playmakers, including sophomore quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, the runner-up to Murray in this year’s Heisman voting.

Alabama is the first team on Oklahoma’s 2018 schedule in which the Sooners will not be favored against. Moreover, the prime question in this game is not whether Alabama can outscore Oklahoma, but rather whether the Sooners’ highly disparaged defense can hold down the Crimson Tide enough on offense to enable OU to stick with the Rolling Tide on the scoreboard.

Here are some notable numbers to keep in mind in preparation for Oklahoma’s third College Football Playoff appearance in the last four seasons:

1.6 — The scoring margin between Oklahoma’s nation-best 49.5 scoring average and Alabama’s 47.9 scoring average.

3-1-1 — Oklahoma’s all-time record in games with Alabama, including victories in three consecutive meetings.

8.7 — Average yards per play this season by the Oklahoma offense. The Sooners set the NCAA record last season, averaging 8.3 yards per play. By comparison, Alabama averages 7.9 yards per play this season.

13-0 — Alabama’s season record entering the College Football Playoff game against OU.

20 — This will be Oklahoma’s 20th appearance in the Orange Bowl. The Sooners are 12-7 in Orange Bowl appearances.

32.4 — Average points allowed by the Oklahoma defense this season. That is 17.6 more points per game than the Alabama defense allows (14.8).

96 — Oklahoma ranks 96th out of 129 FBS teams this season in scoring defense. That compares to Alabama’s No. 4 national ranking in the scoring defense category.

45-31 — Oklahoma’s winning margin the last time the Sooners played Alabama (in the 2014 Sugar Bowl). Alabama was ranked No. 3 in the nation at the time and was the two-time defending national champion.

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