re: Clemson will be Bama's toughest Test

Thanks for the stats and the analysis. I'm one of those geeks who eats up this kind of material.

However, I'd suggest that your conclusion is skewed, mainly because we are now in January 2016 instead of September 2015.

(1) Bateman started against Ole Miss because he was supposed to run the zone read. Every time Bateman could have gained 20+ yards on the keeper, he was too terrified to make the right call, so he let Henry get stuffed at the LOS.

How much of Bateman and the zone read can we expect to see in the NC game?

(2) With 2:30 left in the game and the Ole Miss run defense completely gassed, Kiffin decided to go for the home run against a soft cover 2. The Nkemdiche/Haynes stunt pressured Coker into throwing his second INT.

That may have been the last really bad decision Kiffin made all season. Since that game Coker has thrown long only when he has a favorable match-up downfield, i.e. after the safeties cheat up.

(3) With regard to poise and confidence, Coker is hardly the same QB we saw in the Ole Miss game.

(4) The Achilles' heel in Alabama's defense was the height and strength advantage the Ole Miss WRs had over Alabama's DBs.

Do Clemson's WRs pose a similar threat?

Clemson may give the Gumps a better game than us SEC homers expect, but I wouldn't bet the farm on it.