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Orange Bowl Preview: #1 Alabama vs. #4 Oklahoma

By Eric Robinson

TUSCALOOSA, AL - NOVEMBER 17: Tua Tagovailoa #13 of the Alabama Crimson Tide rushes against the Citadel Bulldogs at Bryant-Denny Stadium on November 17, 2018 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images)
TUSCALOOSA, AL - NOVEMBER 17: Tua Tagovailoa #13 of the Alabama Crimson Tide rushes against the Citadel Bulldogs at Bryant-Denny Stadium on November 17, 2018 in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. (Photo by Kevin C. Cox/Getty Images) /
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BATON ROUGE, LA – NOVEMBER 03: Quinnen Williams #92 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates a second half sack while playing the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)
BATON ROUGE, LA – NOVEMBER 03: Quinnen Williams #92 of the Alabama Crimson Tide celebrates a second half sack while playing the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium on November 3, 2018 in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images) /

Alabama Players To Watch

QB Tua Tagovailoa: The runner-up in this year’s Heisman race is just as magical as Kyler Murray. Tagovailoa showed against Georgia in last season’s national championship and he showed that during this season against Texas A&M, LSU, Tennessee, and Auburn.

Tagovailoa is entering this contest with an ankle ailment that is less than 100% right now and will probably not be fully healthy until after the season. When big games arise for the Crimson Tide, Tagovailoa seems to rise to the occasion.

DL Quinnen Williams, Isaiah Buggs: Defensive linemen being manufactured at the University of Alabama has become an annual occurrence and the Tide has another set of aggressive linemen that are important cogs.

Between Williams and Buggs, the two combine for 30.5 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks. They are also key reasons to why Alabama is 18th in the FBS in rushing defense. The Alabama defensive line will be able to collapse the pocket on Murray at times but what will be key is if this duo along with the rest of the front seven can contain Murray from generating big plays via his rushing ability.

WR Jerry Jeudy: Arguably the biggest playmaker on offense this season outside of Tagovailoa was the 6’1 sophomore receiver. Jeudy is 10th in the country in receptions of 20 yards or more with 20 and he’s tied for seventh in receptions of 40 yards or more with seven.

There are a plethora of receivers that Alabama deploys on a game by game basis but Jeudy is the best of the bunch and against a leaky Oklahoma defense, Jeudy could be in for a career day.

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