Game Primer: The Capital One Orange Bowl

OPENING KICK

• Making its first appearance in the College Football Playoff, fourth-ranked Oklahoma (11-1 overall, 8-1 Big 12) continues pursuit of its eighth national title when it meets top-ranked Clemson (13-0, 8-0 ACC) in the Capital One Orange Bowl on Thursday at 4:10 p.m. ET at Sun Life Stadium (capacity 66,524) in Miami Gardens, Fla. The game will be televised by ESPN with Brad Nessler, Todd Blackledge and Holly Rowe announcing.

• Oklahoma is making its 19th Orange Bowl appearance, more than any other school (Nebraska is next with 17). OU's 12 Orange Bowl wins also pace all programs (Nebraska ranks second with eight victories). Four of the Sooners' seven national championships culminated with Orange Bowl wins.

• This marks Oklahoma's 49th bowl appearance. OU's .594 bowl winning percentage (28-19-1) is fourth best among the 15 teams with at least 40 bowl appearances.

Oklahoma is making its 19th Orange Bowl appearance, more than any other school. OU's 12 Orange Bowl wins also pace all programs.

• The Sooners are 5-0 against AP-ranked opponents this year. OU has more wins without a loss against AP-ranked foes than any team in the country.

• For the first time in school history, OU will face its fourth straight opponent ranked in the AP's top 11 when it meets No. 1 Clemson. The Sooners won their last three games (two of them on the road) by an average score of 44-29.

• OU's seven-game winning streak is the fifth-longest active streak in the country and the Sooners' longest since winning 11 straight in the 2010-11 seasons. The last time OU had a longer single-season winning streak was in 2006 (eight games).

• The Sooners have secured their 13th season of at least 10 wins under 17th-year head coach Bob Stoops. Under his direction, Oklahoma is the only FBS program to rack up 13 seasons of double-digit victories since 2000.

• This marks OU's 17th consecutive bowl bid, all under Stoops. It is the longest streak in school history (previous record was eight under Barry Switzer) and the third longest active streak in the nation (Virginia Tech 23; Georgia 19).

• This year's Big 12 title was Oklahoma's ninth under Stoops, meaning he has won league championships at OU more years than he has not. No other program has claimed more than two Big 12 championships during the Stoops era.

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Eric Striker holds up the Big 12 Championship trophy, the ninth OU head coach Bob Stoops has won in his 17 years leading the Sooners.

• Oklahoma is 55-27 (.671) vs. AP Top 25 teams in the Stoops era. The win percentage is the best in the country during the span and the win total is second behind LSU (57).

• The Sooners have not played since a 58-23 Big 12-clinching win at then-No. 11/9/10 Oklahoma State on Nov. 28. OU led 14-10 after the first quarter before exploding for 30 points in the second quarter to take a 44-20 lead and put the game away. Baker Mayfield threw two touchdown passes and ran for 77 yards and another score. Joe Mixon rushed for 136 yards and two touchdowns, Samaje Perine ran for 131 yards and two scores, and Jordan Thomas intercepted two passes and returned one for a touchdown in the Sooners' win.

• Clemson, No. 1 in each of the College Football Playoff rankings this year, defeated North Carolina 45-37 in the ACC Championship Game to win the program's 15th conference crown. Quarterback Deshaun Watson was named MVP after totaling 420 yards of total offense and accounting for five touchdowns against the Tar Heels.

FIVE TOP STORYLINES

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• Oklahoma has faced four of the five teams it lost to last year and has rebounded to defeat all four of those opponents (beat Kansas State 55-0, Baylor 44-34, TCU 30-29 and Oklahoma State 58-23). The other team to beat the Sooners last year was Clemson (40-6 in the Russell Athletic Bowl).

• Oklahoma boasts the nation's best combined ranking (24) in scoring offense and scoring defense. The Sooners own the country's No. 3 scoring offense (45.8 ppg) and No. 21 scoring defense (20.8 ppg). Clemson has the fifth best combined ranking (33). It ranks No. 15 in scoring offense (38.5 ppg) and 18th in scoring defense (20.2 ppg).

• Clemson's Deshaun Watson and Oklahoma's Baker Mayfield finished third and fourth in Heisman Trophy balloting, respectively, and each quarterback has been recognized as a first-team All-American by multiple organizations. Mayfield has thrown 35 touchdown passes and five interceptions (7.0 ratio), while Watson has thrown for 30 TDs with 11 interceptions (2.7 ratio).

• The Sooners held eight of their nine Big 12 opponents to yardage totals below what they were averaging at the time of competition against OU. The nine league opponents combined to average 491 yards as they prepared to face the Sooners, but averaged a combined 347 yards (-144) against OU. See full details in the chart above.

• In the season's first six games, Oklahoma averaged 158.8 rushing yards on 3.8 yards per carry. Over the last six outings, the Sooners are averaging 311.2 rushing yards on 6.4 yards per attempt (most per carry in the nation during the stretch). Meanwhile, OU is allowing only 128.8 rushing yards (3.5 yards per carry) over the last six games.

SCOUTING CLEMSON

• Riding a nation's-best 16-game winning streak, No. 1-ranked Clemson (13-0 overall, 8-0 ACC) is coming off a 45-37 win over North Carolina in the ACC Championship Game. The Tigers amassed 608 yards of total offense (319 rushing, 289 passing) and 33 first downs while holding the Tar Heels to 12-of-35 passing on the night. The win gave Clemson its 15th ACC title (first since 2011).

• The Tigers rank 12th nationally in total offense (510.6 ypg) and 15th in scoring offense (35.8 ppg). They have surpassed 500 yards of total offense in nine straight contests. On the other side of the ball, they rank seventh nationally in total defense (295.7 ypg) and 18th in scoring defense (20.2 ppg). Clemson ranks second in the nation in third-down defense, as opponents have converted just 24.9 percent of the time.

• Sophomore quarterback DeShaun Watson, who won the Davey O'Brien Award and finished third in Heisman Trophy balloting, has completed 69.5 percent of his passes (ranks third nationally) for 3,512 yards (270.2 ypg) and 30 touchdowns while throwing 11 interceptions. He has also run for 887 yards (68.2 ypg) and 11 scores. Watson is 16-1 as a starter at Clemson.

• Sophomore running back Wayne Gallman has rushed for at least 100 yards in seven games this year, including a 187-yard performance against North Carolina last game. He has rushed for a total of 1,332 yards this season and is just 13 yards shy of the Clemson single-season record of 1,345 set by Raymond Priester in 1996.

• Junior tight end Jordan Leggett was a John Mackey Award finalist and has totaled 34 receptions for 442 yards and a team-leading seven touchdowns. He had a TD reception in five straight games at one point, a Clemson record for a tight end.

• Junior defensive end Shaq Lawson was named a finalist for the Bronko Nagurski and Rotary Lombardi awards. Lawson leads the team with his 9.5 sacks on the year and ranks No. 1 in the nation with 1.7 tackles for loss per game (22.5 total).

• Head coach Dabo Swinney has been at the Clemson helm for 100 career games, compiling a 74- 26 record. Swinney's 74 wins are the third most in Tigers history.

NOTING OU'S SEVEN-GAME WINNING STREAK

• Since losing 21-14 to Texas on Oct. 10 in Dallas, the Sooners have dominated the opposition. Oklahoma has outscored its last seven opponents by 228 points (an average of 32.6) and has outgained them by an average of 251.8 yards.

• Dating back to the Oct. 17 win at Kansas State (last seven games), OU ranks first nationally in points per game (52.0), total offense per game (592.9 yards), total touchdowns (48), offensive TDs (46), first downs per game (29.6) and interceptions (15).

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Quarterback Baker Mayfield ranks first nationally in pass TD/interception ratio (10.5), dating back to Oct. 17.

• Quarterback Baker Mayfield has completed 70.7 percent of his passes over the last seven games (average of 256.6 yards; has exited four of the seven early, one at halftime) with 21 TDs and just two interceptions. Dating back to Oct. 17, Mayfield ranks first nationally in pass TD/interception ratio (10.5), second in pass efficiency rating (183.9) and passing TDs, and third in completion percentage (70.7) and touchdown percentage (11.0).

• Running backs Samaje Perine (132.4) and Joe Mixon (84.1) are averaging a combined 216.5 rushing yards and have totaled 18 rushing TDs over the last seven games. Perine is averaging 7.2 yards a carry during the stretch while Mixon ranks third nationally during the period by averaging 7.6. Perine's 12 rushing TDs since Oct. 17 rank second nationally.

• Wide receiver Sterling Shepard ranks third nationally since Oct. 17 in TD receptions (8) and yards from scrimmage per touch (14.8), and fourth in receiving yards per game (112.1; minimum seven games).

• Kicker Austin Seibert leads the nation since Oct. 17 in made extra points (45) and ranks fourth in points per game (10.3).

• Cornerback Zack Sanchez has registered five interceptions since Oct. 17, tied for the most in the nation. The five picks have basically come in four games. Sanchez missed two games during the seven-game stretch due to an ankle injury and all but one play of another for the same reason.

SOONERS STATE CASE AS NATION'S MOST COMPLETE TEAM

• No team in the country can claim to be a more complete team than Oklahoma. The Sooners possess the nation's best combined ranking (24) in scoring offense (No. 3) and scoring defense (No. 21), and are the only FBS squad that ranks in the top 35 nationally in points per game, points allowed per game, yards per game (7th), yards allowed per game (31st), rushing yards per game (17th), passing yards per game (18th), sacks per game (4th), interceptions per game (7th), turnover margin (14th) and net punting average (7th).

• OFFENSE: Oklahoma is the highest scoring football program of all-time, and only two Sooner teams have ever averaged more points than the 45.8 this year's squad is averaging. Over the past seven games, OU has kicked it up a couple notches, averaging 52.0 points per contest. The Sooners have accounted for more than 500 yards of offense in each of the last seven games, and three of the top five single-game yardage totals of the 17-year Bob Stoops era have been recorded this year, including the top figure of 773 (vs. Tulsa).

• DEFENSE: OU leads the Big 12 in scoring defense (20.8 ppg), total defense (350.7 ypg), rushing defense (149.2 ypg), passing defense (201.5 ypg) and pass efficiency defense (108.0). In the 19 years of the Big 12, no team has ever finished the season as the league's leader in all of those categories.

• PUNTING: OU ranks seventh nationally in net punting average (41.5 yards) and leads the nation by surrendering 0.7 yards per punt return (opponents have returned 10 punts for a total of seven yards; only one other team is below 2.0 yards per return).

• PLACEKICKING: Freshman Austin Seibert, who is also OU's punter, has scored 119 points this season, the second most ever by an OU kicker and the second most by a freshman in school history (Samaje Perine had 126 points last year).

• KICK RETURNS: A second-team All-American by CBS Sports last year as a kick returner, junior Alex Ross recorded 170 kick return yards against Oklahoma State in OU's last game, the fourth most in a contest in school history. He had a 90-yard return in the win, making him the first player in OU history to produce three kick returns of at least 90 yards in a career.

SOONERS VS. AP NO. 1

• In FBS history, Oklahoma is tied with Alabama, Miami (Fla.) and Purdue for the second most wins over the AP No. 1 team with seven. Only Notre Dame (8) has more wins against the top-ranked team.

• OU is 43-10-1 (.806) all-time as the AP's No. 4 team in the country, and owns an 18-3 mark under Stoops.

GETTING DEFENSIVE

• Out of 127 FBS teams, OU now ranks fourth in sacks per game (3.2), fifth in interceptions per game (1.6), 12th in pass efficiency defense (108.3), 15th in defensive pass completion percentage (.526) and 21st in scoring defense (20.8 ppg).

• Over the season's first three games, OU was -4 in turnover margin. Over the last nine contests (all in Big 12 play), it is +14.

Over the last nine contests Oklahoma is +14 in turnover margin.

• Prior to the Kansas game on Oct. 31, senior defensive end Charles Tapper had 3.0 sacks (all in 2014) over a 20-game span going back to the start of last year. Over the last five games he has 7.0 total sacks. He has also forced three fumbles during the stretch.

• With 23.0 career sacks (7.5 this season), senior Eric Striker is OU's all-time leader in the category among linebackers (he has 9.0 more than second-place Rocky Calmus [1998-01]) and is tied for fifth overall in school history. Striker ranks second in the Big 12 in tackles for loss (16.0) and fifth in the Big 12 in sacks this year (7.5). He has 14.0 tackles for loss over the last nine outings (1.6/game).

• Cornerbacks Zack Sanchez (six) and Jordan Thomas (five) rank first and third in the Big 12 in interceptions. Sanchez, who was injured on the first play against Texas Tech on Oct. 24 and missed the rest of that game and the next two, returned to register an interception at Baylor and two more against TCU. He has five picks in the last four games (not including the Texas Tech contest). Sanchez has 14 career interceptions, tied for sixth most in school history, and is tied for the OU career lead with three pick-sixes. Thomas had two interceptions at Oklahoma State, including one he returned for a score. It was his second game this year with multiple INTs.

MAYFIELD'S GOT THE NUMBERS

• Junior quarterback Baker Mayfield has been masterful in his first year of competition with the Sooners. A former walk-on at Texas Tech (he was named 2013 Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year) who transferred to OU as a walk-on, Mayfield, this season's Sporting News Player of the Year, is second in the nation in pass efficiency rating (178.9) and passing yards per attempt (9.6), while ranking fifth in touchdown passes per game (2.9), sixth in points responsible for per game (21.0), seventh in completion percentage (.686), 14th in total offense per game (317.4) and 20th in passing yards per game (282.4). The Burlsworth Trophy winner has 35 TD passes and five interceptions. Because of comfortable leads or injury, Mayfield has exited early in six of 12 games. OU has run 131 plays without him.

• Mayfield has thrown for at least one touchdown in all 12 games and has passed for at least three scores in eight contests.

SHEPARD CLIMBING RECEIVING CHARTS

• Senior receiver Sterling Shepard has rapidly ascended several OU career charts this year. A 2014 and 2015 first-team All-Big 12 selection by the league's coaches, Shepard ranks second in career receiving yards (3,395) and career receptions (226), and third in career 100-yard receiving games (12) and career TD receptions (26).

• Shepard, who is averaging 130.4 receiving yards and 9.4 receptions over the last five games with six touchdowns, leads the team this season in receptions (79), receiving yards per game (100.1) and TDs (11). His 1,201 receiving yards rank as third most in OU single-season history.

• Shepard, who shares the OU single-game record with 15 catches (last year vs. Kansas State), wears the same jersey number (3) as his late father, Derrick, who was also a Sooner receiver (1983-86). Derrick Shepard played in the 1986 Orange Bowl in which OU beat Penn State to win the 1985 national title.

PERINE RETURNS TO FORM

• Over the first six games this year, sophomore Samaje Perine averaged 70.0 rushing yards per outing (4.5 per carry) with three touchdowns. Over the last six games, he is averaging 145.2 rushing yards (7.4 per carry) with 12 TDs. For perspective, Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry of Alabama averaged 6.5 yards per carry (also 12 TDs) over the last six games of the regular season.

• Perine, who has rushed for at least 90 yards in each of the last six games (four games during the stretch with at least 131 yards), is up to 1,291 rushing yards on the season. He is just the third Sooner to eclipse the 1,000-yard mark in both his freshman and sophomore seasons, joining De'Mond Parker (1996 and '97) and Adrian Peterson (2004 and '05).

SUNSHINE STATE SOONERS

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Ty Darlington is one of three Sooners from Florida.

• Four Sooners hail from the state of Florida and three of them are starters. Senior center Ty Darlington is from Apopka (near Orlando), senior outside linebacker Eric Striker hails from Tampa and junior safety Ahmad Thomas is from Miami. Thomas played three high school games at Sun Life Stadium (won all three). Reserve long snapper Jack Aubel, a freshman, is from Coral Springs.

EXTRA POINTS

• Since the start of the 2009 season, the Sooners are 14-1 against teams they lost to the previous season. The only back-to-back losses they sustained to one opponent during the stretch came to Baylor in 2013 and 2014.

• In the 17-year Bob Stoops era, no team has more AP top-five appearances than Oklahoma's 120. Alabama (112) is next and is followed by Ohio State (97), USC (86) and Florida (82) and Texas (82).

• This year's Sooners have posted the No. 1, No. 3 and No. 5 yardage totals of the Stoops era (773 vs. Tulsa, 710 at Kansas and 684 vs. Iowa State).

• Oklahoma has racked up more than 500 yards of offense in each of the last seven games. In fact, the Sooners surpassed the 600-yard mark in three consecutive games (vs. Texas Tech, at Kansas, vs. Iowa State) for only the third time in the program's storied history (first time since 1971).

• OU was ranked No. 19 in both the Associated Press and Amway Coaches top 25 preseason polls, its lowest ranking in both polls to start a year since its national championship season of 2000. The Sooners started at No. 19 in both polls that year, as well.