2014 Russell Athletic Bowl results: Clemson smashes Oklahoma to bits

The Big 12’s awful Monday did not prove why TCU and Baylor didn’t make the College Football Playoff, that Charlie Strong was the wrong hire in Austin, or that Bob Stoops is almost done in Norman. Three games don’t have to be a referendum on anything in particular.

But that doesn’t mean it wasn’t a really, really bad day for the 10-team conference with the 12-team name.

The 34-point margin was just two points shy of the most lopsided bowl loss in Oklahoma history, and one score short of the Russell Athletic Bowl record margin of victory. It got so bad that the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s office was sympathizing with those who chose to imbibe during the game:

2. Dabo Swinney is building his legend. Swinney won the head job at Clemson by salvaging the Tigers’ 2008 season, but was on uncertain ground at first. That ground is completely solid now. Clemson won its third consecutive bowl game Monday night, and finishes its fourth consecutive season with 10 wins for the first time since 1987-90. Swinney is the first coach in Clemson history to pull off that feat -- the previous four-year run was split between Danny Ford and Ken Hatfield -- and the Tigers look loaded again for 2015. Most impressive: Swinney did it without offensive coordinator Chad Morris, who left to become head coach at SMU during bowl preparations.

This is Clemson assistant strength and conditioning coach Adam Smotherman. His job is keeping Brent Venables safe, no matter how far the coach wanders off the sideline while making play calls and monitoring players.

Smotherman did his job to such perfection Monday night against Oklahoma that ESPN spent a great portion of the fourth quarter focusing on his deeds. The game was a 40-point blowout at the time, so this was about the only competition going on.

Clemson is beating the hell out of Oklahoma in the Russell Athletic Bowl. It’s 40-0 as I write this (and ended -- ouch -- 40-6), and the Oklahoma County Sheriff’s office is in disaster mode:

That counts as legal writ, so get to drinking, Oklahomans.

Previously in Dabo:

Clemson started its season with losses to Georgia and Florida State, but the Tigers managed to defeat every unranked opponent on their schedule. While Clemson’s offense has sputtered, the defense has been fantastic. The Tigers ended the season ranked seventh nationally in points allowed. Dabo Swinney and his team are attempting a third consecutive bowl win, having defeated Ohio State in last season’s Orange Bowl.

The Sooners have limped through an injury-plagued season with losses to TCU, Baylor and Kansas State. Oklahoma’s implosion against rival Oklahoma State in the season finale left a sour taste in fans’ mouths, but the Sooners mirror Clemson. The Russell Athletic Bowl participants are a combined 17-1 against unranked opponents and 0-7 against those that were in the top 25.

This past weekend marked the second beginning of bowl season.

If you are playing in a bowl game between December 26 and 31, you are likely a team from a name-brand conference, one with athleticism, upside, and nearly fatal flaws. Of the 10 teams that played on Saturday, nine were from power conferences (and the 10th was Cincinnati, which still feels like a major-conference team), and seven began the day between 6-6 and 8-4.

Watson has shown flashes of immense potential during his freshman season, but his year has been limited due to injuries. He missed a month with a hand injury in the middle of the season before hurting his knee initially against Georgia Tech, and then again in practice. In eight games of work, Watson threw for 14 touchdowns and only two interceptions while completing 67.9 percent of his passes. He also rushed for five touchdowns.

The 18th-ranked Tigers will take on Oklahoma in the Russell Athletic Bowl on Dec. 29 in Orlando.

When the Russell Athletic Bowl was founded in 1990, it was the Blockbuster Bowl. There may be a joke somewhere about this year’s game being the first since Blockbuster finally closed its doors, but that may be too much of a stretch. This is a space for information, not humor. And here’s the most important information: This year’s game will feature a talent-filled matchup of Clemson and Oklahoma.

Nothing was funny about last year’s Russell Athletic Bowl, which Louisville won, 36-9, over Miami in quarterback Teddy Bridgewater’s final collegiate game. Bridgewater, now a member of the Minnesota Vikings, won the game’s MVP with three touchdown passes and a 1-yard touchdown run.