Texas A&M quarterback Johnny Manziel and his offensive coordinator, Kliff Kingsbury (now the head coach at Texas Tech) surprised many in the SEC in 2012 with a supersonic pace of play that irked many defensive stalwarts in the conference, most notably Alabama coach Nick Saban. All indications for the 2013 season are that we'll see an even faster tempo from some of the nation's most explosive offenses, and Exhibit A will be on display Saturday night when the Clemson Tigers host the Georgia Bulldogs.
It's a huge opening game for both teams, but for the Tigers in particular, as a win here is almost certainly a requirement if they are to make a run at the BCS National Championship Game.
There are two keys that jump out to me as necessary for a Clemson victory in this matchup: The Tigers' ability to operate coordinator Chad Morris' offense at a pace that Georgia's defense can't keep up with, and quarterback Tajh Boyd's ability to take advantage of the Bulldogs' fatigue and make big plays.
If both take place, not only could Clemson get the win, but Boyd could launch a run at the Heisman. Let's take a look at how that could play out.