After last week’s 51-34 win against No. 24 James Madison University in the first round of the College Football Playoff, the Ducks (12-1, 8-1 Big Ten) clinched their spot in the Orange Bowl against the No. 4 Texas Tech Red Raiders (12-1, 8-1 Big 12). The Red Raiders are coming off of a 34-7 win in the Big 12 Championship against No. 12 BYU.

“I think you see a unit that plays really well together. Credit to Coach McGuire and the job that he’s done there — you can see a group that plays with energy and enthusiasm,” Ducks head coach Dan Lanning said at a recent press conference. “They take risks, but they’re well-calculated risks, and they do a really good job. As we prepare for these guys, it’s certainly a challenging opponent and an exciting opportunity for us.”

Texas Tech is one of the nation’s top offenses, currently ranked No. 5 in the nation in total offense and is the No. 10 passing offense in the country. Their run game has also been strong with running back Cameron Dickey ranking No. 17 in the country in rushing touchdowns with 14 and No. 21 in rushing yards with 1095. 

“They run extremely well, they run really hard, they break a lot of tackles and create extra yards after contact,” Lanning said. 

Oregon has already faced two top 10 ranked running backs this season in James Madison’s Wayne Knight and Penn State’s Kaytron Allen, who rank No. 5 and No. 10 respectively. The Ducks struggled to contain Knight who ran for 110 yards, but managed to hold Allen to 54 yards and a touchdown. 

Quarterback Behren Morton has been a leader for the Red Raiders this season, ranking No. 6 in passing yards in the Big 12 and No. 33 in the nation in passing yards per game. His main targets have been wide receivers Reggie Virgil and Caleb Douglas, who rank No. 9 and 10 in receptions in the Big 12 respectively.

“I think they’ve got 54 receptions out of the backfield and that’s another place where [their] quarterback does a great job of getting down to check downs when the vertical shots aren’t there, or in the screen game or easy throws on the perimeter,” Lanning said.  

On the other side of the ball, the Red Raiders have one of the best defensive players in the country in linebacker Jacob Rodriguez. He currently leads Texas Tech in tackles with 117 and leads the nation in forced fumbles with seven, two of which he recovered and scored on one with a 69-yard return against Oklahoma State. Rodriguez has also made appearances on offense this season and has two rushing touchdowns on three carries.

“(He’s) super instinctual, really aggressive,” Lanning said. “And it’s not necessarily just aggressive, with them blitzing him. It’s his ability to find ways to get to the ball, and then when he gets to the ball, he has the intention to get the ball out every snap.” 

Rodriguez has already taken home numerous honors this season, including the Chuck Bednarik, Lombardi, and Butkus Awards. Rodriguez was also fifth in Heisman Trophy voting and received the most votes among defensive players.

“He takes shots at the ball consistently.” Lanning said. “Obviously, in the Big 12 Championship Game, you see their other linebackers show up, making interceptions. They just play really well as a unit. And he’s certainly a guy that brings that same juice for them. You see the whole defense play with that mindset, and I think he’s where it starts.”

Texas Tech ranks third in the country in total defense and has held every team it’s beaten to 20 or fewer points; the only team that exceeded that margin was Arizona State, the Red Raiders’ only loss of the season. The Red Raiders also rank No. 3 nationally in fourth down defense, No. 1 in blocked kicks, No. 1 in blocked punts, and No. 1 in turnovers gained.

The Orange Bowl will kick off at 9:00 a.m. PST on Jan. 1 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.