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It’s no secret the Sooners will be led into the gauntlet of SEC defenses by Jackson Arnold and his two headed dragon of Jovantae Barnes and Gavin Sawchuk. Today our resident film junkie Daniel takes us under the hood for a look at their bowl game performance and examine what they are, what they could be, and how they can bridge the gap to their talent ceilings.
Gavin Sawchuk is the high speed, home run hitter of the two. He uses elite reflexes and explosiveness to get through the first level to the second where he just runs past defenders. He cuts extremely well and has no issues taking corners with good hip depth and ankle bend. Here we see him also demonstrating high end balance as he sheds a defender on the first level to get to the second before lowering the shoulder. He’s not the type to run through anyone, he’s much more likely to bounce off them. Another small detail of his game and styling of running (albeit a double edged sword) is his tendency to get vertical in the second and third level and get downhill in a straight line. It’s efficient at times, but occasionally leaves meat on the bone of the run.
Here Sawchuk rides his blockers and demonstrates some patience, but ultimately decides too quickly. Something he could work on his vision and snap decision making; the choice to cut back inside isn’t the worst decision in the world, but if he stays slightly more patient here to allow his offensive linemen to pick up the defender, he can cut outside and take on a defensive back one on one rather than safety and linebacker. Generally at the first level and inside the box his decision making and vision is good, but it’s downfield where he ultimately tends to get vertical and get what he can every time, even in the face of the opportunity of making a big play. As he matures he should end up making more of his opportunities to continue to out maneuver defenders down the field.
Here Sawchuk puts his good vision in the box and explosive ability out of very light cut work to good use by finding the cutback on the zone for an easy 15 yard gut punch. This is him as it his best, reading what’s in front of him and exploding through his decision. At some point the game will slow down for him and the same attributes we see here will transform his game from 30 yard first downs to 60 yard touchdowns.
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