Oklahoma was at Clemson's 5-yard line midway through the fourth quarter of the Orange Bowl last week.

The Sooners were down by 20. But a touchdown would have at least given Oklahoma some hope of coming back with more than seven minutes still left in the fourth quarter.

Instead, pressure from the Tigers' defensive line forced Sooners star quarterback Baker Mayfield to roll right. Clemson linebacker Ben Boulware then jumped and made a juggling one-handed interception when Mayfield attempted to connect with an Oklahoma wide receiver in the back of the end zone.

Led by Mayfield and standout running backs Samaje Perine and Joe Mixon, the Sooners had scored an average of 52 points in their previous seven games and had been held under 30 points just once in its first 12 games entering that Playoff semifinal matchup with Clemson. The Tigers held that Oklahoma offense scoreless during the second half, helping Clemson come back to beat the Sooners, 37-17, after trailing 17-16 at halftime.

The Tigers' offense is ranked among the best in the country behind a quarterback, Deshaun Watson, who finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting. But when No. 2 Alabama faces the No. 1 Tigers in the national championship game next Monday, the Tide will also have to overcome one of the top-rated defenses in the nation.

"Great defensive team," Alabama coach Nick Saban said of Clemson on Monday.

Clemson is the only FBS team ranked in the top-11 nationally in both total offense and total defense and one of only two FBS teams ranked in the top-26 in both categories.

The Tigers are the only team from a Power Five conference to be ranked in the top-38 in both total offense and total defense.

"Their overall athleticism is just so impressive," Oklahoma offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley told reporters in Florida leading up to last week's game. "Like every defense, they make some mistakes here and there, but they're so athletic that they cover them up. They take a lot of chances ... and they've got the athletes to cover down when they do make a mistake. They're good everywhere. There's not a lot of weaknesses."

Clemson is sixth nationally in total defense, ninth in pass defense, 22nd in yards per carry allowed, fifth in tackles for a loss per game and seventh in sacks per game.

The Tigers have three players on defense that CBS Sports projects will be first or second round picks in next year's NFL draft if they decide to turn pro -- junior defensive lineman Shaq Lawson, redshirt sophomore cornerback Mackensie Alexander and 6-foot-5, 220-pound junior safety Jayron Kearse.

Lawson leads the nation with 23.5 tackles for a loss. He is tied for 11th with 10.5 sacks.

While Lawson suffered a knee injury vs. Oklahoma, Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said Monday that he is "very optimistic" Lawson will be able to play vs. Alabama.

"He makes plays, and he makes plays in every single game," Oklahoma's Riley said of Lawson. "He's consistent about it. It's not like the guy just had two or three big games. He's disruptive. He plays hard. He's obviously got a great future in this game at the next level. He's one of the few, to me, that are equally good against the run and in pass rush situations."

Even without Lawson, the Tigers held Oklahoma to just 10 points during the final three-and-a-half quarters.

The Sooners had six possessions during the second half. The first ended in a three-and-out. Clemson then stopped Oklahoma on a fourth-and-1 after the Sooners had advanced to the Tigers' 30-yard line. Clemson then got an interception and forced another three-and-out before the drive that ended with Boulware's interception and one final three-and-out.

The Tigers finished with five sacks and held Oklahoma's two standout running backs, Perine and Mixon, to a combined 62 yards on 18 carries.

They had rushed for a combined average of 170 yards in the Sooners' first 12 games.

"We've built this team in the trenches," Swinney said. "And most great teams, that's where it starts. You've got to be able to control the line of scrimmage and have some type of running game and stopping the run, and certainly that's been what Alabama has been for a long time. We've tried to do that here. We've tried to go the best we can and getting those guys to help us be dominant up front, and we've done a good job of that."

Alabama, though, scored four offensive touchdowns and put up 440 yards of total offense against a Michigan State defense ranked 26th nationally during its 38-0 Playoff semifinal win over the Spartans last week.

And while Clemson has had some great games defensively -- like limiting Miami to 146 yards of total offense and six first downs in a 58-0 win -- the Tigers' have struggled at times defensively as well.

South Carolina, which ranks just 99th nationally in total offense, produced 402 yards of total offense and 32 points during a five-point loss to Clemson in November.

Notre Dame, North Carolina State and North Carolina each also gained 389 yards or more.

The Fighting Irish had 432 during a game the Tigers won, 24-22.

But Riley said of Clemson's defense, "If you're not on your game, they're going to expose you pretty quickly."