ESPN College Football

Here are three keys for South Florida when the Bulls take on Clemson in Friday's Meineke Car Care Bowl:

Control Da'Quan Bowers: Maybe Bowers will be weighed down from carrying all those trophies he won this season. Not much else has worked. Bowers leads the nation with 15.5 sacks and should command a tremendous amount of attention from the South Florida offensive linemen, tight ends and backs. The Bulls have had enough trouble passing the ball under ideal circumstances and will have almost no chance of success if Bowers is in the face of B.J. Daniels and Bobby Eveld all afternoon. If they can keep him contained, they could find some big plays against the much more vulnerable Clemson secondary.

Stop the Clemson running game: The Tigers' Jamie Harper is a load at 230 pounds, and he ran for more than 140 yards against both Florida State and Wake Forest late in the year with Andre Ellington injured. But the Clemson offense really struggled when the running game wasn't working. The Bulls did a great job slowing down UConn All-American back Jordan Todman in the regular-season finale. They need that same kind of effort in this game to force Kyle Parker and/or Tajh Boyd to beat them.

Create unorthodox opportunities: Odds are that neither offense is going to march up and down the field in this one. The Bulls could use something big out of the return game, where Terrence Mitchell and Lindsey Lamar have been tremendous this season. Or perhaps the defense can come up with a turnover to step up a score. Somehow, some way South Florida needs to find other ways to put points on the board.

Here are three keys for Clemson heading into the Meineke Car Care Bowl against South Florida:

1. Smart quarterback play. Not only from Kyle Parker and Tajh Boyd, but from the coaching staff. There has to be good communication between everyone, regardless of who is on the bench or why. Parker will be starting it off, and it’s up to him to make good decisions. In the past six games, he has completed 108-173 passes (62.4 percent). He has passed for 1,107 yards (184.5 per game) during that stretch, but it’s the interception against South Carolina that many remember.

2. Win the battle up front. Defensively, Clemson should have the edge against South Florida’s offensive line with defensive end Da’Quan Bowers, but the Bulls’ front seven could present some challenges for the Clemson’s interior offensive line. Jamie Harper is going to have to work for his yards, but the Tigers should be able to get to B.J. Daniels if he returns from a bruised quad.

3. Win the one-on-one matchups in the secondary. South Florida’s secondary has been underrated but effective. The Bulls are No. 21 in the country in pass defense, and Clemson is No. 84 in passing offense. The receivers will have to get open and help Parker out.