COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF- NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP
(2) CLEMSON TIGERS at (1) ALABAMA CRIMSON TIDE
CLEMSON: You talk about dominating a game, that’s exactly what they did in the Cotton Bowl against Notre Dame last weekend. This team starts and ends with Trevor Lawrence. I’ve seen a lot of him throughout the year, but last week in the semi-final was the first time I was able to focus and watch him. I’m completely sold on him. He’s a playmaker that can stretch the field, he extends plays with moving inside and out of the pocket, he’s poised playing the position with a lot of reps now under his belt and from a throwing standpoint, he can really throw it and makes it look like pitch and catch with his receivers. It was only a matter of time before Dabo Swinney decided to name him the starter. This is the best team they’ve had since 2016, the year the Clemson Tigers won the national championship. Compared to last year, they have way better weapons this season, especially at wide receiver. Hunter Renfrow is their chain mover and veteran piece on their offense, but the two who make all the difference are Amari Rodgers and Tee Higgins. These are two guys each that can make life extremely difficult for an opposing secondary. Ray-Ray McCloud never put fear into a secondary like these two did. Deon Cain wasn’t as physically gifted as a guy like Higgins. This Clemson offense really gelled early on against Notre Dame and never looked back. When Notre Dame’s top cover corner went down, the Tigers attacked his replacement and it was over from there. They also run the ball and with a lot of great running backs in the country, Travis Etienne doesn’t get mentioned like some of the others, but he can take a game over. I’ll admit that I was nervous for the Clemson defense, especially their vaunted defensive line without their anchor on the field, Dexter Lawrence who had to sit out after being suspended for a failed drug test. No Dexter, no problem. They made life so uncomfortable for Ian Book. Linebacker Isaiah Simmons who was my player to watch also had a big game. The Cotton Bowl was an all-around complete performance. Dabo Swinney has his team in the biggest game of them all for the third time in fourth seasons. To win another title, they will have to defeat a team they’ve seen a bit as of late.
ALABAMA: Although they were given the top seed when the playoff bracket was revealed in early December, you would think they were the underdog going into their game against the Oklahoma Sooners. All you heard about was how good the Sooners offense is, they have the Heisman trophy winner, nobody can hang with their offense not even Alabama who always seem to have such a strong defense. The other issue coming into the Orange Bowl was the health of one Tua Tagovailoa who injured his ankle in the SEC Championship game. How healthy would he be for this game? Especially with how he plays considering he’s a mobile guy that can move inside and out of the pocket. He looked incredible and he looked like the guy that was the front-runner to win the Heisman at the beginning of the year. His passes were sharp, he didn’t look rusty at all and he was very accurate. Tua only had three incompletions. It may seem as if this offense is a pass first unit, but the running game will always be a big part of what they do. Their offense just made it look easy against the Sooners, but then again, they don’t play defense (Oklahoma) so anybody could score at least 30 points on them. This is the first Nick Saban coached team that I saw where the offense seemed to be stronger than the defense at times this season because for so many years, the defense was the backbone of the team and the offense just had to control the clock, ground and pound the football and not turn the ball over. Now, they have an offense that can sustain those longer drives, put up points and carve up a defense. The defense has been better since the beginning of the year and the secondary was the weakest part of the unit after losing some key pieces from last season. Here they are once again with a chance to repeat again under Saban and win their sixth title in ten seasons.
CLEMSON PLAYER TO WATCH– Austin Bryant: You’ve heard about this Tigers defensive line and how great they are. From Clellin Ferrell to Lawrence to Wilkins. This is probably the best athlete of the entire group. At 6’5, what can’t this guy do? He can swarm himself into the backfield, he’s one of the best defensive players in the country when it comes to forcing tackles for loss, his motor is relentless, he can rush the passer, get you an interception so as I asked up top, what can’t this kid do? He’ll need to do everything I said and then some if he and Clemson want to be victorious in this one. It starts with keeping Tua in that pocket.
ALABAMA PLAYER TO WATCH– Josh Jacobs: He plays what I call “bully football”. Go look at how he ran over that defender in the Orange Bowl last weekend. He just lowers the shoulder, keeps his feet moving and runs for those hard-fought yards. He only had 98 yards rushing in the win against the Sooners, but he averaged almost seven yards per carry so it’s all about quality over quantity. Clemson will be all in with trying to limit Tua. I’m establishing this kid early on to wear down this defensive front then the passing game can take those shots down the field.
FINAL ANALYSIS: Well, here we are again. The fourth straight matchup with these two teams in the playoffs and the third in the natty. These battles have given us some memorable moments in our game the last few years. The first battle, Alabama won by a score of 45-40, but a kid named Deshaun Watson gave them all they could handle, and Nick Saban even elected to onside kick the ball at one time. The next year, they met again, and Clemson got their revenge and won it all. Last season, they met in the semifinals and Alabama dominated the game. Clemson’s averaging starting point with the ball was at their own 20-yard line. I’ll be watching Alabama’s offensive line very closely. Can they neutralize the pass rush and play of this Clemson defensive line? Even without Dexter Lawrence, Clemson routinely pushed around a good offensive line, collecting six sacks and eight tackles for loss. Alabama’s defense is up for a test. Trevor Lawrence will be the best quarterback they’ve seen all year long potentially along with Kyler Murray. Trevor is a freshman, but he hasn’t looked like it. He just doesn’t seem to get rattled and he’s yet to have a bad game. The team who gets the best pass rush on the opposing quarterback will win this game. You can’t just sit back and allow either of these two to just pick apart your defenses. Alabama needs to also attack the Tigers secondary. They are known for giving up big plays at times. This will be the best group of receivers that the Clemson will have seen all year. This just calls for a good game hopefully.
PREDICTION: CLEMSON 38 ALABAMA 35
