He even told his kicker, Adam Griffith, before the game that he’d likely attempt an onside kick at some point during the title game.
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When watching film in advance of last night’s college football championship game, Alabama head coach Nick Saban noticed tendencies he thought his team could exploit if Clemson lined up a certain way on kickoffs. However, Swinney said the Tigers are built to return to the national stage and next time they’ll understand what it takes to win at the highest level. In the receiving end, Charone Peake had 99 yards in six catches while Hunter Renfrow added 88 yards and two touchdowns. “We scored on the big play two plays later, and then we had a kickoff return for a touchdown, too, which was huge”.
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, Ariz.
On a night when the nation’s top-ranked defense was shredded by Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson, it took two big plays on special teams to overcome the individual performance.
Two plays later, Tide QB Jacob Coker hit tight end O.J. Howard on a 51 yard touchdown pass to put Alabama up 31-24, a lead they’d never relinquish. “It’s good to be an Alabama fan – of course, I still would be no matter what”, Shirley said, clutching a jersey and magazine that he hoped to get autographed.
Watson disagrees. He said he’s got to work on his accuracy and get stronger.
Saban made no apologies for going with the onside kick in the situation his team was in. Alabama scored four touchdowns on plays of 50 or more yards.
The Crimson Tide became the second team in college football’s poll era, dating back to 1936, to win four titles in seven seasons. Howard went deep as the other Alabama receiver went short.
Watson, as a passer and runner, accounted for almost 87 percent of those yards, as Clemson surpassed 500 offensive yards for an 11th consecutive time to end the season.
The sophomore, who finished third in the Heisman Trophy voting, had 478 total yards against a loaded Tide defense that was the toughest in the country. That was until Saban showed up in Tuscaloosa. He ran for 158 yards and three touchdowns on 36 carries. On Monday night, thanks in part to a great set of skills and in part to narcolepsy in the Clemson secondary, Howard finished with 208 yards on five catches and two long touchdowns. “But the score was pretty close, coach Saban called it, And [we] went out there and did it”.
Just a little more than 30 minutes before the game began, new Utah defensive coordinator Morgan Scalley tweeted the following about special teams, which he coached for the Utes last season. Alabama pulled away from Texas for Saban’s first Tide title.
It covered the game with every channel it had, including the SEC Network, where Arkansas Coach Bret Bielema and former LSU standout Booger McFarland did a great job of looking inside the game. It worked, and Alabama went on to beat Clemson 45-40.
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Clemson Coach Dabo Swinney was upset with the referees after the onside kick.
