It is Nick Saban’s fifth national championship, one shy of former Tide coach Bear Bryant for the most all-time.
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After a field goal in the fourth quarter tied the game at 24 Alabama shocked Clemson with a pooch onside kick which the Tide recovered easily.
On the second play of the drive and with 9:45 to play in the game, Coker found Howard wide open down the field for a 51-yard touchdown to take a 31-24 advantage over the Tigers. Howard was the offensive player of the game with five catches for 208 yards, including a 63-yarder that set up Alabama’s final score. Alabama was leading 38-27 at that point, but proving he would play until the last second, Deshaun Watson connected with Artavis Scott for a touchdown to make the score 38-33 after the failed two point conversion.
After Watson and walk-on Hunter Renfrow hooked up for two touchdown passes to give Clemson a 14-7 lead at the end of the first quarter, Henry tied it up with a 1-yard plunge.
For much of the night the game was a highlight reel battle between Deshaun Watson of Clemson and Alabama’s Derrick Henry, two of the three Heisman Trophy finalists this season.
Alabama outlasted No. 1-ranked Clemson 45-40 Monday night in Glendale, Az., but it took far more than Henry to survive against the Tigers, who had a 51-game winning streak snapped when they held a lead entering the fourth quarter. They pulled within a point with less than a minute left, but instead of kicking the extra point that would have assured a championship, coach Tom Osborne chose to go for the win with a 2-point try. But Clemson could not overcome the breakdowns on special teams so close to the end. Oklahoma allowed more than 300 rushing yards to Clemson, while Michigan State’s struggling secondary was picked apart by Alabama quarterback Jake Coker in a career performance. Several times Alabama’s highly lauded defense had him trapped, absolutely. That wasn’t going to work against a dual-threat like Watson, who had a national title record 478 total yards.
Henry, the Heisman victor, had two touchdowns. Watson finished 30-for 44 and 405 yards with four touchdowns.
Trying to become the first FBS team to go 15-0, Clemson did not crumble under the force of Alabama’s might.
“I took this opportunity to kind of grow in the profession of coaching and learn from the best with Coach [Nick] Saban, and coach Kiffin and all the coaches that are here”, Colbert said at media day.
Alabama’s Kenyan Drake diving for the end zone on a 95-yard kick return. In the two playoff games, Coker was a combined 41 of 55 for 621 yards and four touchdowns with no interceptions.
Watson’s play, though, could not make up for Clemson’s mistakes on defense and special teams. Clemson won its only national title in 1981. The championship victory was the 100th win for Saban.
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But with Alabama nabbing the title, its name is attached to a historic win for the school and its coach, Nick Saban. The touchdown gave the Crimson Tide a 21-14 edge over the Tigers. Nearly no one would have expected the Crimson Tide to reach the national championship game, particularly after suffering a loss in the third game of the season. In fact, Clemson’s defensive front was so physically overwhelming that Alabama struggled to protect quarterback Jacob Coker, who was sacked five times, and run the ball in the second half. If you want an idea of the rarified air in which Saban finds himself, just know that the other three coaches in the graphic ESPN showed outlining most titles won, Saban was the only one not wearing a an old style fedora hat while coaching in his picture.
