Improving upon the awful numbers from the semifinals on New Year’s Eve yet still falling short of last year, Alabama’s 45-40 win over Clemson on Monday night saw a 15 percent decrease from the inaugural College Football Playoff championship, according to numbers released by ESPN on Tuesday. J Howard with a 53-yard scoring strike to take a 21-14 lead with a little more than two minutes gone in the second half.
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The Crimson Tide have now won four national titles in the past seven years, all under coach Nick Saban. He led the Tigers to a 14-1 record in 2015, the most victories in school history and just the eighth team in FBS history to win 14 games in a season.
Derrick Henry had his typical workmanlike performance, carrying the mail 36 times for 158 yards and three scores.
In October, Scarbrough finally lined up in the backfield, and he gained five yards on his first two career carries against Georgia.
It was a great game, with Alabama winning 45-40.
National Signing Day is just around the corner and Alabama commit 232-pound North Carolina native B.J. Emmons is now ranked as 247Sports’ No. 3 running back, but fans should expect Scarbrough to use his five-star potential and the flashes of brilliance he showed in limited action to ascend to the top of the depth chart next season. But coaches such as Saban would push back on that idea, and the four-team bracket maintains the importance of the regular season while satisfying the public wish for a playoff.
For Saban, it is his fifth national championship – four in his nine seasons at Alabama – leaving him only one short of former Tide coach Bear Bryant for the most all-time. But it was a still debated pass interference call in overtime that gave the Buckeyes another chance, and they won 31-24 in double OT. “By far the best national championship Alabama’s played since Saban’s been here”, Shirley said. Watson finished 30-for 44 and 405 yards with four touchdowns.
Howard also had a 63-yard reception on a screen pass in the second half.
“We thought, to be honest with you, we could do a better job against their quarterback”, Saban said. Clemson managed to bottle him up for the majority of the night following a 50-yard scamper in the first quarter.
Play of the game: Kenyan Drake’s kick return: Clemson had just cut the lead to 31-27 midway through the fourth quarter when Drake took the kickoff and sprinted 95 yards to the end zone.
“We didn’t always play pretty in this game”.
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The second five, in order, were Michigan State, TCU, Houston, Iowa and Mississippi.
