Clemson wins National Championship!

Posted

TAMPA, Fla. -- Another Clemson - Alabama College Football Playoff National Championship game, another wild finish.

Only this time, it was the Tigers who pulled off the late-game magic.

Trailing by three with 2:01 remaining, Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson drove his team 68 yards and found Hunter Renfrow from 2 yards out with six seconds to go as the Tigers earned a 35-31 victory on Monday at Raymond James Stadium -- earning a measure of redemption for last year’s championship loss while also giving Clemson its second national title in school history.

CU finishes the year 14-1 while the Tide fall to 14-1 after missing out on winning back-to-back titles.

Watson finished 36 of 56 for 420 yards and three scores -- none bigger than the last one to Renfrow. The last-second score came on the heels of a late Alabama touchdown run by quarterback Jalen Hurts that gave the Tide the lead after just relinquishing it to the Tigers the series before.

Hurts threw for 131 yards, but the Tide offense was negated for most of the second half.

The first half was a defensive struggle as neither offense found any kind of consistency. The Tide had to punt five times and the passing attack was near non-existent as quarterback Hurts threw for just 40 yards.

Watson and the Tigers had a rough half as well. The CU quarterback was sacked twice and only rushed for one positive yard as the Tigers managed just 50 yards on the ground.

That was not the case for the Tide, who struck early thanks to Bo Scarbrough. With 9:23 left in the opening quarter, he found a seam for 25 yards and a score to put Alabama up 7-0. The TD came on the heels of Clemson turning the ball over on downs at the UA 41.

He added another big run early in the second, this time from 37 yards out as the Tide took a 14-0 lead. Scarbrough had 76 of ‘Bama’s 143 rushing yards in the first half.

The CU offense finally found its footing midway through the second quarter. A 43-yard strike to Deon Cain breathed new life into the Tigers as they drove to the UA 39. A 26-yard hookup with Jordan Leggett put Clemson in the red zone, and two plays later Watson took the ball himself to the left, avoided a tackle, and tip-toed down the sideline for an 8-yard score to cut the deficit to 14-7 with 6:09 left to go.

That was the score at halftime as neither team managed to maintain any momentum. Clemson also fumbled the ball once, but the Tide were unable to take advantage of the miscue.

That was not the case to start the third quarter as Ryan Anderson punched the ball away from Wayne Gallman and returned it to the CU 28. The Tigers defense held, however, and forced a 27-yard field goal from Adam Griffith to make it a 17-7 ‘Bama advantage.

But a short punt on the Tide’s next possession set Watson and company up at the UA 42. He took quick advantage four plays later by finding Renfrow across the middle of the field for a 24-yard catch-and-run as Clemson pulled within 17-14 with 7:10 left in the quarter.

It stayed that way until the 1:53 mark when ‘Bama tight end O.J. Howard once again victimized the Tigers with a long TD catch, much like he did in last year’s title game. This one went for 68 yards and gave the Tide a double-digit lead again, 24-14, heading into the final frame.

The advantage didn’t last long though as Watson soon tossed his second TD of the night -- this time on a fade route to Mike Williams as CU once again pulled within three, 24-21, early in the fourth.

It stayed that way until late when the Tigers finally broke through for their first lead of the game. Watson directed a 6-play, 88-yard drive that ended with Gallman leaping into the end zone for a 1-yard score as Clemson took a 28-24 lead with 4:38 left.

The Tide offense, which had been all but shut down in the second half, converted a fourth-and-1 play to keep their drive alive, and Hurts eventually found running room a few plays later to scamper for a 30-yard score and a 31-28 UA lead with 2:07 remaining.