Real Sports 02-23-19

Clemson Strikes a Blow for College Football Fans, Teams, and Coaches Everywhere (except Alabama) with National Championship Blowout

Finally, it happened. The Alabama defense got shredded. The Alabama offense was stopped. It all happened on the same night. The Clemson Tigers showed Alabama and college football people everywhere that the Tide wasn't invincible. The Tigers came in as the underdogs, and came out as the unquestionable No. 1 team in the country. Some even want to label the Tigers as the best of all time. "There was a lot of talk about the best ever all year long," said head coach Dabo Swinney, "We were never in that conversation. But tonight, there's no doubt. We're the first 15-0 team." Had Alabama won, perhaps they would be the ones to make such a bold proclamation. Instead, the undefeated Tigers will be the ones in the debate that has no real answer. Still, Clemson has some serious reasons to be at or near the top. Obviously, they were the first team to finish 15-0, but that was a chance not given to teams before 2014. But the Tigers were rarely challenged, only twice not winning by at least 20 points. Only Texas A&M (28-26) and Syracuse (27-23) kept it close. Clemson won the ACC championship game 42-10, and then the semifinals 30-3 over the third best team in the country, Notre Dame. Then came the Alabama game. Clemson outscored their final three opponents (with two of them in the top three) by a total of 116-29. Senior defensive tackle Clelin Ferrell made his feelings rather clear. "I feel like we're the best team ever. We're 15-0," he said. "Most wins by a senior class and we beat the team that was considered the best team in the history of college football."

"I know we're not supposed to be here, we're just little old Clemson," Swinney said after the game, "And I'm not supposed to be here, but we are and I am."

If it had been Alabama dominating the game and proudly (but perhaps rightly) saying they were the best, most fans would have been upset. After all, Alabama has been in every College Football Playoff so far, and appeared in the last four championships. Alabama has played in nine of the fifteen CFP games (Clemson has played in seven). Alabama hasn't had a two-loss season since 2014, and only two in the past ten years. Five titles in the past nine years, and seven appearances in the championship game. Ten straight years appearing in the Top 5 of the AP Preseason Poll, and eleven straight years appearing as No. 1 at some point in the season. So what if Alabama had the best team ever? If they've been this dominant and haven't had a team that was ranked as one of the best ever then something would be wrong. However, Clemson was good but never great until the College Football Playoff. Clemson doesn't have the history Alabama has. It's refreshing to have a new team be the one to challenge the great teams of old. The victory over Alabama has made Clemson a national favorite, even though they have been almost as dominant as the Crimson Tide. The majority of college football fans were most likely pulling for the Tigers, so the game was a great delight. A Clemson team led by underclassmen, and starring a true freshman quarterback, took apart the Crimson Tide like it was a weak conference opponent. The ‘Bama weaknesses were on full display for the country to dissect. The game marked the second most points ever allowed by a Nick Saban coached Alabama team, and it was the worst defeat Saban has had since he was coaching at LSU. Alabama and their infamous coach were shown to be human, which is what the country wanted.

"One game doesn't define who you are," said Saban, "I also told the players that sometimes we learn more when things don't go well, when we lose. You have to learn how to lose as well as how to win."

Clemson has given hope to the rest of the SEC, and to an extent the rest of the Power 5 teams. If a team is put together correctly, it can take down the juggernaut. While Clemson is far ahead of the rest of college football, it isn't impossible for a team to get to their level. Clemson may become the villain in the next few years, with their top three offensive players returning for at least two years. Clemson-'Bama is a great rivalry, both on and off the field. It used to seem as though Clemson was always the underdog, no matter how good they were. The same could be said for any team that played Alabama. But now, Clemson seems to have the upper hand.

Sources:

Newberry, Paul. "Clemson Makes Bid to Be Considered Best Team Ever." AP News, Associated Press, 8 Jan. 2019, www.apnews.com/74c6f21c8c064044a5101064db260c3e.

Russo, Ralph D. "Orange Crush: Clemson Topples No. 1 'Bama for National Title." AP News, Associated Press, 8 Jan. 2019, www.apnews.com/3acf0c90f6934e4a97f59c127209504a.