NCAA College Football Bowl National Championship: ALABAMA vs. CLEMSON

All times Eastern

Results:
Bowl Week 1: Rick: 5-3; Coin: 4-4
Bowl Week 2: Rick: 4-5; Coin: 2-7
Bowl Week 3: Rick: 11-11; Coin: 10-12
Cumulative: Rick: 20-19; Coin: 16-23

Monday, January 7

8:00 pm Clemson (14-0) vs. Alabama (14-0) (-6, 59 1/2) - This is the game everyone wanted. Alabama and Clemson have been ranked 1-2 all season long and the two top programs in college football will finally meet to determine who's best.

There's not much separating these two, who previously met last season in a CFP semifinal, Alabama taking a 24-6 decision en route to the National Cahmpionship, their fifth under head coach Nick Saban. The previous season, Clemson topped the Tide, 35-31, in the national championship game after demolishing Ohio State, 31-0 in the semifinal.

Both teams are undefeated, whipped through their conference schedules with ease, but, truth be told, the Tide was vulnerable in the SEC championship game, needing a heroic comeback led by backup QB Jalen Hurts for a 35-28 victory, and Alabama also didn't close out well against Oklahoma in last week's semifinal. The Tide led 28-0 early in the second quarter, but were outscored by the Sooners, 34-17 the rest of the way for a 45-34 win.

Granted, the Sooners were the top offense in college football this season, but the Clemson squad isn't far behind, plus, the Tigers play ferocious defense. Clemson knocked out Notre Dame in their semifinal, dominating the Irish in a 30-3 rout.

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