Oklahoma staged a decent resurgence after falling behind 28-0 in the first 17 minutes. Final score 45-34.
The total yardage was darned close: 528-471, but at one point in the game, the tally was 191-0 in favor of the Tide. As predicted, Oklahoma’s Achilles heel was pass defense. Alabama was nearly perfect in the air, with 25 for 28 and four TDs. Oklahoma finished the year DEAD LAST in the nation in passing defense!
Alabama and Clemson will face off yet again, both undefeated this time. They met after the 2015 and 2016 seasons in the finals, and they met last year in the semi-finals, but none of those seasons produced an undefeated champion. In 2015, eventual champion Alabama lost early in the season to Ole Miss. In 2016, eventual champion Clemson had been shocked earlier in the season by losing to lowly Pitt, a team that went 8-5 for the year and finished unranked. In 2017, eventual champion Alabama dropped one to a tough Auburn team.
That 2017 Auburn team really had its ups and downs. During the regular season they defeated both of the teams that made it to the national championship game, but then lost their own bowl game to UCF! Or maybe that meant that UCF was just that good. As we’ve all noted many times, UCF is the Rodney Dangerfield of college football. No respect, I tell ya. And speaking of UCF, they are 7 1/2 point underdogs vs LSU. I rarely have a sentimental pick in these bowl games, but I will be pulling for UCF.
Not only will we have an undefeated champ this year, but the winner of that final game will finish 15-0, which will be a feat never accomplished in this century or the last. The last time a college team finished undefeated with 15 wins or more was in 1897!!