Alabama wins the College Football Playoff National Championship over Ohio State 52-24. Five thoughts and analysis of the game, and what it all means.
Alabama vs Ohio State: College Football Playoff National Championship 5 Thoughts
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5. The College Football Playoff National Championship tried to be good
It gave it a run.
It’ll get lost in the amazing performances by the Crimson Tide and the blowout final score, but this was actually looking like a potentially decent game to close out an awful bowl season.
Remember, it was 7-7 after the first quarter.
Remember, it was 14-14 early in the second and 21-17 Alabama with five minutes to play in the first half.
Postgame views 🤩 @AlabamaFTBL pic.twitter.com/ZMBXWVtXG6
— College Football Playoff (@CFBPlayoff) January 12, 2021
Even after the Alabama explosion in the final few minutes for a 35-17 lead going into halftime, and even after a field goal made it 38-17, there was still a shot to make this good after a crisp three play Ohio State scoring drive in just over a minute pulled the game to within 14.
All this game needed was one Buckeye defensive stop. A takeaway, a third down play, a sack … anything.
Instead, that was it. Ohio State couldn’t find any sort of groove, Bama answered the third quarter Buckeye touchdowns with a good drive and a Slade Bolden touchdown catch as part of 14 unanswered points, and that was the ball game.
Ohio State needed some sort of a defensive answer, and it never came against the relentless Crimson Tide attack, and because of it …
NEXT: Alabama had the perfect season
4. Alabama had the perfect season
Let’s just slow the roll a wee bit on the Best Nick Saban Alabama Team/Season Ever talk for right now.
Unless you don’t want to.
This team might not have been his best – that 2011 team lost a game, but allowed 106 points in 13 games – but it’s very, very hard to argue with the run it just had.
It was a great season, it was a national championship season, it was a perfect season without any real on-field drama – Jaylen Waddle injury and Nick Saban COVID issues aside – but LSU was a shadow of its 2019 self, Auburn wasn’t that great, Notre Dame was a just okay CFP team, and …
Whatever.
Rewriting the books with tonight's showing.#CFBPlayoff x #RollTide pic.twitter.com/uGMsr9ggzf
— College Football Playoff (@CFBPlayoff) January 12, 2021
Alabama beat everyone but Florida by double-digits, the offense toyed with the rest of college football, and it all ended with an SEC championship, a national championship, and a big fat 0 at the end of the record.
Out of the seven national titles won by Saban, this was his second perfect season with the first coming in 2009. In terms of true greatness that team might have been a wee bit stronger in a different sort of way – dominant defense, the SEC Championship win over Florida was better than anything the 2020 team did, Texas was a better national championship opponent than Ohio State – but again …
Whatever.
There wasn’t a FIU or a UT Chattanooga or a North Texas on the schedule like that 2009 team faced, but we’re splitting hairs here.
Where was the blip? Ole Miss put up some yards on the 2020 Crimson Tide, and Florida certainly gave it a run in the SEC Championship, but every other game was merely a fun exercise, and offensively, that included the national championship.
There wasn’t a struggle – at least on the field. This was all fun, and it was yet another win to throw on the Crimson Tide pile.
NEXT: Ohio State was missing too many guys
3. Ohio State was missing too many guys
Alabama was winning this game. It had a brilliant game plan, it was executing everything to perfection, and the team clearly didn’t have any sort of issues with the moment of the mindset.
This Crimson Tide team wasn’t going to blow this game.
However, Ohio State wasn’t right.
Yeah, it mattered that it was missing two starting defensive linemen. You don’t just replace your top interior pass rusher – Tommy Togiai was part of the list of players out – along with 12 other players and be totally fine.
Yeah, it mattered when Trey Sermon – who ran for 636 yards and four touchdowns in the previous three games – was knocked out of the game right away, and it mattered when NFL first round offensive lineman Wyatt Davis went down.
And it mattered that Justin Fields wasn’t nearly the Justin Fields that ripped through Clemson. He battled through and finished the game, but he needed to be the best player on the field, and he wasn’t.
The Ohio State issues isn’t an excuse. The game might have been closer, but again, Bama wasn’t losing this.
NEXT: Nick Saban changed, and now he has seven
2. Nick Saban changed, and now he has seven
The Miami Dolphins under Don Shula were always known for their amazing defenses and great running games, and then this Dan Marino guy came along and the franchise changed. All of a sudden, the stodgy and dependable Dolphins had the greatest passing attack the NFL had ever seen – at least at the time.
Bad example – Miami didn’t win any Super Bowls after 1972 – but the adaptability was part of the reason why Shula went on to become the winningest head coach in NFL history. He changed, and his career kept on rolling because of it.
Nick Saban’s defenses at Alabama were among the best that college football had ever seen. The 2011 version only allowed more than 14 points once on the way to the national title.
Nick Saban soaking in the moment #NationalChampionship pic.twitter.com/2Z8ymlL4jm
— ESPN (@espn) January 12, 2021
There were years – like 2016 and 2011 – when the run defense didn’t allow 1,000 rushing yards in a full campaign. But the sport was changing, the SEC was changing, and Saban quickly figured out he needed a team that could keep up offensively if needed.
Between Johnny Manziel, some of the Hugh Freeze offenses at Ole Miss, and Deshaun and Trevor at Clemson, some tweaking had to be done.
Alabama went from being No. 1 on a regular basis in the defensive categories that mattered, to No. 1 now on the offensive side.
Yeah, it’s okay to win games 52-24, especially if they’re for the national championship. It also helped that …
NEXT: The Alabama superstars were superstars
1. The Alabama superstars were superstars
There was no way Alabama was going to start blasting away on this Ohio State run defense.
Don’t let the raw stats fool you – Najee Harris ran for a hard, effective 79 yards and two touchdowns, and he caught seven passes for 79 more yards and a score.
Najee Harris went Najee Harris.
Mac Jones was way overdue for a clunker.
At some point he was going to throw a key pick, start struggling when under pressure, and he was finally going to face the type of adversity he hadn’t seen all year.
He lost one fumble, but he didn’t throw any interceptions, completed 36-of-45 passes for 464 yards and five touchdowns, and he kept on moving the offense even when his Heisman-winning target left the game injured.
Mac Jones – who had the most efficient passing season in college football history – went Mac Jones.
And then there was DeVonta Smith.
OH MY DEVONTA SMITH 🤯
That makes THREE TOUCHDOWNS for the Heisman winner 🔥 pic.twitter.com/u9qpKEKnTC
— ESPN (@espn) January 12, 2021
He was going to be a marked man, future NFL corner Shaun Wade was going to be all over him, the Ohio State coaching staff was going to figure out a way to take him out of the play, and …
12 catches, 215 yards, three touchdowns, all in one half.
DeVonta Smith went DeVonta Smith, offensive coordinator Steve Sarkisian went Steve Sarkisian, and the Alabama offense started hot and stayed there for the entire game.
Ohio State had all sorts of problems in all sorts of ways, and it needed its stars to blow up. Justin Fields struggled, Trey Sermon was hurt right away, and Chris Olave caught eight passes but for just 69 yards.
The Buckeyes had the talent, but the superstars didn’t come through. Alabama’s did, and it finished the season 13-0 with a national championship.
