ATLANTA _ It must seem like deja-vu for many of the Alabama players, who are getting ready for another College Football Playoff semifinal matchup with a chance to win back-to-back national championships.
"It does feel familiar just because the fact that we're back in a playoff game again," senior tight end O.J. Howard said Thursday ahead of No. 1 Alabama's Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl matchup with No. 4 Washington Saturday. "You get that same vibe. The schedule is the same and that break in between. It's a familiar feeling type of thing."
All-American defensive end Jonathan Allen senses that familiarity as well.
"I feel like these teams are very similar," said Allen, who is playing in his final season with the program. "I won't say there are a lot of differences, but each team is a team of their own and we're still trying to prove our legacy and etch our name into history."
But when asked whether he considers what winning another national title would mean to the program, Allen was quick to dismiss discussion of anything but the Peach Bowl semifinal game.
"As you're going through it, not really. ... You're just focused on the next game and that's all we're focused on," he said.
Alabama star true freshman Jalen Hurts is among the Tide playmakers trying to avoid focusing on their accomplishments.
Hurts has photographs and magazine covers with his image on them to remind him of what he's achieved so far this season.
But don't expect to find any of those mementos on his walls any time soon.
"I don't want to frame that now," Hurts said. "That's something you save for later on in your life. I still have business to take care of."
Hurts said during a recent visit home for the holidays, his brother told him that he really "owned it." But Hurts brushed off the compliment by adding, "It's fun, but I guess I can enjoy it whenever my career ends."
