Tigers beat Crimson Tide in National Championship
Clemson Tigers celebrate after winning the National Championship against the Crimson Tide. Photo by: worldeport.com
By Edward Lennon// Staff Writer
The thrilling 2016-2017 college football season lasted over four months, but the result of the most important game of the season’s most important game was determined in the final seconds. On Jan. 9, the Clemson Tigers defeated the Alabama Crimson Tide 35-31 in the College Football Playoff Championship game.
The Crimson Tide head coach, Nick Saban, were looking to continue their dynasty by winning their fifth championship in the last eight seasons. Going into the championship game, Alabama was 14-0, with analysts believing that this could be the best team ever. They were looking to become the first college football team in over 100 years to finish the season 15-0. On the other hand, the Clemson Tigers were seeking revenge. After losing to Alabama in last year’s championship, the Tigers, along with head coach, Dabo Swinney, and quarterback, Deshaun Watson, wanted to walk away from this year’s game with a much different feeling.
Heading into the fourth quarter, leading 24-14, it seemed as the Crimson Tide’s success would continue. Unexpectedly, Clemson scored two touchdowns, going up by four. But, Alabama countered as their freshman quarterback, Jalen Hurts, ran the ball 30 yards for a touchdown with roughly two minutes remaining. Watson responded by quickly leading the Tigers down field. Down by three, on the two yard line, Swinney had a difficult decision to make – either tie the game with a field goal and go into overtime, or to take the chance on scoring a touchdown to take the lead with very little time left on the clock. They went for it. Watson rolled out of the pocket and hit Hunter Renfrow in the end zone with one second left on the clock. In epic fashion, Clemson won the national championship.
The end to this year’s season was the final surprise of a season filled with multiple surprises. One of the biggest surprises came from this year’s Heisman Trophy winner, Louisville quarterback Lamar Jackson. Going into this season, not a lot of people knew who he was, let alone thought that he would win the Heisman Trophy. Jackson ended up with 51 touchdowns and close to 5,000 total yards. Many experts believe he is one of the favorites to win the Heisman next year, and will likely be selected in the first round of the 2018 NFL draft.
The biggest surprise team of this season was the Washington Huskies, ranked No. 14. In the preseason poll, the Huskies won the Pac-12 championship and made it to the College Football Playoffs. The Huskies lost to Alabama in the semi-finals, but impressed the whole league by finishing 12-2.
Even though this season just ended, everyone is already anticipating next season. One team and player to watch for next season is the University of Southern California Trojans and their quarterback, Sam Darnold. USC will be lead by Darnold next season after going 11-3 this year and winning the Rose Bowl. At the beginning of this season, Darnold was the backup quarterback. But after being named starter, he went 9-1, won the Rose Bowl, threw for 31 touchdowns and over 3,000 yards. He is one of the favorites for the Heisman Trophy next year and many people believe that he will be the first pick of the first round of the 2018 NFL draft.
This season was defined by the surprises that occurred each week. Players put their names on the map, creating many opportunities for future success. As exciting as this college football season was, all fans are already looking forward to and thinking about next season.