With no football, these past 11 days between the College Football Playoff semifinals and Monday night’s national championship game seem like an eternity.

But now we’re getting close. Monday night is just hours away. Get the popcorn ready – or maybe a few cold beverages – and watch Alabama and Clemson battle it out for all the marbles.

The game is at 8:30 p.m. (ET) on ESPN, with Chris Fowler and Kirk Herbstreit doing the call. Those guys are the best, so it’s unlikely we’ll hear anything about Alabama running back Derrick “Harvey.” Sorry, Uncle Verne fans.

But we will hear plenty of names during the three-hours-plus broadcast. Here are the 20 most important players who will likely get a mention or two … or 20.

1. Derrick Henry, Alabama RB: The Heisman Trophy winner had a relatively quiet night in the semifinals against Michigan State, but that was only because the Spartans were hell-bent on stopping him. How’d that work out? When you win 38-0, individual stats really don’t mean anything. Look for a big game from the powerful back, at least in the 150-yard range or more.

2. Deshauwn Watson, Clemson QB: The sophomore consensus All-America is the heart and soul of the Tigers team and probably the best QB in the country. More so, he’s the kind of QB that kills Alabama, because he can run and throw and he’s capable of breaking a big play at any time. Watson threw for 3,704 yards and 31 touchdowns and ran for 1,032 and another 12 scores. That’s scary good.

3. Jake Coker, Alabama QB: Jake Coker has shed that “game manager” label lately and made some huge throws down the stretch to key Alabama victories. He’ll need to do the same Monday night. Crimson Tide fans are counting on him, which they weren’t doing early in the season. But he’s won the job and he’s earned it. Now he needs to finish the deal. Blake Sims threw three picks in Alabama’s playoff loss last year. Coker can’t repeat that on the big stage.

4. Reggie Ragland, Alabama LB:  Ragland is Alabama’s leading tackler, and he’s going to be butting heads with Watson a lot anytime the Clemson QB chooses to take off with the ball. Ragland will be key in stopping Clemson’s running game. He’s a beast, and he’ll be all over the field making plays.

5. Wayne Gallman, Clemson RB: Largely overlooked playing with Watson, Clemson’s leading rusher is certainly not a player to take for granted. Gallman, much like Henry, is a workhorse. He led the ACC with 268 rushing attempts and was second in the conference with 1,469 rushing yards.  Gallman rushed for 12 touchdowns and also caught 19 passes out of the backfield this year for 273 yards and two touchdowns.

6. A’Shawn Robinson, Alabama DL:  The Alabama defense is built around its dominant front seven, probably the best in the game, and Robinson is a beast along the defensive line. He will occupy multiple blockers on every play and make life much easier for his teammates. You also might see him blocking on goal-line situations for Bama’s offense, and he’ll blow some people up.

7. Cyrus Jones, Alabama CB: Jones  might be the most electric player on the Alabama roster. He has emerged as Alabama’s best cover corner, and he is a dynamite punt returner. He helped bury Mississippi State and Michigan State on special teams in that role and is capable of breaking a game wide open in a flash.

8. Shaq Lawson, Clemson DE: A consensus All-America, Lawson is the leader on the Tigers defense. He went down early with an injury in the semifinal gam against Oklahoma but his pals still played great without him. He says he’s ready to go for Monday night, and he’ll play a key role. Lawson led the nation with 22 tackles for loss this season. The junior has piled up 44 tackles for loss in his career, which ranks ninth all-time in the ACC.

9. Calvin Ridley, Alabama WR: The dynamic freshman has been tremendous this year for Alabama and he fits right into that mold of great Tide receivers like Julio Jones and Amari Cooper. Look for Coker to try to find him early and get the Clemson defense worried about him. He’s capable of taking it to the house on any catch.

10. Tim Williams, Alabama LB: Williams won’t be that guy who’s got his nose on the football every play, but he’ll sure come up with the big sack often at a critical time. Williams has played a big role in the Crimson Tide’s ability to get to the passer without blitzing. Chances are pretty good he’ll make a game-altering play in this game.

11. Artavis Scott, Clemson WR: Scott was Watson’s favorite target this season, catching 89 passes as a sophomore. He burst onto the scene last year with 76 catches as a freshman and he will have to find a way to make plays against the Alabama secondary. Scott piled up 868 receiving yards, ranking fourth in the ACC, and caught five touchdown passes. He was second in the conference last season with eight touchdown receptions and totaled 965 yards.

12. Eddie Jackson, Alabama safety:  The move from cornerback to safety has really changed the look of the Alabama defense and Jackson has been a big part of that. All four guys in the secondary can run with any wide receiver now and since the Ole Miss loss they’ve been very productive. He returned interceptions for touchdowns at Georgia and Texas A&M and can be expected to make some big plays Monday night.

13. ArDarius Stewart, Alabama WR: The Tide’s problems early in the season in getting the ball downfield seem like so long ago. Along with Ridley, the wideouts have been playing great and Stewart has become a serious threat. Stewart can be flashy, so look for a highlight-reel catch on Monday. He’s already done it a few times, once with a one-handed jump ball to spark the game-winning drive against Tennessee and he also caught the go-ahead touchdown against Auburn.

14. B.J. Goodson, Clemson LB: Clemson’s leading tackler this season, the senior was sixth in the ACC with 49 assisted tackles. Always around the football, Goodson compiled a team-high 98 tackles (49 solo). As aggressive a linebacker as there is, Goodson piled up 14 tackles for loss and over the past two years Goodson has five fumble recoveries. He’ll be trying hard to force some turnovers on Monday night.

15. Adam Griffith, Alabama PK: Griffith missed the first four field goals this season, but he’s been money ever since. He had a huge game against Auburn and seems immune to pressure, which is a good thing in a national championship game. He’s made all 56 extra points and he’s been 22 of 26 on field goals since that poor start.

16. Ryan Kelly, Alabama OL: Kelly won the Rimington Trophy as the nation’s top center and he’ll need to lead an offensive line that will have its hands full with Clemson, which allowed only 67 yards rushing to Oklahoma on 33 carries in the semifinals. The running backs get all the props at Alabama, of course, but it’s the offensive line that has them in position to win a fourth national title under Nick Saban. They’re that good.

17. Jayron Kearse, Clemson SS: Kearse is going to need to come up and help on the run, but he also can’t be fooled by Alabama’s play-action passing game. For Clemson to win this game, they can’t get beat by big plays. It’s on Kearse to make sure that doesn’t happen. You can guarantee that Alabama offensive coordinator Lane Kiffin has watched lots of film on Kearse, hoping to find a way to fool him.

18. Kenyon Drake, Alabama RB: Derrick Henry has proven that he can carry the load all by himself, but those 44- and 46-carry games came about basically because Drake wasn’t 100 percent with that arm injury. Here’s there to help Monday night, and could have an impact in a reserve role.

19. Ben Boulware, Clemson LB: If there’s any such thing as a one-on-one matchup in a college football game, it’s going to come Monday night with Boulware and Derrick Henry. Every time Henry runs the ball, expect to see the Orange Bowl defensive MVP right there waiting for him, ready to make a play. Boulware has to play well for Clemson to win.

20. Greg Huegel, Clemson PK: So many times, huge games come down to one final kick that decides it. Clemson has a freshman kicker in Huegel, so will he be up for the challenge if that’s what it comes down to?.He’s been really good all year. He was 25 of 29 on field goals for the season and made three against Oklahoma.