Alabama football: For first time in Nick Saban era, Alabama experienced what it was like to play Alabama
SANTA CLARA, Calif. — The question was simple, but Christian Miller needed a full 15 seconds to collect his thoughts and fight back tears.
What happened out there?
“It was just (pauses) a tough game,” Miller said in the postgame locker room. “I don’t think we played our best by any means. When it comes down to it, you can’t afford to have any mistakes. Eventually, they caught up to us.”
Miller’s quote is both understated and the perfect explanation of what transpired on Monday night inside Levi Stadium. No. 1 Alabama, which had been completely dominant for much of the season, was dismantled by a better team. No. 2 Clemson stomped Alabama for 60 minutes en route to a 44-16 thrashing, the worst loss of Nick Saban’s tenure in Tuscaloosa.
Towels over heads. Silence. Dejected looks. No smiles, no words, no answers. Senior Johnny Dwight couldn’t hide the tears. Senior running back Damien Harris had to be consoled by tight end Miller Forristall as they walked back to the locker room. There were blank stares on nearly every player and staff member’s faces.
This was a completely new feeling for every single Alabama player. Sure, they’ve lost games — including the 2016 national championship to Clemson. But they’ve never lost like this.
For the first time in the Saban era, Alabama found out what it’s like when teams face Alabama. That sense of hopelessness before halftime, knowing there’s a slim chance you have any shot of winning.
Alabama took a 16-14 lead with 6:07 left in the second quarter, and didn’t score again.
Clemson ripped off 30 consecutive points, and held the most prolific offense in Crimson Tide history scoreless for the second half.
Hindsight always makes all of us look smarter, but this Alabama team had clear holes even as it ran through the regular season. They made uncharacteristic mistakes. The defense never gelled, and looked confused a lot throughout the season. The offense was greedy at times, instead of taking what the defense gave.
“I think everybody bought in to the process and did everything we could,” Miller said. “I just think tonight wasn’t our best night, but you only get one shot at it.”
The flaws manifested themselves in the turnovers and penalties.
On Monday, Tua Tagovailoa threw two bad interceptions, one that was returned for a touchdown and another on a horrendous throw into triple coverage.
“We always preach ‘next play’ mentality,” Miller said. “Even with some of the things early on, we had plenty of chances. But it’s a game of inches. Little things really matter in a game like this. We had opportunities like this that we let slip. It’s hard to have that happen in a game like this against a team that’s just as good as you are.”
For as much as Alabama fans beat their chests over how Tagovailoa should have won the Heisman Trophy when the Tide beat Oklahoma, they should be equally as vocal about Tagovailoa being outplayed by Clemson freshman Trevor Lawrence.
Lawrence missed some throws early, but that was about it. He looked as advertised, throwing dart after dart to carve up Alabama’s overmatched secondary. Lawrence racked up 347 yards and 3 touchdowns. Clemson’s offensive line stoned Alabama’s front, giving Lawrence a clean pocket for the majority of the night.
Against 98 percent of the teams in the country, Alabama can make mistakes and still dominate its opponent. Clemson is in that two percent. Any time Alabama made even the smallest mistake, Clemson took advantage. Sometimes, it didn’t matter what Alabama did. Clemson’s receivers looked like 10-year NFL All-Pros while Alabama’s defensive backs did not.
Clemson receiver Justyn Ross, a true freshman who Alabama coveted during the recruiting process, caught 6 passes for 153 yards and a score. Alabama couldn’t cover him. Alabama will have to deal with him and Lawrence for at least two more years.
I’m not one to make any proclamations about the dynasty being dead. Alabama (likely) will be back again next year. They’re better than 98 percent of the country.
But if there was one thing you could fall back on as an Alabama fan during this run, it’s that Saban’s teams never got blown out. Before tonight, a Saban-coached Alabama team had never lost by more than 14 points.
This four-score shellacking erases that. Make no mistake, Clemson is neck-and-neck with Alabama and the Tigers return a ton of talent on offense next season, so they’ll be back as well.
Alabama has felt this pain before. Two years ago in Tampa, Fla. The next year’s team bounced back to reclaim the national championship after a crushing defeat the year before.
The players who return next year must do some serious soul-searching to figure out what they’re going to be next season.
What they were Monday night wasn’t nearly good enough.
Nice fake field goal.
I peed myself when that happened.
As a Florida fan you probably pee in your pants a lot?
No doubt. Yeah….here’s the plan….we’ll let our 150 lb kicker run the ball. What could go wrong?
Yea, Georgia knows something about blotched fake field goals this year…
Hey Marq-who gets clobbered in basketball tonight?
Tennessee is a basketball school, LOL.
96-50 is a score any school (apart from UGA), would be proud of. Maybe there’s an AAU tournament Crean’s boys can play in? Playing a team on their level might build confidence after a 46 point loss.
Vols fans pretending to care about basketball is priceless. I guess that’s what happens when your football team becomes irrelevant and a laughing stock.
Clearly Coach Creamed and his team didn’t care.
I love the UGA trolls beating their chests like they are high and mighty. If I remember right Texas stomped your a$$ too. And I also remember Fromm throwing a pick as well. It’s ok though y’all just soak it up because you know what Clemson did y’all will never be able to do
You get your ass beat by Clemson (and no, nothing like what Texas did to UGA) and you feel the need to rant at UGA fans? UGA is living rent free in your head. Bama isn’t invincible and Saban is on the back-end of his tenure. Welcome back down to Earth.
You can go look at any one of my other posts. Iv done nothing but give Clemson their props. I knew the defense was questionable the whole year. Idc about real UGA fans saying stuff but the amount of trolls on this site is ridiculous. Can’t hold a serious conversation about football
The trolls on this site are ridiculous, I agree. Serious conversations about football are more uncommon on SDS then they should be.
Serious conversation. How many championships do you think clemson or bama win the next two years?
I can see Clemson winning another one fairly soon with that QB they have. Would like to see Saban get atleast one more just to pass Bear
Come on… UGA just ended the season with 3 losses and another loss to Bama…
They did, indeed. And a very disappointing loss to end an otherwise great season.
Georgia will choke next year like we always do!
A pathetic troll
Dynasty. Over. Have fun drying up your tears with your sister’s c.u.m. rag
Cool story bro
One NC loss means the dynasty is over? man ive heard this before
So classy.
lol 44-16 my guy garbage ahz team…
But we lost to Bama again!
So if bama is a garbage ass team and bama beat UGa what does that make UGa? As sh*tty as your posts on here?
Della, please chow down on your humble pie quietly. You’ve had your moments. Now it’s the Tide’s turn in the barrel. So suck it.
You’re the Patriots of college football and everyone is sick of looking at you.
I’m fine being the hated guys in football. Don’t know how much more humble I can be though. Should tell the trolls from these fake UGA accounts to go on that’s the only thing that irritates me. Idc if real fans talk trash
I couldn’t believe the crap coming out of Todd McShay’s mouth before the game started. He said Clemson’s OL was average and would never match up with the talent of Bama’s DL. Clemson has 4 and 5 star kids all over that line. They showed up last night. The DL was as advertised. That game was definitely decided in the trenches.
Clemson’s O-line was dominant the whole game. Todd McShay may need to re-evaluate that statement.
Agree, the line of scrimmage looked like little Bama getting whipped by BIG Bama.
Marq, I know your piece “Why Alabama will clobber Clemson and win the national championship” was more of an op-ed, but I feel like you were so completely wrong that you need to write another piece explaining yourself.
I agree. That article seems to have disappeared quickly.
Thank you B355.
I still tip my hat to Bama, they had a bad night but still have an incredible program. They will bounce back, Clemson had all their players back this year that were thinking about going pro last year.
You still here?
I think the revolving door that Saban has at the OC and DC level came back to bite Bama. From a talent stand point, there is very little difference between Bama and Clemson. But in the biggest game, with only a 9 day turn around from the semi-final game, coaching was the difference. Venables and Elliot have been with Dabo for a long time, and it showed.
Im surprised Venables hasnt taken a head coaching gig yet. Im guessing he’s hoping saban retires soon so Dabo goes to Alabama and he takes over clemson?
There will be head coaching vacancies in the SEC after 2019 at South Carolina and Vanderbilt. Ole Miss and Auburn could be there as well. Kirby was, IMO, secretly hoping that Muschamp was out this year. He would love to have him as DC at UGA. That would be a recruiting freight train.
Oh I know and I hope it doesn’t happen. I hope muschamp goes to the NFL
It was shocking to watch. I truly was routing for the Bama and the SEC to win, but if Bama has to lose, it may as well be to a class act like Sweeney.
Bama fans, you definitely now have a little taste in your mouth of what it’s like for the rest of us when we have to play you. Use it as motivation.
I pity every opponent of Bama’s next season. I have a feeling once the shock and sadness of this wares off and turns into motivation, Bama will roll even more than usual next year.
It has just been so long that we have felt this feeling. Not very fun. Devastating loss for Bama. But a great win for Clemson. Them boys were ready and stuck it to Bama.
I don’t know how Alabama ( or anyone else ) gets by Clemson for the next two years. Clemson plays Notre Dame early next year and then the typical ACC schedule. FSU and Miami are are several years away from relevance.
I knew Clemson was good and it would be a good game. I did not see them blowing the doors off Alabama.
I agree with Clemsons freshman QB and stud recievers I see them winning at least 1 more NC in the next 2 years
LOL this article makes me laugh BT/CT where you at??
I’m thinking ahead to next year, keeping in mind what Saban’s Alabama teams usually do after ending a season with their hearts broken.
2008 Sugar Bowl loss. Following year: Natty.
2014 Sugar Bowl loss. Following year: Natty.
2016 CFP Final loss. Following year: Natty.
2018 CFP Final loss. Following year: ?
True but like it has been said on another article that saban’s coaching staff is the worst its ever been he may need to make some changes before next year
Roll Tears Roll a.k.a RTR
Why am I a d&#khead?
Clemson looked fired up and shot out of a cannon.
Bama looked flat almost from the start.
And a lot of the Bama play calling was suspect. Their 4th down calls in the red zone were WTF moments.
Maybe spend at least one scholarship on a kicker and stop ignoring special teams, because yours suck.
Don’t want to hear another word about the Kirby fake punt after the catastrophe they ran last night.
If I remember right we are getting the number one kicker outta Hoover. But that doesn’t mean anything. I agree the fake kick was a terrible call. At that point why not just leave the offense on the field.
When they saw Clemson’s alignment I was shocked they didn’t call TO and get their O back out there. I wouldn’t have trusted that kicker from that distance either.
“a lot of the Bama play calling was suspect”
agree, perhaps this is karma for bringing Butch into the clubhouse.
Dam the troll nation is out in force after this game. Anyway that was the most unbama like, unsaban like, game I have ever seen. First the bama team, for the. It’s part, just did not seem ready/prepared. The D.C., is it Lupoi, was way overmatched. Tua looked really nervous from the start. I can’t believe how early bama started panicking. The fakes, go for it’s and just all around bad game plan were unlike anything I have ever seen saban do. I don’t mean to discredit Clemson. They came ready to play and were definitely the more physical team which saban prides himself on….I think. To me the Clemson defense was the difference. They played lights out and were not going to be denied. Have to agree with the headline though. Bama is feeling what the rest of us feel most years, except maybe UGA who at least keeps the score reasonable. It won’t be a shocker to see these two here again next year. UGA may have a good shot to take bamas place next year. Congrats to both teams for great years.
Alabama’s Oline has been holding defenses for years and not ever getting flagged because they do it so well. It was wonderful seeing Alabama’s Dline begging for holding flags that opposing defenses have been begging for, for years. I swear Clemson’s defensive linemen had their jerseys velcroed to their shoulder pads. Watching Alabama’s Oline reach for jersey like they are trying to pull Formica off a countertop was oddly satisfying.
Wouldn’t you say that all teams hold. Why would you expect bama not to? Or any team for that matter. I think if you showed me a team that doesn’t hold I would show you an O line that is getting beat.
Saban being nice to the media?? Makes me think he might be ready to hang it up.