What the Alabama players said after winning the national championship game
By Nick Cole
Published:
Alabama won the national championship with a dramatic 45-40 win against Clemson on Monday night.
Here is how the Crimson Tide players reacted:
QB Jake Coker
On if it is a surreal ending to a college career that went from Florida State to Alabama: “It’s hard to explain. It’s something I haveve dreamed of since I was little. To be able to do this is awesome. I can’t say enough about it.”
On Nick Saban preaching that they deserved to be there, but had not earned anything until winning that game: “We learned a lot from last year. We weren’t as prepared for Ohio State as we should have been. We knew Clemson was going to be a hell of competitor and they showed that tonight. We came in and played well and got job done.”
On where he would rank Nick Saban among all-time greats: “I can only talk about people I have been around, but he’s the best I’ve ever seen. As long as he’s at Alabama, they’re going to be over the top. … He’s a special person and a special coach that does everything the right way.”
RB Derrick Henry
On emotional message to the team after breaking big touchdown run in the first quarter: “I just told them we worked so hard to get here, we just need to finish. We’ve been through a lot together to get here, let’s finish it.”
On dedicating game to former RB Altee Tenpenny, who passed away in 2015: “I just talked to him before the game and told him to watch over us. We’ve had him on our hearts all season.”
TE O.J. Howard
On finally getting an opportunity to shine: “I just had to keep being patient. I had a lot of chances tonight, and knew it was coming after working through things at practice.”
On Nick Saban’s expected demeanor following a national title win: “He’s going to be excited for us, he’s going to be dancing. It’s going to be a good time the rest of the night.”
Nick Cole is a former print journalist with several years of experience covering the SEC. Born and raised in SEC country, he has taken in the game-day experience at all 14 stadiums.
