Nick Saban with an early preview of Clemson: ‘They’re a complete team’
By SDS Staff
Published:
Nick Saban didn’t have too much time to enjoy Saturday night’s 45-34 win over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl before being asked about Clemson.
The Tigers and Tide will play in yet another national title game on January 7. The college football bluebloods continue to separate themselves from the rest of the pack at an incredible pace.
Following his postgame press conference, Saban hopped on SportsCenter with Scott Van Pelt, and SVP asked him the first thing that comes to mind when looking ahead to the challenge that Clemson presents.
“Well, I think they’re a complete team,” Saban told SVP. “I haven’t watched them a lot — a couple times on TV, but they have a great defensive team. They have really good balance on offense. The quarterback, even though he’s a young player, has really given them the balance they need in the passing game. They’ve got some great skill guys outside. They make a lot of explosive plays, and they run the ball effectively. Their defense has been phenomenal all year long.”
We knew Oklahoma’s offense would give Alabama’s defense a huge challenge, because elite dual-threat QBs always do that to Saban’s defense. Clemson QB Trevor Lawrence, however, is a completely different animal. He’s a tall-armed pocket passer who can make every throw on the field and can give the Tigers a semblance of balance in the running game, too.
Part IV of Alabama-Clemson should be fun.
Saturday Down South reports and comments on the news around the Southeastern Conference as well as larger college football topics.
