For the third year in a row, Alabama and Clemson will face off in the College Football Playoff. However, this time, it’s in the semifinals.
With the announcements out of the way, we know who will be playing in the College Football Playoff now. And for the third year in a row, we’ll see the game everyone anticipated all year. But it isn’t how most expected it to happen. Nonetheless, the Alabama Crimson Tide and Clemson Tigers were pegged to square off once again. After their classics in Glendale and Tampa, the scene switches to the Bayou. The Tide and the Tigers are going to collide in the 2018 Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day in a CFB Playoff Semifinal encounter.
These two teams obviously have a lot of familiarity between them. There are many players on both sides who have been there for the last two encounters. What are the keys to victory in this proverbial rubber match?
Key for Clemson: Stopping the run
It sounds easy to say, but Alabama’s built to run the ball down everyone else’s throats. Clemson will have to stop Damien Harris, Bo Scarbrough and Jalen Hurts if they want to win. The good thing is they have the tools to do so. They possess one of the best defensive lines in the country and one of the best defenses in general. Between Clelin Ferrell, Dexter Lawerence and Dorian O’Daniel, the Tigers have a lot of ferocity on their end. That isn’t even including Kendall Joseph, Austin Bryant, J.D. Davis, Christian Wilkins and Tre Lamar.
Alabama has had a habit of playing extremely well on the ground but they’re in for a tall task against Clemson. There’s no doubt about that. The Tigers defense has a ton of great athletes on defense and high-caliber players. They have three players (O’Daniel, Ferrell and Bryant) with 10 or more TFL. Wilkins has 7.0 TFL on the season, and he’s no slouch himself. Clemson will be the best defense Alabama faces all year. And for the Tigers, they’ll have to impose their dominance on the ground if they want to win.
Key for Alabama: Make Kelly Bryant win the game
Kelly Bryant isn’t Deshaun Watson. That, at least, should quell the hearts of ‘Bama fans everywhere. That’s not to say Bryant isn’t a good QB. He has done enough for Clemson this year for them to get the 1 seed. But, Alabama’s defense must force him to win the game in order for them to get to Atlanta.
The Tide has an impressive run defense of their own. Clemson’s run-based attack of Tavien Feaster and Travis Etienne has been outstanding this year. Bryant has been one of their best runners as well, but if they bottle Feaster and Etienne up, things could very well get easier for them.
Bryant has thrown for over 300 yards only once this season. He has two games of over 270 yards, so his arm hasn’t necessarily been the reason that Clemson has won games. The Crimson Tide’s ferocious defense should be able to handle the task of stopping Etienne and Feaster. If they pin Clemson’s hopes on Kelly Bryant’s arm, Alabama has a greater chance of winning.