Alabama never looked so helpless or desperate under Nick Saban

Alabama never looked so desperate or out of sync than the National Championship Game loss to Clemson.

Alabama is in brand new territory right now. With Nick Saban leading the Crimson Tide, they’ve never really appeared desperate or helpless. Alabama was pulled apart at the seams and defeated mentally as well as physically in the 44-16 loss. They couldn’t do anything right and let two freshmen beat them in what was the worst loss for Alabama under Saban.

Even though it appears that Lawrence is a transcendent talent, it’s still shocking that Alabama hasn’t been able to keep him in check, and he’s put up 347 passing yards and three touchdowns without an interception or even looking rattled. He looked like a five-year NFL vet and not a 19-year-old freshman.

It’s not just Alabama’s inability to slow Trevor Lawrence though

Yes, Alabama’s defense looks vulnerable in ways that it rarely ever does, but that’s not the only reason that the Crimson Tide look helpless tonight. There’s also the fact that Tua Tagovailoa has played far worse than he has all season.

Tagovailoa has been rattled, and on his first drive of the game, he threw a pick-six to put Clemson up 7-0. He completed 22 of his 34 passes for 295 yards, which is really, really good. However, he’s thrown a couple of interceptions that Clemson turned into 14 first-half points and gave them all the confidence they needed to know they could beat this team and stop the Heisman runner-up.

Alabama’s typically vaunted secondary couldn’t contain freshman receiver and Phenix City, AL. native, Justyn Ross all night. Ross went off for six catches for 153 yards and a touchdown. Potential No. 1 overall pick, Quinnen Williams was held in check and the normally ferocious pass rush from Alabama was held in check by Mitch Hyatt and the Clemson offensive line. It all led to Saban and Alabama offense and defense looking discombobulated, allowing 30 unanswered points after Alabama took a brief 16-14 lead early in the second quarter. It would be their only lead of the game.

All this led to desperate plays and decisions

Alabama has gone for it on fourth down six times, converting three of them. The most puzzling decision was a fake field goal attempt with Clemson anticipating the fake and stopping it dead in its tracks. It’s rare Saban is in the sort of situation where he’s forced to have his team make these sort of plays. He’s used to forcing teams into making desperate decisions.

It’s really never happened before in Tuscaloosa and there’s a good chance that it’ll never happen again. What happened in the National Championship Game is truly a remarkable accomplishment on Clemson’s part. The Tigers flipped Alabama upside down and gave the Crimson Tide a taste of their own medicine. Saban’s team is being processed the way it has so regularly processed others.