Written By: Erik Slaby
New Orleans, LA - On a cold night here at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, the Alabama Crimson Tide defeated the Clemson Tigers by a score of 24-6 in the 2018 Allstate Sugar Bowl. In the third matchup of this trilogy, Alabama got the better of Clemson. Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts spoke briefly about defeating Clemson after the game.
“It feels good. It is like a rivalry game,” said Hurts. “It was redemption. We have been here before. We can’t be too happy. We have to get ready to go out and finish this thing.”
From the start, it was apparent that Alabama had complete control of the game even if the score did not indicate it at the time. They set the tone for the game early on with the physical play of their defense on Clemson’s first offensive drive. On that drive, Clemson had a run for no gain, a pass for three years and then an incomplete pass. From that point, it felt like this would be a difficult, physical game for Clemson. And it definitely was.
In the first half, Clemson offense was shut down by the Alabama defense. They struggled to get anything going as they only advanced the ball past midfield once in the first half. At the end of the first quarter, they had negative seven yards of total offense while Alabama had 102 yards. The biggest problem for Clemson both offensively and defensively was their poor starting field position on drives. Their average starting field position was their own 19-yard line. This, coupled with the fact that the Alabama defense was having their way with them, led to Alabama’s average starting field position being their own 43-yard line.
Coming out of halftime, with Alabama leading 10-3, Clemson appeared to make the play that would change the momentum of the game in their favor. Deep in Alabama territory at their own 22-yard line, Clemson linebacker Kendall Joseph forced and recovered a fumble by Hurts. Three plays later, Clemson kicker Alex Spence drilled a 42-yard field goal to bring them within four points. Then on Alabama’s next drive, Clemson forced a punt. At that point, one could feel the Clemson crowd starting to get back into the game as it felt like the tide was shifting, so to speak. But that was not the case.
On Clemson’s next offensive possession, they were driving the ball down the field and were in Alabama territory on their 35-yard line when the play of the game happened. Like most of the night, Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant was under duress by a deadly Alabama pass rush. As he moved his arm forward to throw, his arm was hit by an Alabama defender and the ball was intercepted by Alabama defensive lineman Da’Ron Payne. Payne then returned the interception 21 yards to the Clemson 42-yard line.
Alabama drove the ball down the field to the two-yard line when an unfamiliar face on offense came on the field. Payne entered the game as a fullback so many believed he was just in as a blocker. It was a passing play and as it developed, Payne leaked out of the backfield on an eerily similar looking play to the game-winning touchdown scored by Clemson wide receiver Hunter Renfrow last year in the National Championship Game. And it had the same result as Hurts completed a two-yard touchdown pass to Payne, who managed to get two feet in bounds. The crowd roared and his teammates erupted on the sidelines after the score.
Payne spoke briefly about scoring play after the game. “I had been talking to Coach lots about it. He said, "Just keep on working, and you might get it." And I tried my best to go out and practice and work hard, and they finally gave it to me.”
Alabama head coach Nick Saban stated after the game laughing, “When he (Payne) made the interception, there was no doubt that we were going to throw him the ball on the goal line.”
The final nail in the coffin for Clemson came on their very next offensive possession. Clemson had the ball and like most of the night, were deep in their own territory on their own 13-yard line when Bryant’s pass was intercepted by Alabama linebacker Mack Wilson. He then sprinted down the field and returned the interception for a touchdown. At that point, one could feel all of the air being sucked out of the Clemson fans and the team.
Even though there was roughly a quarter left to play, Clemson did not pose a threat at all. The Alabama defense stood strong like they had all night and punt three more times. Alabama had five sacks on the game and held Clemson to 188 yards of total offense.
Alabama will now start preparing to play against their SEC rival, the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2018 College Football Playoff Championship Game. Georgia is coached by a familiar face in former Alabama defensive coordinator and Saban disciple Kirby Smart. Saban offered his quick thoughts on Smart and the matchup after the game.
“I'm proud of the job that Kirby has done there,” said Saban. “They have a great football team. It will be a challenging game for us, so we'll enjoy this one a little bit then we gotta get ready for that one pretty quick."
“It feels good. It is like a rivalry game,” said Hurts. “It was redemption. We have been here before. We can’t be too happy. We have to get ready to go out and finish this thing.”
From the start, it was apparent that Alabama had complete control of the game even if the score did not indicate it at the time. They set the tone for the game early on with the physical play of their defense on Clemson’s first offensive drive. On that drive, Clemson had a run for no gain, a pass for three years and then an incomplete pass. From that point, it felt like this would be a difficult, physical game for Clemson. And it definitely was.
In the first half, Clemson offense was shut down by the Alabama defense. They struggled to get anything going as they only advanced the ball past midfield once in the first half. At the end of the first quarter, they had negative seven yards of total offense while Alabama had 102 yards. The biggest problem for Clemson both offensively and defensively was their poor starting field position on drives. Their average starting field position was their own 19-yard line. This, coupled with the fact that the Alabama defense was having their way with them, led to Alabama’s average starting field position being their own 43-yard line.
Coming out of halftime, with Alabama leading 10-3, Clemson appeared to make the play that would change the momentum of the game in their favor. Deep in Alabama territory at their own 22-yard line, Clemson linebacker Kendall Joseph forced and recovered a fumble by Hurts. Three plays later, Clemson kicker Alex Spence drilled a 42-yard field goal to bring them within four points. Then on Alabama’s next drive, Clemson forced a punt. At that point, one could feel the Clemson crowd starting to get back into the game as it felt like the tide was shifting, so to speak. But that was not the case.
On Clemson’s next offensive possession, they were driving the ball down the field and were in Alabama territory on their 35-yard line when the play of the game happened. Like most of the night, Clemson quarterback Kelly Bryant was under duress by a deadly Alabama pass rush. As he moved his arm forward to throw, his arm was hit by an Alabama defender and the ball was intercepted by Alabama defensive lineman Da’Ron Payne. Payne then returned the interception 21 yards to the Clemson 42-yard line.
Alabama drove the ball down the field to the two-yard line when an unfamiliar face on offense came on the field. Payne entered the game as a fullback so many believed he was just in as a blocker. It was a passing play and as it developed, Payne leaked out of the backfield on an eerily similar looking play to the game-winning touchdown scored by Clemson wide receiver Hunter Renfrow last year in the National Championship Game. And it had the same result as Hurts completed a two-yard touchdown pass to Payne, who managed to get two feet in bounds. The crowd roared and his teammates erupted on the sidelines after the score.
Payne spoke briefly about scoring play after the game. “I had been talking to Coach lots about it. He said, "Just keep on working, and you might get it." And I tried my best to go out and practice and work hard, and they finally gave it to me.”
Alabama head coach Nick Saban stated after the game laughing, “When he (Payne) made the interception, there was no doubt that we were going to throw him the ball on the goal line.”
The final nail in the coffin for Clemson came on their very next offensive possession. Clemson had the ball and like most of the night, were deep in their own territory on their own 13-yard line when Bryant’s pass was intercepted by Alabama linebacker Mack Wilson. He then sprinted down the field and returned the interception for a touchdown. At that point, one could feel all of the air being sucked out of the Clemson fans and the team.
Even though there was roughly a quarter left to play, Clemson did not pose a threat at all. The Alabama defense stood strong like they had all night and punt three more times. Alabama had five sacks on the game and held Clemson to 188 yards of total offense.
Alabama will now start preparing to play against their SEC rival, the Georgia Bulldogs in the 2018 College Football Playoff Championship Game. Georgia is coached by a familiar face in former Alabama defensive coordinator and Saban disciple Kirby Smart. Saban offered his quick thoughts on Smart and the matchup after the game.
“I'm proud of the job that Kirby has done there,” said Saban. “They have a great football team. It will be a challenging game for us, so we'll enjoy this one a little bit then we gotta get ready for that one pretty quick."