Reliving the Clemson-Alabama 2017 title game. What stands out from ESPN rewatch
With a limited amount of live sporting events currently taking place due to the coronavirus, ESPN is replaying old classic games.
This week’s Throwback Thursday College Football Classic is Clemson facing Alabama in the 2017 College Football Playoff national championship game. The game capped Clemson’s 2016 season and gave the Tigers their first national title since 1981.
The broadcast features special segments with Clemson’s Dabo Swinney and ESPN’s Chris Fowler, Kirk Herbstreit and Chris “The Bear” Fallica. Here is what we noticed:
FIRST QUARTER
- Swinney said during the rewatch that even though Clemson lost to Alabama to end the 2015 season, the game gave the Tigers confidence heading into the rematch: “I’ll never forget telling our team after the game. We lost the game, but I felt like our brand won that night, and I felt like going into the (first) game we really thought we were good enough. But when that game was over, even though we lost the game, we knew we were good enough.”
- Christian Wilkins and Clelin Ferrell received tons of attention later in their careers, but people forget how good they were this season. They combined for more than 25 tackles for loss in 2016 and set the tone on Alabama’s first drive, living in the backfield.
- Deshaun Watson made plays with his arm and feet in this game, but as important as anything was his toughness. Watson was leveled by Reuben Foster on Clemson’s first series but popped up and kept battling.
- Future NFL first-round pick Josh Jacobs was a backup for Alabama in this game. Only had two carries, which says a lot about the talent Alabama had.
- Forgot how incredible Bo Scarbrough was at the start of this game — two pretty long touchdown runs in the first 20 minutes to give Alabama a 14-0 lead. I remember thinking then I didn’t know how Clemson was going to stop him.
SECOND QUARTER
- As good as Deshaun Watson was his junior season, he got off to slow starts at times. It happened again this game. Watson had 23 passing yards on seven attempts the first quarter.
- Hunter Renfrow catches everything. He is so good as a slot receiver, finding a hole and making a play. Clemson’s staff downplayed his absence in 2019 but the Tigers definitely missed him.
- Clemson had done nothing offensively before Deon Cain’s 43-yard catch midway through the first half. That play was huge, gave Clemson confidence and led to a touchdown.
- Dabo Swinney shared on the replay broadcast what he told his team at halftime: “The message was very positive. I felt like we weathered the storm of the first quarter. We got down 14-0... Our confidence was growing in that second quarter. At halftime very positive. I told them at halftime, it’s something I remember very well, ‘Listen, we’re gonna win the game. I’m not real sure how exactly we’re gonna win it. But we’re gonna win the game. And the reason we’re gonna win the game is because of love.”
THIRD QUARTER
- The tackle by Hunter Renfrow to save a touchdown after Wayne Gallman’s fumble was so, so critical. A 21-7 hole in the third quarter would have been disastrous.
- In the third quarter alone Renfrow had three catches for 41 yards and a touchdown, plus one touchdown-saving tackle.
- Deshaun Watson with a 38-yard pooch punt that lands inside the 5, because of course he did a little bit of everything in this game.
- Renfrow making Alabama’s secondary full of four-star and five-star recruits miss in the open field is so impressive. Kirk Herbstreit mentions that he asked Deshaun Watson before this game: Who’s your guy? Who do you like to go to in crucial moments? “He was quick to point out Hunter Renfrow is that guy.”
- That Reuben Foster hit on Deshaun Watson late in the third quarter... my goodness. Spun him around in circles but again, Watson hopped up after spinning 540 degrees.
- Bo Scarbrough leaving the game with an injury late in the third quarter was a big break for Clemson. Scarbrough had 16 carries for 93 yards and two touchdowns when he left the game and did not return.
- Amazing that Clemson left O.J. Howard wide open for the second year in a row. He led both teams with 106 receiving yards on the night.
FOURTH QUARTER
- Nick Saban teams were 97-0 entering the fourth quarter with a double-digit lead entering the game. Alabama led 24-14 entering the fourth quarter.
- Alabama coaches and players were upset with what they considered to be a “pick play” later in the fourth quarter, but I forgot about the “pick play” that helped Deshaun Watson find Mike Williams for a touchdown early in the fourth.
- The catch by Mike Williams with 5:32 left in the fourth quarter is just ridiculous. Williams hangs in the air forever and shows off his great ball skills to make an incredible catch.
- Clemson was really, really close to putting the game away before it ever needed “the drive.” Alabama was facing third-and-16 from its own 26 when Jalen Hurts found ArDarius Stewart for 15 yards. Alabama picked up the first down on fourth down.
- The 30-yard touchdown run by Jalen Hurts to give Alabama the lead with 2:07 left was special. Kirk Herbsreit says “a legend is born” after the run by Hurts.
- During the replay broadcast Dabo Swinney described the moment he went over to Deshaun Watson before the final drive: “He was just like it was the first quarter. It was unbelievable his poise and his demeanor. His word all year had been legendary. That was his word that he chose back in August. And that was what he said — ‘Let’s go be legendary.’
- Everyone talks about Renfrow’s catch but Watson made clutch throw after clutch throw on the final drive. The catch by Mike Williams down the left sideline was great but Watson placed the ball perfectly to give him a shot.
- Jordan Leggett and Wayne Gallman were unsung heroes in this game. They both made big plays all night — none bigger than Leggett’s grab to move Clemson inside Alabama’s 10 yard line with 14 seconds left.
POSTGAME THOUGHTS
- After rewatching this entire game it’s hard to understand how Deshaun Watson slipped outside of the top 10 in the NFL Draft. Watson was the third QB off the board, going No. 12 overall to the Texans. But after accounting for 463 total yards and four touchdowns against a great Alabama defense what more did Watson need to prove?
- Everyone remembers Hunter Renfrow’s game-winning catch but he was so good the entire game. Going up against a great secondary, Renfrow finished with 10 catches for 92 yards and two touchdowns.
This story was originally published May 21, 2020 at 7:47 PM.
Matt Connolly
The State