THE BEST TEAM WON

[Dropkick]

Clemson answered every time.

[hobhog]

No doubt.

And they were just an average program a few years back.

Congrats. But Now I shall hate them!

[longtimeHogfan]

The only thing I remember about their last national championship team in the early 80's was their All-American nose tackle.....William 'Refrigerator' Perry.  'Fridge' went on to become a hero of the Monsters of the Midway, Chicago Bears.  Dan Hampton nicknamed him 'biscuit' because he figured he was just one biscuit short of 400 lbs. 

[jackflash]

Clemson was better than I give them credit for

[Paul]

They showed alot of heart

[RollHogTide]

Clemson answered every time.

As a Bama fan, I completely agree. 

[311Hog]

They won and i give them credit but i dont think they are the best team.  Injuries and the OC situation did Bama no favors, add to that the bs Big 12 all offense no defense officials.  But that is all part of the game i suppose.

[HF#1]

It was a break through win for that program. It has taken Dabo a long time to get that thing built to contend. I respect what they did and now we will see if they can sustain it. Dabo is a good coach. Doesn't seem like that long ago Clemson was the butt of a lot of jokes for choking away games. "Clemsoning" is no longer a thing.

[HotlantaHog]

Rivals has Clemson recruiting ranked 16th, 247 says 13th ... ESPN 12th ... Last year Clemson was ranked 6th by Rivals, 11th by 247 ... One would guess that winning the national championship and being in the championship game two years in a row would enhance their recruiting ....

[tophawg19]

gridiron now has a very interesting story on the top 25 and how they fared in recruiting the last 5 years . kind of changes the argument of stars and rankings matter . Clemson has not had a top 5 class in that time and only 2 top 10's . many others in the 25 had poor recruiting classes . wisconsin's best class was 33rd

[hawginbigd1]

I disagree the best team won, gasp,  the best coached team won. Bamas hurry up while not getting any first downs finally wore down it's own defense. Then add in the OPI's not called and Clemson wins.

[Inhogswetrust]

Clemson answered every time.

If the same teams played 10 times I think each wins 5.

[Wildhog]

If the same teams played 10 times I think each wins 5.

It was the best NC game I've seen in a long time.

[98hogs]

The over confidence of Bama and the arrogance got them beat!  LOVE IT !

[Inhogswetrust]

It was the best NC game I've seen in a long time.

Agreed.

[Dropkick]

I disagree the best team won, gasp,  the best coached team won. Bamas hurry up while not getting any first downs finally wore down it's own defense. Then add in the OPI's not called and Clemson wins.

Best team won. Team includes players and coaches.
As far as officiating not sure Bama shouldn't have had a targeting penalty or two called on them.

[str8volfan]

no

[JOKERHOG]

If the same teams played 10 times I think each wins 5.

Bama wins nine if the picks are called

[Inhogswetrust]

Best team won. Team includes players and coaches.
As far as officiating not sure Bama shouldn't have had a targeting penalty or two called on them.

The best team that particular time and place. That doesn't mean that same collection of players and coaches are the best for every game they might play between them. Clemson deserved to win but don't make it sound as if it would have been any different as to the "best" if Bama had won.

[carolinahogger]

Bama wins nine if the picks are called

Clemson wins nine if the pass interference and holds by the Bama DBs are called.

[hogcard1964]

Bama wins nine if the picks are called

I think it's closer to 6-4 or 7-3 in favor of Bama. I think Bama is a slightly better team, but those were bad no calls.

[Cinco de Hogo]

If Bama had a better all around qb that had three years experience they would win 10 of 10! 😉  But I do love they lost.

[Pigsknuckles]

I guess Clemson has been creeping up the ladder, under the radar, for quite some time. I remember back when the B12 was imploding, and the SEC was considering going to 16 teams that a Clemson invite was strongly considered . I always thought that they would be a worthy addition to the SEC. However, I never imagined they would be fielding the teams they have in the past two years. I seem to want to ask "when did they get so good"?

[longtimeHogfan]

It was the best NC game I've seen in a long time.

[passinghog]

Clemson had the best player on the field, so it's hard to say that they WOULDN'T win a majority of the games if they played 10 times. You could also make an argument that they had the second best player in Mike Williams. Alabama can't guard him, doesn't really matter if you try to bracket him with a safety over the top with those back shoulder and jump ball throws. The only position to position matchup that was a mismatch was the Clemson receivers and TE vs the Alabama corners. Even without the pick plays they were still a better unit.

[NaturalStateReb]

Clemson answered every time.

Agreed.

Whenever Alabama suffers a loss, people ask, "how did Bama lose?"  Alabama didn't lose this game; Clemson won it.  The Tigers had the better team--not lots better, but just better enough.

Also, Deshaun Watson is the best player in college football.  Not Jalen Hurts, not Lamar Jackson.  Hurts is great, but his weaknesses have been out there for a while--of course, he's also a freshman, so you assume the best is yet to come.

Jackson is a solid QB in a flying circus offense.  Think Watson would get motorboated by Houston?  Not a chance.  Watson was better, and was even better head-to-head when Louisville was hot.  The Heisman Trophy has become a cartoon, more about cute commercials than honest recognition.

[code red]

Clemson was better.  Next year will be Bama's year and probably the next but...I wouldn't look for Clemson to be back for a while.  Clemson would be pedestrian without Watson.  In addition......Bama will likely win the NC next year in week 2.....when #1 Bama vs. #2 Florida State.