If you were one of the two or three people that read my column last week, you may have caught the part where I stated that Alabama defense was just too strong this year for Clemson to do anything of substance. I stated that Deshaun Watson would not have the same kind of game that he did in the 2016 Championship game and that the Tide would shut him and every other Clemson player down, and they did…for 45 minutes. Unfortunately for Bama, it is a 60-minute affair and the final quarter of Monday night’s National Championship game was one for the ages.
Down 24-14 at the start of the fourth quarter, the Tigers found the end zone with 14:05 remaining in the contest to pull within three points of the Tide, 24-21, after Watson found Mike Williams with a four-yard strike. Ten minutes later, Clemson took the lead when running back Wayne Gallman bulled one in from one yard out to give the Tigers a short-lived 28-24 lead over Alabama. 
After converting a third-and-forever with a little over two minutes remaining near their own 30-yard line, the Tide scored two plays later on freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts’ 30-yard scramble, giving the Tide a 31-28 lead over Clemson with 2:07 remaining in the contest. I know that I prognosticated that Alabama would win 24-20, but Clemson wore out Alabama defense by running 99 plays. I did not believe that the Tide would stink it up so badly on the offensive side of the ball, especially in the second half, that they would lose. Of course, losing Bo Scarbrough to injury early in the third quarter didn’t help the Tide cause either. Scarbrough had accounted for 93 yards on the ground and two touchdowns before leaving the contest. But the Tigers hung in there and won the only way a team can against Alabama, by throwing the football.
With just 2:07 remaining, Clemson put together a drive for the ages. On first down Watson found Jordan Leggett with a five-yard strike. On second down Watson found Williams again for a 24-yard gain and another first down at the Bama 39-yard line. Two plays later, the Tigers were facing a third and three when Watson found former walk-on receiver Hunter Renfrow for six yards and a first down at the Tide 26. Watson spiked the ball on the next play to stop the clock with about 28 seconds remaining in the contest and found Leggett once again on the next snap for 17 yards at the Alabama nine-yard line. Watson once again targeted Williams,but the pass fell incomplete. The Tide was called for pass interference and the ball was placed on the Alabama two-yard line with nine seconds remaining. On the very next play Watson hit Refrow with a two-yard touchdown strike giving Clemson a 35-31 lead with one second remaining. This would be Renfrow’s second touchdown catch of the game and his 10th overall for 92 yards.
Clemson recovered its own onside kick and ran the clock out on the very next play, earning the title of 2017 National Champions, its first since 1981.
My predictions were wrong on Watson…he is pretty good and only got better as the game went on. He got hit hard all night and “helicoptered” on another occasion and still finished 36-of-56 for 420 yards and three touchdowns while running for another 43 yards and one touchdown on 21 carries. Watson had more yards by himself than the entire Alabama offense. I’ll admit, it was hard to pick against the Tide and the old Bear Bryant adage of “defense wins championships,” but on this night, exciting spread offenses that are led by extremely talented quarterbacks win championships, which is exactly what the Clemson Tigers did.
