8:00 PM EST, ESPN – Line: Georgia -3, Over/Under: 52.5
Finally, the conclusion of the 2021 College Football Season is upon us, and it’s a pair of familiar faces that will clash in tonight’s National Championship Game from Lucas Oil Stadium, as the (No. 1) Alabama Crimson Tide look to repeat at National Champions against bitter rival, (No. 3) Georgia Bulldogs, who have vengeance on their mind in this rematch of last month’s SEC Championship Game. We’ve said it before, and we’ll continue to do so as long Alabama (13-1, 8-1 in SEC) keep putting themselves in this position: the more things change, the more they stay the same. For the sixth time in the last seven years, the Crimson Tide are competing on this stage, and just as they did a year ago, they will be looking to walk off the field as National Champions for what would be the sixteenth time in the long, storied history of the program, and the seventh time since Nick Saban arrived in Tuscaloosa fifteen years ago. Nobody in the history of the sport has mastered reloading the way that Saban has, for every season he loses a wealth of talented players to the NFL Draft, as well as valuable assistant coaches who go on to lead programs of their own. Just last Spring he parted ways with ten draftees, six of which were first rounders, including his leading passer (Mac Jones), rusher (Najee Harris), and top two pass-catchers (DeVonta Smith and Jaylen Waddle), not to mention a starting Offensive Tackle (Alex Leatherwood) and arguably the best Cornerback in the country (Patrick Surtain Jr.), along with Offensive Coordinator (Steve Sarkisian). While they certainly didn’t dominate the opposition throughout the season like they have the past, it appears that they have in fact been saving their best for last; after narrowly escaping unranked Auburn in the latest installment of the Iron Bowl (24-22), Alabama absolutely MANHANDLED top-ranked Georgia in the SEC Championship Game in a stunning 41-24 rout of the previously undefeated Bulldogs. Much was made of the fact that the Tide were betting underdogs coming into that affair, which marked the first time that oddsmakers had deemed them something other than a favorite since October 3rd of 2015. Coincidentally, their opponent on that fateful afternoon was none oter than Georgia, whom they rolled over in a 38-10 drubbing in Athens. This time around, they spread the ‘Dawgs’ historic defense out and delivered their playmakers the football in space, running off seventeen unanswered points after falling behind 10-0 early in the first quarter. In the end, Saban’s troops racked up an insane 536 total yards of offense, with (Sophomore Quarterback) Bryce Young (67.6%, 4,503 YDS, 9.2 Y/A, 46 TD, 5 INT) carving them up for 421 yards and three touchdowns on 26-of-44 passing, while also rushing for another forty yards, including an 11-yard touchdown shortly before halftime. That performance was ultimately what earned him the Heisman Memorial Trophy, becoming the fourth player to win the prestigious award under Saban’s reign, and the second consecutive winner for Alabama after Smith earned those same honors a year ago. The victory pushed the Crimson Tide back into the Playoff once more, where they entered the tournament as it’s no. one overall seed for a record fourth time. With that said, they did not emerge from that triumph over the Bulldogs unscathed, as (All-SEC Receiver) John Metchie III (96 REC, 1,142 YDS, 11.9 Y/R, 8 TD) unfortunately tore his ACL in the affair, robbing (Offensive Coordinator) Bill O’Brien’s troops of their leading receiver; Metchie easily led the team in receptions (96) with twenty-one more than the closest player, as Young focused predominantly on he and (Junior Receiver) Jameson Williams (75 REC, 1,507 YDS, 20.1 Y/R, 15 TD). How ‘Bama would approach their National Semifinal matchup with (No. 4) Cincinnati was one of the prevailing storylines of last weekend’s outing, but just as they always seem to do, the Tide ROLLED. Granted, the 27-6 victory over the Bearcats was certainly closer than the final score would indicate, what with Young and the offense struggling for consistency; the SEC Champions were a combined 6-of-14 on third and fourth down, with Young completing 17-of-28 passes for only 181 yards, though the youngster still threw three touchdowns, while the rushing attack trampled the opposition for 301 yards on FORTY-SEVEN carries. Indeed, concerns over Alabama’s run game not being up to standard turned out to be unfounded, for when they needed to run the ball, which was the case in this contest without a healthy Metchie, they were met with little resistance against Cincinnati’s base nickel formations. Essentially, the Bearcats were caught playing pass defense too many times with O’Brien’s mammoth Offensive Line all too happy to pummel them in the trenches. Healthy after suffering a sprained ankle against Auburn, (Senior Tailback) Brian Robinson Jr. (248 CAR, 1,268 YDS, 5.1 Y/A, 14 TD) played a HUGE role in the victory, rushing for a career-high 204 yards on twenty-six touches. Oh, and Saban’s defense made Cincy look like a Group of Five side for the first time all season, yielding a scant 218 total yards on thirteen first downs, including seventy-four yards via the run on twenty-six attempts, while (Heisman finalist) Desmond Ridder was rendered inert with just 144 yards on 17-of-32 passing. A combined 2-of-15 on third and fourth down last weekend, the AAC Champions couldn’t get anything going on this side of the football, as Ridder was under pressure throughout the affair with six sacks and countless other hits. (Sophomore Edge-Rusher) Will Anderson Jr. (97 TKL, 31 TFL, 17.5 SK, 2 PD) led the charge with a pair of sacks, increasing his total on the season to an FBS-best 17.5 and a ridiculous 31.0 tackles for loss. Remarkably, they enter this rematch with Georgia once again as underdogs, with oddsmakers giving them three points despite everything that has occurred over the past month. With that said, tonight’s encounter will mark the seventieth between these programs, and their ninth since Saban was hired back in 2007. Alabama leads the all-time series 42-24-3, and under the 70-year-old’s stewardship the Crimson Tide are 7-1 against the Bulldogs, including seven consecutive victories. Furthermore, four of them have been of the postseason variety including an epic 26-23 comeback win in the 2017 National Championship Game that was notable for a variety of reasons; the Tide rallied back from a 13-0 halftime deficit, with Saban shockingly benching (Quarterback) Jalen Hurts in favor of a young Tua Tagovailoa, who led them all the way back to an overtime finish, launching the walk-off 41-yard touchdown to (future Heisman) Smith in a proverbial mic drop moment. Will tonight’s matchup prove to be as thrilling? We can only hope so…
Meanwhile, second chances are rare in life and sometimes even harder to come by in sports, but that is precisely what Georgia (13-1, 8-1 in SEC) has lying before them as they look to once again slay their personal leviathan. For over two months of this season, the Bulldogs sat atop the proverbial football mountain, reigning as unanimous no. one in all the polls for roughly eight weeks. (Head Coach) Kirby Smart’s troops won their first twelve games of the campaign by a staggering 405 points thanks in large part to a dominant defense that had permitted a mere 6.9 points per game on 230.9 total yards in 2021, including just 151.5 versus the pass on a scant 4.9 yards per attempt. In fact, only four opponents managed to crack ten points against them, with six relegated below 200 yards of total offense. Smart and (Defensive Coordinator) Dan Lanning had built one of the greatest defenses in college football history, looking to finish the season as the first since Alabama in 2011 to allow an average of single digits over the course of a particular campaign. And as fate would have it, the Crimson Tide happened. That fateful December 4th affair began as Smart & Co expected it to, with the SEC East Champions gradually building a 10-0 lead early in the second quarter, but then the balance of the game began to spiral out of control as Young found Williams deep downfield for a 67-yard touchdown, and then following a quick three and out, the Heisman would strike once more with completions of forty, twenty-three, and thirteen yards to Williams and Metchie to take the lead. After another three and out, the SEC West Champions slowed things down en route to traveling seventy-nine yards in twelve plays, kicking a field goal to extend their advantage to 17-10. The Dawgs would strike back with a quick 75-yard drive ending with a 32-yard touchdown from (Senior Quarterback) Stetson Bennett (64.5%, 2,635 YDS, 10.1 Y/A, 27 TD, 7 INT) to (Freshman Receiver) Ladd McConkey (30 REC, 444 YDS, 14.8 Y/R, 5 TD), though the Tide would hit them once again with Young wrapping up another 75-yard drive with an 11-yard jaunt into the end zone. While Smart was able to make some adjustments to stop the bleeding on the defensive side of the football, his offense offered little to nothing in the second half; on their six drives post intermission, Georgia punted once and turned it over on downs twice, while Bennett bookended a touchdown to (Freshman Tight End) Brock Bowers (53 REC, 859 YDS, 16.2 Y/R, 12 TD) with a pair of interceptions, the latter of which was returned forty-two yards to the house. In the end, Smart and Lanning’s charges were eviscerated for a staggering 536 total yards, 421 of which coming through the air, and to put things into perspective, that forty-one points relinquished was more than they had permitted in the previous four games COMBINED. And it’s with that said, that Georgia dropped to third in the Playoff Poll, serving as the lone member of this year’s quartet not to enjoy a shred of momentum heading into the semifinals. As it turned out, they wouldn’t need it for their 34-11 drubbing of (No. 2) Michigan was eerily reminiscent of their performances prior to encountering Alabama. We understand that everyone is sick to their stomachs of SEC bias, but folks, it’s games like this that ensure that that notion will continue, as the Bulldogs took one of the most physically imposing teams in the country and beat them like a small child. This one was never close, as the Dawgs scored on each of their first five possessions, setting the tone with a commanding seven-play, 80-yard drive culminating in a nine-yard touchdown courtesy of Bennett to Bowers to open their ledger. After (Junior Tailback) Kenny McIntosh (56 CAR, 322 YDS, 5.8 Y/A, 3 TD) found (Freshman Receiver) Adonai Mitchell (27 REC, 376 YDS, 13.9 Y/R, 3 TD) for an 18-yard score on a trick play on their next possession, Smart’s men kicked a pair of field goals before Bennett hit (Sophomore Receiver) Jermaine Burton (24 REC, 469 YDS, 19.5 Y/R, 5 TD) for a 57-yard rocket downfield to take a 27-3 lead into intermission. Bennett would add his third touchdown of the game early in the fourth quarter via a 39-yard strike to (Senior Tailback) James Cook (131 TCH, 907 YDS, 6.9 Y/T, 11 TD), redeeming himself of that dreadful showing in the SEC Championship Game with 310 yards on 21-of-31 passing. In the end, Georgia torched Michigan for 518 total yards on twenty-one first downs, which was the most yardage relinquished by the Wolverines all season. Furthermore, last weekend’s affair provided Lanning’s defense with an opportunity to course correct and get back to what they do best, which is dominating the line of scrimmage. Indeed, the Big Ten Champions played right into the hands of the Bulldogs, who relished the chance to get physical and play in a proverbial phone booth, holding Michigan to 325 total yards, including just eighty-eight of the rushing variety, which was by far and away their fewest of 2021. Georgia had seven tackles for loss on the night, four of which were sacks, as (Junior Linebacker) Nakobe Dean (68 TKL, 10.5 TFL, 6.0 SK, 2 FF, 2 INT, 4 PD, 1 TD) took residence in the Wolverine backfield throughout the matchup. Now the only thing that stands between them and capturing their first National Championship since 1980 is Alabama, with Smart looking to finally best his mentor; the 45-year-old has quite the history with Saban, serving as his Defensive Backs Coach at LSU in 2004, before reuniting with him in Tuscaloosa back in 2007, where he would spend eight years as his Defensive Coordinator, winning four National Championships along the way. By now we are all acquainted with Saban’s dominance over his former assistants (25-1), with four of those victories coming at Smart’s expense. From that aforementioned 2017 National Final to a pair of SEC Championship Games, the 45-year-old has suffered some high-profile defeats to Saban during his tenure at his alma mater, though will be gifted with a second chance to write that wrong. Will he and Bulldogs snap this streak and finally topple their nemesis? Well, the oddsmakers think so, but we’ll have to see how this one plays out…