It’s been two days since the Clemson Tigers demolished Alabama in one of the more surprising title games - by margin of defeat, if not result - in recent memory. There were times when Nick Saban seemed uncharacteristically out-schemed and under-prepared. The usual Alabama halftime adjustments didn’t materialize, and there were some truly baffling playcalls from the six-time national champion coach.
Most-discussed among those was Saban’s call for a fake field goal run - against an unfavorable defensive look - using his kicker as the lead blocker.
It failed spectacularly, and Clemson continued to cruise to a 44-16 victory, the worst margin of defeat by an Alabama team during Saban’s 12-year tenure in Tuscaloosa.