SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- For six straight weeks this season, there was no doubt within the College Football Playoff selection committee meeting room and largely throughout the country that No. 1 Alabama and No. 2 Clemson were the top two teams in the country.
Turns out it was just in the wrong order.
In what was a jaw-dropping, dominating performance on the sport's biggest stage on Monday night, Clemson asserted itself as the best team in the country with a 44-16 win over Alabama in the College Football Playoff National Championship Presented by AT&T. It wasn't surprising that Clemson won -- these two programs have gone toe-to-toe now for four straight seasons in the College Football Playoff.