By Brandon Williams
How fitting is it that the biggest game in college football goes to overtime, and ends in thrilling fashion with a walk off 41 yard touchdown pass and catch from a freshman quarterback to a freshman wide receiver.
The Alabama crimson tide have beaten the Georgia Bulldogs 26-23 to capture their fifth national championship in nine seasons. Not only that, but head coach Nick Saban with this win tonight has tied former Alabama head coaching legend Bear Bryant for most national championships won all time in Alabama football history.
And it was all thanks to the arm of true freshman quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, who came into the game at the beginning of the second half in place Jalen Hurts, who was struggling to get the offense rolling in the first half. So coach Saban sat him down, and it paid dividends.
” I don’t know how coach Saban found me all the way from Hawaii in Alabama,” said Tagovailoa “Thank God he found me, and we’re here right now” he added.
Many people, including myself were wondering why coach Saban would make such a move, but then again he is the most brilliant head coach in college football today, and over the years we have learned to not question coach Saban’s coaching pedigree when it comes to making in-game adjustments. Tagovailoa finished the game 14 of 24, 166 passing yards and three touchdowns.
“Was that a good game or what?” said coach Saban ” I’ve never been this happy” he added.
Out of the six national championships he has won, this game in particular felt very different. He was going up against second year head coach Kirby Smart who for the few years was coach Saban’s defensive coordinator at Alabama. Never before has one of Saban’s former coaches beaten him in a head to head match up, but Smart came very close.
He had the privilege of coaching two 1,000 yard running backs in Nick Chubb and Sony Michel, and a true freshman quarterback and Georgia native Jake Fromm. The Georgia offense during the first half was hitting on all cylinders, and looked to be in firm control of arguably the nation’s most dominant defense. A defense that had only given up six points in the Sugar Bowl against Clemson the previous week.
“I mean if you want to find out about Jake Fromm, go ask those guys on the other side of the ball, and they’ll tell you because that’s a really good defense he just went against” said coach Kirby Smart.The Georgia Bulldogs will no doubt feel the hangover of this loss for some time, but many people are already saying that the dogs will be back.
Meanwhile, Alabama has a lot to look forward to come next season with the abundance of young talent on the roster, and with coach Saban still at the helm, this dynasty that’s being built-in Tuscaloosa will continue to thrive.
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