The Stage is Set! Will Clemson Fall this Year?
The CFB final four results have been in for a week now. I have been raking my brain with one question. Will Clemson get beat this year? There is some stiff competition this time around. Not saying there wasn’t competition last year, just saying that the three teams that made it into the final four alongside the Tigers are really strong.
by Lexi Sheets
You have the Sooners of Oklahoma were very strong in their season. Finishing their season at 12-1 the Sooners outscored most of their opponents by 30,40, even 50 plus points. With the exception of Texas Longhorns who they only edged out a win by 5 points, and the Iowa Hawkeyes who defeated the Sooners.
Still, the Sooners can be a tough team to defeat. They do have the number one talked about quarterback in the NCAA and possibly the future Heisman trophy recipient Baker Mayfield. This guy has taken college football by storm this year.
Many people are comparing him to Russell Wilson, and I would have to agree to an extent. Baker Mayfield is definitely like Russell Wilson when it comes to getting out of the pocket and making plays. But when he’s in the pocket he works it so well he’s more like Tom Brady, throwing perfect spirals with pinpoint accuracy.
Knowing his receivers will do everything in their power to come down with the ball only makes him more of a threat. When Baker’s confidence is high so are his production numbers. Which his confidence has been high all year so this makes the Sooners the number one contender for stealing the limelight from the Tigers.
That is if they make it passed the third ranked team the Georgia Bulldogs. The Bulldogs finished their season at 12-1 also and this is the first time in 35 years they play for a chance to bring home the gold.
So the Bulldogs are hungry to be called champs again and their coach is hungry to cement his name in college football history. That Bulldogs only loss came at the hands of their rivals the Auburn Tigers, but the Bulldogs got the redemption they wanted when the two teams faced off a second time for the SEC Championship. Where the Bulldogs laid on the hurt and beating their rivals 28-7 and securing their spot in the final four.
The Bulldogs got to where they are because of the hard work of everyone on the team, but a few stand out stars of this team is the freshman quarterback Jake Fromm who has led this Georgia team to the final four. With his composer and a strong arm, this kid reminds me of a young John Elway.
Then you have the Triple Threat Squad, made up of the running backs Nick Chubb, Sony Michel, and D’Andre Swift. One is a Mack truck, one’s a finesse runner, and the other is fast as light. Using all three in a game can destroy a defense.
That’s just one side of the Georgia team on the defensive side they have one Roquan Smith who has 113 tackles for the year and 5.5 sacks on the year. 13 of those tackles and 1 of those sacks came in the SEC Championship against Auburn where Roquan was named the player of the game.
Although this Bulldog team is very good I don’t feel like they’ll make it to the National Championship mostly because even though he’s great Jake Fromm is still a freshman on this stage for the first time in his life. Jake almost gave into the pressure of being on the SEC Championship stage.
And then there was one, this team was voted in by the committee. Alabama Crimson tide is our final team. Many people believed that Alabama was out after losing to Auburn, and with Auburn losing to Georgia only a week after defeating Alabama.
Alabama does have an 11-1 record, which their only loss came against Auburn, which is why they got into the finals. This is a team that overcame a hard schedule with only one loss. Many people say boo! Why we have two SEC teams in the Final Four?
That’s just not right. Well suck it up buttercup; this is no longer the era of the BCS poll. Teams are voted in on their worthiness. Alabama is very deserving of this opportunity.
Alabama had the number one defense in the nation for most of the season. The offense was ranked among the top five for most of the season. This Team is tough enough to give Clemson a run for their money.
Which is a good thing because Alabama will be facing Clemson in the Sugar Bowl at the first of the year. Meanwhile, Oklahoma will be facing off against Georgia in the Rose Bowl. The winner of each game will move on to face each other in the National Championship.
I think Oklahoma will beat Georgia cause like I said Jake Fromm is a freshman and I believe he’ll fold under the pressure.
I believe Alabama and Clemson will be a battle to the end. Both teams are very good and both teams have held the number one spot. In the end, I think we may see Alabama pull off an upset if they can keep the mistakes to a minimal amount.
Then looking at that possible National Championship Alabama Vs Oklahoma, I would have to say this would be a great game to watch but I think Alabama would win this just because they have Nick Saban who has more experience with the National Championship.
But looking at the other possible National Championship of Clemson Vs Georgia this to would be a battle for the ages. As both teams have very good defenses. But I believe if Georgia makes to the National Champion they are hungry enough to win the National Championship.
Then we have one last scenario which is both SEC teams win their matches and advance to the National Championship game giving us an Alabama Vs Georgia battle. Which is personally what I would like to see happen.
Because as I said Nick Saban has enough experience with this big game to be a problem, and Georgia is hungry enough that if they made it this far you could count on a back and forth game. This would be a game to go down in history. I think Georgia wants more though so I would say Georgia would come out on top in this matchup. Well, that’s my break down of the final four and how it could turn out.
