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College Football Playoff

2016 College Football Playoff National Championship

Monday, January 11, 2016 | 8:30 p.m. ET No. 2 Alabama vs. No. 1 Clemson University of Phoenix Stadium | Glendale, Arizona
#2 Alabama
45
Final
40
#1 Clemson
SCORE BY QUARTERS 1st 2nd 3rd 4th FINAL
UA #2 Alabama (14-1) 7 7 7 24 45
CU #1 Clemson (14-1) 14 0 10 16 40

Attendance:
75,765
Kickoff Time:
6:33 p.m. MT
End of Game:
10:18 p.m. MT
Game Duration:
3:45


STATS, NOTES, QUOTES


 

GAME PROGRAM


 

YEAR IN REVIEW


 

GLENDALE, Arizona - The second national championship game of the College Football Playoff era was a thriller, as the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide claimed the program’s 16th national title, defeating the No. 1 Clemson Tigers, 45-40, at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.

In a game in which offense would be pivotal, Clemson quarterback and Heisman finalist Deshaun Watson would set the record for most total yards in national championship game history, putting up 478 yards against the Crimson Tide - a feat that would be overshadowed by performances from Alabama’s biggest offensive threats. Heisman Trophy winner Derrick Henry rushed for 158 yards on 36 carries and three touchdowns, while O.J. Howard had five receptions for 208 yards and two touchdowns en route to earning Offensive Player of the Game.

Tied 14-14 at the half, Alabama’s special teams unit provided the boost the Crimson Tide needed to roll past the Tigers. A kickoff return for a touchdown, the team’s sixth special-teams touchdown of the season (tied for most in the FBS), a blocked field goal in the second quarter and a game-changing onside kick recovery with 10:34 left in the fourth quarter put the Tide in front to stay.

The victory marked Alabama’s fourth national championship in seven years.


SCORING SUMMARY

QTR TIME SCORE
(V-H)		 TEAM SCORING PLAY DRIVE
1st 07:55 7-0 Alabama Derrick Henry 50 yd run (Adam Griffith kick) 3-59 (0:55)
1st 05:18 7-7 Clemson Hunter Renfrow 31 yd pass from Deshaun Watson (Greg Huegel kick) 6-54 (2:29)
1st 00:00 7-14 Clemson Hunter Renfrow 11 yd pass from Deshaun Watson (Greg Huegel kick) 7-73 (2:17)
2nd 09:35 14-14 Alabama Derrick Henry 1 yd run (Adam Griffith kick) 7-42 (2:23)
3rd 12:53 21-14 Alabama O.J. Howard 53 yd pass from Jake Coker (Adam Griffith kick) 3-64 (0:53)
3rd 10:10 21-17 Clemson Greg Huegel 37 yd field goal 9-55 (2:43)
3rd 04:48 21-24 Clemson Wayne Gallman 1 yd run (Greg Huegel kick) 9-60 (3:38)
4th 10:34 24-24 Alabama Adam Griffith 33 yd field goal 8-64 (2:33)
4th 09:45 31-24 Alabama O.J. Howard 51 yd pass from Jake Coker (Adam Griffith kick) 2-50 (0:49)
4th 07:47 31-27 Clemson Greg Huegel 31 yd field goal 6-61 (1:58)
4th 07:31 38-27 Alabama Kenyan Drake 95 yd kickoff return (Adam Griffith kick)  
4th 04:40 38-33 Clemson Artavis Scott 15 yd pass from Deshaun Watson (Deshaun Watson rush failed) 8-75 (2:51)
4th 01:07 45-33 Alabama Derrick Henry 1 yd run (Adam Griffith kick) 8-75 (3:33)
4th 00:12 45-40 Clemson Jordan Leggett 24 yd pass from Deshaun Watson (Greg Huegel kick) 6-68 (0:50)


ALABAMA STARTERS

POS. NO. OFFENSE
LT 74 Cam Robinson
LG 71 Ross Pierschbacher
C 70 Ryan Kelly
RG 50 Alphonse Taylor
RT 76 Dominick Jackson
TE 88 O.J. Howard
QB 14 Jake Coker
RB 2 Derrick Henry
WR 13 ArDarius Stewart
WR 3A Calvin Ridley
WR 16 Richard Mullaney
POS. NO. DEFENSE
DL 86 A’Shawn Robinson
DL 93 Jonathan Allen
DL 90 Jarran Reed
JACK 30 Denzel Devall
CB 29 Minkah Fitzpatrick
MIKE 19 Reggie Ragland
WILL 10 Reuben Foster
CB 5 Cyrus Jones
CB 26 Marlon Humphrey
SS 4 Eddie Jackson
FS 24 Geno Matias-Smith

ALABAMA RESERVES

1B - Ronnie Harrison, 3 - Bradley Sylve, 9B - Da’Ron Payne, 9A - Bo Scarbrough, 9 - Da’Shawn Hand, 15 - JK Scott, 17 - Kenyan Drake, 18 - Cooper Bateman, 20 - Shaun Dion Hamilton, 21 - Maurice Smith, 22 - Ryan Anderson, 25 - Dillon Lee, 32 - Rashaan Evans, 33 - Derrick Gore, 34 - Damien Harris, 42 - Keith Holcombe, 46 - Michael Nysewander, 47 - Christian Miller, 54 - Dalvin Tomlinson, 55 - Cole Mazza, 56 - Tim Williams, 57 - D.J. Pettway, 58 - Brandon Greene, 75 - Bradley Bozeman, 81 - Derek Kief, 84 - Hale Hentges, 94 - Dakota Ball, 95 - Darren Lake, 99 - Adam Griffith.

CLEMSON STARTERS

POS. NO. OFFENSE
LT 75 Mitch Hyatt
LG 78 Eric Mac Lain
C 57 Jay Guillermo
RG 55 Tyrone Crowder
RT 73 Joe Gore
TE 16 Jordan Leggett
WR 13 Hunter Renfrow
QB 4 Deshaun Watson
RB 9 Wayne Gallman
WR 3 Artavis Scott
WR 19 Charone Peake
POS. NO. DEFENSE
DE 98 Kevin Dodd
DT 94 Carlos Watkins
DT 48 D.J. Reader
DE 90 Shaq Lawson
SLB 11 Travis Blanks
MLB 44 B.J. Goodson
WLB 10 Ben Boulware
CB 2 Mackensie Alexander
SS 1 Jayron Kearse
FS 15 T.J. Green
CB 25 Cordrea Tankersley

CLEMSON RESERVES

1T - Trevion Thompson, 2F - Mark Fields, 2A - Adrian Baker, 3J - Kendall Joseph, 4W - Garrett Williams, 5F - Justin Falcinelli, 5 - Germone Hopper, 6 - Dorian O’Daniel, 8 - Deon Cain, 8R - Seth Ryan, 17 - Jefferie Gibson, 18 - Jadar Johnson, 21 - C.J. Davidson, 23 - Van Smith, 24 - Zac Brooks, 27 - C.J. Fuller, 29 - Marcus Edmond, 30 - Jalen Williams, 31 - Ryan Carter, 32 - Andy Teasdall, 33 - J.D. Davis, 34 - Ray-Ray McCloud, 37 - Judah Davis, 40 - Roderick Byers, 42 - Christian Wilkins, 49 - Richard Yeargin, 51 - Taylor Hearn, 56 - Scott Pagano, 69 - Maverick Morris, 76 - Jim Brown, 80 - Milan Richard, 81 - Stanton Seckinger, 84 - Cannon Smith, 87 - D.J. Greenlee, 91 - Austin Bryant, 92 - Greg Huegel.


 
2016 College Football Playoff National Championship

OFFENSIVE
PLAYER OF THE GAME O.J. Howard
O.J. Howard
Jr., TE, Alabama

DEFENSIVE
PLAYER OF THE GAME Eddie Jackson
Eddie Jackson
Jr., DB, Alabama


TEAM STATISTICS UA CU
First downs 31 16
Rushing 8 10
Passing 19 5
Penalty 4 1
Rushes-Yards 42-91 34-22
Passing Yards 420 155
Passes Comp-Att-Int 36-57-0 14-32-0
Total Offense
(Plays-Yards)		 99-511 66-376
Punt Returns-Yards 1-3 1-9
Kickoff Returns-Yards 6-130 3-57
Punts (Number-Avg) 9-38.3 11-43.9
Fumbles-Lost 2-2 1-0
Sacks By
(Number-Yards)		 0-0 4-25
Penalties-Yards 3-35 9-82
3rd Down Conversions 7-of-18 2-of-15
4th Down Conversions 0-of-1 1-of-1
INDIVIDUAL STATISTICS
Rushing: Alabama - Derrick Henry, 36-158, 3 TD; Kenyan Drake, 1-1; Jake Coker, 8- -20.

Clemson - Deshaun Watson, 20-73; Wayne Gallman, 14-45, 1 TD; Artavis Scott, 2-19; Zac Brooks, 1-4; Ray-Ray McCloud, 1-4.
Passing: Alabama - Jake Coker, 16-25-0, 335, 2 TD.

Clemson - Deshaun Watson, 30-47-1, 405, 4 TD.
Receiving: Alabama - Calvin Ridley, 6-14; O.J. Howard, 5-208, 2 TD: ArDarius Stewart, 2-63; Kenyan Drake, 2-21; Richard Mullaney, 1-29.

Clemson - Hunter Renfrow, 7-88, 2 TD; Charone Peake, 6-99; Jordan Leggett, 5-78, 1 TD; Zac Brooks, 4-39; Artavis Scott, 4-33, 1 TD; Wayne Gallman, 3-61; Ray-Ray McCloud, 1-7.
Punting: Alabama - JK Scott, 7-297, 42.4.

Clemson - Andy Teasdall, 6-265, 44.2.
Returns: Alabama - Punt: Cyrus Jones, 1-12; Kickoff: Kenyan Drake, 5-195; Intercept: Eddie Jackson, 1-0.

Clemson - Punt: Artavis Scott, 2-22; Kickoff: Artavis Scott, 2-59; Milan Richard, 1-9; Intercept: None.
Field Goals: Alabama - Adam Griffith, 1-2 (44 Missed, 33 Good).

Clemson - Greg Huegel, 2-3 (44 Missed, 37 Good, 31 Good).
Tackles:
(Solo-Assist-Total, Sacks-Yds, TFL-Yds)		 Alabama - Geno Matias-Smith (11-0-11, 0, 0); Reuben Foster (8-1-9, 0, 1.0-5); Cyrus Jones (4-1-5, 0, 0); Reggie Ragland (4-1-5, 0, 0); Marlon Humphrey (3-2-5, 0, 1.0-2); Minkah Fitzpatrick (3-1-4, 0, 0); Da’Shawn Hand (3-1-4, 0, 2.0-6); Dillon Lee (3-0-3, 0, 0); Rashaan Evans (3-0-3, 2.0-14, 2.0-14); A’Shawn Robinson (2-1-3, 0, 0); Eddie Jackson (2-1-3, 0, 0); Denzel Davall (2-1-3, 0, 0); Dalvin Tomlinson (1-0-1, 0, 0); Jarran Reed (1-0-1, 0, 0); D.J. Pettway (1-0-1, 0, 1.0-1); Adam Griffith (1-0-1, 0, 0); Maurice Smith (1-0-1, 0, 0); Ronnie Harrison (1-0-1, 0, 0); Keith Holcombe (0-1-1, 0, 0); Bradley Sylve (0-1-1, 0, 0).

Clemson - T.J. Green (6-5-11); B.J. Goodson (10-0-10); Kevin Dodd (7-0-7); Travis Blanks (4-0-4); D.J. Reader (3-1-4); Shaq Lawson (3-1-4); Cordrea Tankersley (2-2-4); Ben Boulware (2-1-3); Christian Wilkins (1-2-3); Jayron Kearse (2-0-2); Mackensie Alexander (2-0-2); Dorian O’Daniel (1-1-2); Austin Bryant (1-1-2); Carlos Watkins (1-1-2); Greg Huegel (1-0-1); Scott Pagano (1-0-1); J.D. Davis (1-0-1); Mark Fields (0-1-1); Van Smith (0-1-1); Adrian Baker (0-1-1).