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A20 SPORTS
Monday 31 deceMber 2018
COLLEGE FOOTBALL
Continued from Page 18
They will also likely finish
that way, like they did two
seasons ago when they be-
gan the season as the top
two teams in the AP Top 25.
Both have regularly been
winning games by wide
margins this year.
Clemson freshman Trevor
Lawrence threw for 327
yards and three touch-
downs as the ACC cham-
pion Tigers beat No. 3 Notre
Dame 30-3 in the Cotton
Bowl.
"Phenomenal night," Swin-
ney said.
Alabama jumped out to a
28-0 lead on way to its 45-
34 win in the Orange Bowl
over Heisman Trophy win-
ner Kyler Murray and Big 12
champion Oklahoma.
"Really proud of our team.
It's a great win for us," Sa-
ban said. "Oklahoma has
got a great program and
a great team, a great of-
fensive team for sure, a lot
of weapons, a lot of fire-
power." Clemson celebrates their 30-3 win against Notre Dame in the NCAA Cotton Bowl semi-final playoff football game, Saturday, Dec.
Before Alabama had to 29, 2018, in Arlington, Texas. Clemson won 30-3.
rally to beat Georgia 35-28 Associated Press
in the SEC championship
game, the closest margin they posted their second month of the season, Clem- 20-point win at then-No. 17 team Georgia in last year's
for the Crimson Tide had consecutive shutout vic- son has won its last nine Boston College — on the CFP title game after a 24-6
been 24 points. That was tory. Since winning 28-26 games by an average mar- same day as Alabama's win over Clemson in its
24-0 over then-No. 18 Missis- at Texas A&M and 27-23 gin of 37 points. The closest closest call in the regular semifinal game at the Sug-
sippi State on Nov. 10 when against Syracuse in the first game in that stretch was a season. The Crimson Tide ar Bowl.
will be going for their sixth "We got our butts beat last
national championship in year. I'm just thankful that
Saban's 12 seasons. Swin- we got back and has a
ney is in his 10th full season better result," Swinney said.
as Clemson's coach. "We make every game the
"Well, you know they've biggest game of the year.
got a great program and We really do. ... Our daily
great team and Dabo has structure prepares us for
done a great job there, this moment. I always tell
and they've got a great them, we're built for this."
program," Saban said. "So Clemson won the 2016
I'm sure it'll be a real chal- championship — its only
lenge for us, and I'm sure other national title was
we'll need to play better 1981 — with a 35-31 victory
than we did today." over Alabama after Hunt-
Alabama beat fellow SEC er Renfrow, now a Tigers
senior, caught a 2-yard
TD from DeShaun Watson
with a second remaining in
Tampa Bay.
Alabama beat the Tigers
45-40 in Arizona for the 2015
title after the two teams
combined for a 40-point
fourth quarter.
Before Alabama and
Clemson, the last time the
same two teams started
and ended the season 1-2
in the AP poll was in 2005.
Southern Cal was No. 1 all
season until losing to Texas
and Vince Young in the
national championship
game.q