The Alabama Crimson Tide are heading back to the College Football Playoff for the second straight year. Even though they are the No. 2 seed this time around, they’ve got revenge on their mind and there shouldn’t be any doubt about their status as the betting favorites to win the national championship. Here is a look at the four reasons why Alabama will win it all.
Henry Is An Absolute Beast
Junior running back Derrick Henry made his case for the Heisman trophy with an absolutely monster finish to the season. He topped the 180-yard rushing mark in four of his final five games with nine touchdowns over that span. Henry finished the season with a 5.9 yard per carry average on 1,986 rushing yards and 23 touchdowns. Perhaps the most impressive aspect of his season was the fact that he played his best football down the stretch when the Tide needed him the most. That includes wins over the LSU Tigers in the matchup of Top 10 teams, the Auburn Tigers in the Iron Bowl and the Florida Gators in the SEC Championship. Alabama’s passing attack has shown signs of improvement throughout the year but Henry remains their most dominant weapon on offense. He will get a ton of touches over the final two games of the season as the Tide ride him to a national title.
Saban Is A Proven Winner
There is no doubt about the importance of coaching at the college level. While all four coaches in this year’s playoff deserve a ton of credit for what they have accomplished this year, it would be hard to argue against Nick Saban’s overall resume as the best of them. Saban is a six-time SEC champion and four-time national champion that always seems to be able to maximize his team’s potential. While a case can be made for all four teams that made the playoff, the Tide’s sideline boss is the best game-planner, in-game manager and master motivator. That could very well end up being the difference in the final two matchups.
Experience Counts
There is something to be said about the importance of experience when the playoff gets underway and that is one more area where Alabama appears to have the edge over its competition. Clemson, Michigan State and Oklahoma each put together impressive seasons but the Tide are the one team in that group that participated in last year’s playoff. They’ve already felt the magnitude of the moment and they’ve already seen what it takes. They also know that they fell short last year and how much better they’ll have to play to win it all. That experience should give them an added edge in this year’s playoff.
The Drive For Redemption
Speaking of last year’s playoff, Alabama’s semi-final loss to Ohio State a year ago has to sting to this day. You know that Saban will be showing his team the game tapes from last year and reminding them of their disastrous performance.
The Tide appear to be peaking at the right time with a strong finish that included absolutely dismantling Florida in the SEC Championship game. The Tide suffered a letdown against Ole Miss and were beaten at home, but they’ve been a team on a mission since that time. They haven’t even been challenged that much in their games since the loss to the Rebels. There is no reason to expect them to slow down with a couple of weeks to prepare for the Spartans and whoever comes after them. Alabama was upset by a Buckeyes’ side that a lot of people argued didn’t deserve to be in last year’s playoff in the first place but that could prove to be an important factor this time around. The Tide’s drive for redemption following last year’s loss will help them find that extra gear to make sure the same thing doesn’t happen again this time around.
