re: How the hell did Bama not win it all in 2018?

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Sometimes a team just rises up and plays a great game. Clemson did that


Sometimes a rigged stockpile of talent just wasn't enough.

I could float a boat on this denial river

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Cool

(a) Clemson had a fantastic gameplan with an absolutely elite front 7 that could implement it. Give up yards between the 20s, buckle down in the red zone where the RPO game is constricted and much harder to operate. They did it to perfection. We moved the ball up and down the field for the first 3 quarters but we only scored 2 touchdowns.

3 plays, 75 yards, TD (long play)
10 plays, 75 yards, TD
11 plays, 45 yards, FG
7 plays, 31 yards, INT
13 plays, 51 yards, TOD
8 plays, 59 yards, TOD
9 plays, 66 yards, TOD

I'm pretty sure we scored 10 points on 5 trips inside the Clemson 25. That's bad for any offense, but for our offense that year it was unheard of.


(b) Clemson was incredibly good.

Trevor Lawrence
Trevor Etienne
Justyn Ross
Tee Higgins
Amari Rodgers
Hunter Renfrow

Christian Wilkins
Clelin Ferrell
Dexter Lawrence
Austin Bryant
AJ Terrell
Trayvon Mullen
K'Von Wallace

Once Lawrence was the full time guy with his feet under him (after their close win against Syracuse) they absolutely beat the shite out of everyone else they played the 2nd half of the season.

(c) Our weak spot on defense got exposed - secondary. There had been some signs throughout the year that we could be beaten back there (Arkansas, Georgia, Oklahoma) and Clemson was by far the best equipped to do with those WRs and Lawrence and they did.

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Venables sign stealing?

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We joke but I'm pretty sure I read somewhere that LSU staff was warned about Clemson stealing signs before the 2019 game.

ETA: I say Clemson but it was specific to Venables.

Same goes for 2013 and 2010. Those were three teams Nick underachieved with and it's not even close. We should have had three more NC's with those teams. But it goes to show you the most talented teams don't always win, the teams that play the best on THAT DAY and the team that plays the best AS A TEAM, normally wins.

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Besides Quinnen Williams, that Bama DL was pretty lame and they got their shite pushed in by the Clemson OL all night

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Bama was also down to one healthy pass rusher that game. Christian Miller was on a heater late in the season and got injured vs OU. Anfernee Jennings was basically the only experienced guy left.

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How the hell did Bama not win it all in 2018?

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Clemson was loaded in 2018 and 2019 with NFL talent. No shame in losing to that bunch. Saban was outcoached that night as well.

That was the game that got Willy T poster of the year. His last post before he went on a Bama Clemson meltdown was a gaming board post and then it’s just all bold and underline posts from there. Something broke inside where he just said frick it

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Venables sign stealing?

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I think Locksley had checked out as well and was too lazy to make many changes to the signals and game plan going in. He had gotten the Maryland job early December and was i putting together a staff. Some coordinators can handle the transition while still in the postseason. Some put the priority on the new job.

Honestly, no matter how good you are, you still need a ton of luck.

LSU has had some monster teams when Bama was rolling. I mean, the blitz on a called screen? Could have easily been checked out of defensively and gone for a massive loss.

AU, without Cam somehow making it to the Plains, was never going to win a Natty (and remember the crazy fumble by Alabama in that Bama/AU game that year?).

That onside kick against Clemson by Bama was perfect (I bet he could only do that maybe 50% of the time). They did that cause they just couldn’t stop them defensively.

Remember Colorado having an additional down?

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how did Alabama go undefeated in regular season in just Saban's second year and go undefeated entirely and win a national title in his third

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He had already learned how to orchestrate this college gig while at LSU.

He then went to the NFL because he actually thought his coaching skill had anything to do with the LSU success.

He then tuck-tailed and went back to college where he knew the winning formula - which obviously had nothing to do with his coaching.

He then tuck-tailed again when NIL showed up, knowing that his jig was up.