MidwayJ do you/others think the knee to the back of Baker may have okayed a role? Just enough of a thought that he was not quite the same after, but ??

      ode

      Not sure. Georgia's defense was a lot better in the 2nd half. OU fans I know are puzzled about the play calling in OT, why it wasn't more aggressive. Their defense couldn't be trusted so why not try to win it with Mayfield throwing the ball.

        ode

        If you're Oklahoma - you still gotta rely on the guy that got you there.

        Huge play calling mistake on the sidelines those last two OT series,

        And although I'm not a fan of Mayfield - had they trusted their QB and his gritty nature in that do-or-die situation - I think they would've prevailed.

        I think their loss is on the head coach and his play calling.

            PA-PLAYA agree, almost hard to believe they didn't, hence the question. Seems plausible he was struggling physically. That aside, UGA had the Momentum and half 2 wasn't a track meet like half 1 was. OT is 25 yds to go, not 75.....and the more balanced team ended up prevailing.

                ode It didn't look to me like it had a significant effect on his accuracy or strength, but only he, and perhaps his teammates know for sure. It looked to me like Oklahoma opened the game with a bunch of quick hitting plays to negate the aggression of the Georgia defense and, perhaps thinking Georgia would make halftime adjustments, came out in the second half with their more normal offense that allows plays time to develop (and for the aggressive Georgia defense to get to Mayfield). I think they may have under estimated the depth and stamina of the Georgia defense and thought they could wear them down. I have no way of knowing this, but that was my perception.

                  ode

                  It would be interesting to ponder how the outcome might've been had the OT rules in college football required the teams to move back to mid-field. Once teams get into the red-zone on offense - the quarterbacks' skills become much more demanding.... tighter coverage, smaller throwing areas because of tighter coverage, etc. and less risk-taking because they're automatically put in a field-goal situation, even if they fail to convert a first down play in their first OT possession.

                  But that's a different discussion for another day.

                  Credit UGA for making those adjustments in the second half, and getting back to their style of play, while taking away Oklahoma's momentum. I'm still nevertheless befuddled that they didn't trust their Heisman Trophy winner to make the plays needed in that last series in OT....

                  Also... I think the committee was desperately wanting an Oklahoma vs Alabama final.. they didn't get it. Now they're getting blowback with having 2 SEC teams competing for the national championship, and as a result - a sizable segment of the country will find the title game uninteresting.

                  Not that Bama and Georgia don't deserve to be there, but it just leads me to believe that they need further tweaking to the playoff process. Winning one game and beating one team to compete for the National Championship just doesn't seem like a representative process, to me anyway.

                  Would've loved to see what UCF could've done in these playoffs. Defense isn't something synonymous with the current era of college football success, and UCF's high-powered offense (imo) would've been entertaining to see.

                    5 days later

                    What a great final game!
                    Ballsy call by Saban to put the freshman QB in the second half.
                    Made all the difference as that kid from Hawaii has a gun for an arm.
                    Looks like the Bama dynasty isn't letting up anytime soon!

                    3 big plays on 3rd he scrambles avoiding 3 tacklers.and runs back around the left side of the line for a first. Go for it on 4th and goal and threads the needle. And of course the game.winner! I would say he's got a decent arm, showed ability to put the ball right where it needed to be,pretty darn accurate....and poised!

                    Alabama squandered their first (excellent) drive to come away with no points, missed a game winning close-range field goal, took a huge sack on their first OT play (16yds!) and still won.

                    They whooped UGA in the 2nd half and still had a lot of self-inflicted wounds. Huge gamble bringing in the untested freshman but what a difference! Hopefully that makes every other coach shake a little imagining what they'll be next year too.

                    Great game, great and unlikely win. Taking that soul-crushing sack then immediately connecting on a monster pass to win was unreal.

                    Great game and a fantastic move to swap quarterbacks. Hurts is a tremendous player with one weakness which Auburn and Georgia were able to exploit. He has the accuracy to make the throws, but for some reason doesn't have the confidence to throw into coverage, even single man coverage. Caution is a good thing when you play on a great team, but last night they needed to gamble and Saban made a big bet. I still think Hurts can develop as a passer, but it looks like he'll need to do it in a rotation from now on if one or the other doesn't transfer. I think Georgia is going to have the bigger issue as there is no value in rotating Eason and Fromm. Georgia definitely looks like they'll be around for awhile, but the two big backs are moving on. No matter which quarterback continues, I'm pretty confident they'll develop into even better players going forward.

                    I was surprised at how things turned out. I honestly thought there was a better chance that both Bama and Georgia would lose last weekend than that either or both would even be in the championship game. Georgia was better than I thought they were, and I expected Clemson to be much more formidable than they were. Next year should be interesting with Georgia and Alabama trying to figure out which good QB to move forward with, Clemson and Penn State having their QBs come back with more seasoning, and Oklahoma and Ohio State transitioning to new QBs.

                      For starters... let's discount the notion that Kirby Smart and his team "choked." They did everything they needed to do to win the game. And although it's very difficult to find yourself in a national championship game, it's also worth noting that Georgia has recruited well and will (imo) be contenders in the coming years. Fromm is just a freshman, had a great game and will only get better in the next few years. Georgia isn't done by a long shot.

                      All of that said... Saban showed why he should be considered the best college head coach in college football history. He has a feel for the game, as was reinforced by his decision to put in a relative unknown backup in to secure his 5th national title game last night. Gutsy.... unafraid to take chances... knows his players... knows the situation... and is willing to take the blame for those type of gambles.

                      He's won 5 national championships in 10 seasons at Alabama. During those 10 seasons he's amassed 118 wins versus only 19 losses, which equals an astounding .861 winning percentage.

                      All credit to Saban for pulling out his 5th national championship, for understanding the situation he was in, for making such an extreme decision to put in a freshman QB after realizing his starting QB wasn't producing for his team. As in all of these situations as a head coach - you are resigned to either be the goat or the difference maker.

                      Nick Saban was the difference maker last night.

                      Congrats to Bama for a great win.

                      And congrats to the selection committee might also be in order. They knew Bama was one of the top 4 teams in college football and deserved to be included in the playoffs. Solid team, only one loss on the season, and great head coach running the program.

                      It was a great game. And thanks to college football this season for providing a lot of quality entertainment. I'd argue that college football has been more entertaining than professional football.

                        johnnydoom Hurts is a tremendous player

                        Admittedly I didn't watch all of their games, but I observed that Hurts' greatest strength was that he can run, and that means he might run, and that means he's not throwing against defenses designed to stop the pass. I do not recall many plays where he threw great passes.

                        I trust Saban to make the call, but it'd be very hard for me to think that the freshman isn't the way to go. Alabama with a genuinely skilled passer should terrify the rest of D1 Football. Hurts was good enough to succeed with a wealth of other advantages (great defense, great o line, great running game, compromised opposing defenses) and had great composure throughout, but never seemed like he really wanted to throw the ball very much.

                        • ode replied to this.

                            ZWExton I could see an early hook for Jalen next year if he is the starter....could also see a QB rotation, as the freshman although he can run, it's clearly not his forte.

                              Well, after some super exciting semi games I thought last night's game was a bit of a disappointment. I actually thought it was a bit on the boring side. So after staying up way too late watching the game I feel like chit. Bummer. 😩

                                swinnea You're just cranky like the rest of us this morning.

                                Probably so. At least I don't have to go to work. 😛

                                  One of the better college national championship games as I've ever watched, quite honestly.

                                    PA-PLAYA
                                    Totally agree!
                                    This game had a little bit of everything,hardnose defense on both sides,Georgia dominated the first half,
                                    Bama took over the second half.
                                    You had blown calls by the refs for BOTH sides,(it seems like that always happens,just part of the game).
                                    You had some spectacular plays by FRESHMAN (kids) just out of high school....how's that even possible?
                                    And Jalen Hurts is one classy dude team player!
                                    Nick Saban,like him or hate him knows how to build a championship winning team.

                                    College football is in a good spot right now!
                                    Just wish USC would get their chit together and play in one of these finals again!😎

                                      PA-PLAYA I'd argue that college football has been more entertaining than professional football.

                                      That's just like basketball. NCAA basketball is far more exciting than NBA basketball. The kids in college play with more heart than the pros.