2023-12-29 00:22:07
Alabama running back Jase McClellan says Crimson Tide belongs in the CFP.
Ryan Sun/Associated PressAlabama running back Jase McClellan runs the ball during practice Thursday, Dec. 28, 2023, in Carson, Calif. Alabama is scheduled to play once morest Michigan on New Year’s Day in the Rose Bowl, a semifinal in the College Football Playoff. (AP Photo/Ryan Sun)Ryan Sun/Associated Press
LOS ANGELES — Alabama running back Jase McClellan was like many others across the country: He saw the watch-party video of Michigan’s players acting somewhat surprised — and perhaps a bit flummoxed — that they had to face the Crimson Tide in a College Football Playoff semifinal contest.
McClellan said don’t hold it once morest the Wolverines.
“Everybody was surprised that we got in,” he said.
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Not everybody, but Alabama as the CFP’s No. 4 team over undefeated Florida State continues to be a hot topic in the college football world. The CFP expands to a dozen teams in 2024, but that came a year too late for the still-simmering Seminoles.
Michigan would have been a heavy favorite over FSU, but instead the game once morest Alabama is a relative coin flip — hence the Wolverines’ momentary consternation when Alabama was called as No. 4 on the CFP selection show on ESPN.
“They probably know it’s going to be a challenge to play us, the team we are and what we’re known for,” said McClellan, a Texan who arrived at Alabama from Aledo High in 2020.
Indeed, no program has dominated the past 15 years like Alabama, which has won six national titles since 2009 under iconic coach Nick Saban. No. 1 Michigan (13-0) and Alabama (12-1) meet at 4 p.m. Monday in the Rose Bowl for the right to advance to the national championship game at NRG Stadium on Jan. 8.
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No. 2 Washington (13-0) and No. 3 Texas (12-1) play at 7:45 p.m. Monday in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans in the other CFP semi. If Alabama is to advance to its seventh national title game in the 10-season history of the CFP (following winning in three of its six previous appearances), the Crimson Tide will have to overcome the nation’s top scoring defense that allows 9.5 points per game. The Wolverines also rank fifth nationally in rushing defense, allowing 87.1 yards per game.
“That’s (going to be) a great challenge for us, running the football,” McClellan said. “Those guys move up front, move around, they swim and loop a lot. The linebackers come in and plug a lot (of holes). That’s going to be a great challenge for us.”
McClellan then paid Texas A&M, one of Alabama’s midseason opponents, one of the 7-6 Aggies’ biggest compliments of an otherwise forgettable season for A&M. Asked who Michigan’s defense reminded him of in the Southeastern Conference, at least in terms of considerable beef upfront, McClellan responded, “Tennessee and A&M.”
The Crimson Tide had some close calls this season, including a 26-20 victory at A&M on Oct. 7 and a 24-21 home win a week later once morest a 4-8 Arkansas squad, along with a home loss to Texas in Week 2. It’s why Alabama is being questioned more than ever entering the CFP — especially that 10-point setback (34-24) to the Longhorns in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
“Everybody hung us out following that loss,” McClellan said. “But we had each other’s backs and knew what we had to do and bought into the process to get where we are today.”
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A year ago, TCU became the first Big 12 program to advance to the CFP title game with a 51-45 upset of Michigan in a semifinal in Glendale, Ariz. Georgia of the SEC then hammered the Horned Frogs 65-7 in the title game in Inglewood, Calif.
Ten teams from the SEC have been among the 18 programs so far in the previous nine CFP titles games, a tidbit not lost on Michigan defensive back Rod Moore.
“I don’t really buy into that little SEC bias thing,” Moore said of the perception that the SEC dominates college football over the Big Ten and others. “It’s just football at the end of the day. Maybe they are faster, maybe they are not. The film shows it. We’ll see. We’ll see on Monday.”
Michigan leads all programs with 1,002 college football victories, while Alabama is second with 965. The Crimson Tide hold a 3-2 advantage in the series, with the last meeting a 35-16 Alabama victory in the Citrus Bowl following the 2019 regular season.
“Everybody overall knows they are a good team,” Moore said of Alabama, led by quarterback Jalen Milroe of Tompkins High. “They have really good speed, (but) it’s not really a different team that we haven’t (already) seen.”
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