College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl

January 1, 2018 – Mercedes-Benz Superdome – New Orleans, La.

No. 1 Clemson vs. No. 4 Alabama

 

Pregame Notes

 

Sweet Appearances

While Clemson is making just its second appearance in the Sugar Bowl (the first was a 7-0 loss to LSU in the 1959 game), the Crimson Tide will be making a record 16th appearance in the Sugar Bowl; Alabama’s eight wins in the game is also a record. In addition to its 15 previous Sugar Bowl appearances, the Tide was hosted by the Allstate Sugar Bowl for the 2012 Allstate BCS National Championship game, when it upended LSU, 21-0, for its 14th national title. The Crimson Tide also secured national championships with wins in the Sugar Bowl in 1962, 1979, 1980 and 1993.

 

The Trilogy

Clemson and Alabama have significant history in the first three years of the College Football Playoff (CFP). The two teams played in the last two CFP National Championships – the Crimson Tide held off the Tigers, 45-40, in the title game following the 2015 season, but then Clemson gained revenge with a touchdown in the final seconds of last year’s Championship, winning 35-31.

 

Three Times

Tonight’s game will mark just the second time in history that two teams have met in three consecutive postseasons. The only other time it happened was when Ohio State and USC met in three straight Rose Bowls (1973-74-75).

 

Top Five

This year’s marks the 19th time that a pair of top five teams (based on AP Poll) have matched up in the Sugar Bowl. The first time was in the 1936 contest when No. 4 TCU topped No. 1 LSU, 3-2. The most recent time was the 2015 Playoff Semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl when No. 4 Ohio State held off No. 1 Alabama, 42-35.

 

Defending Champs

Clemson will be the 22nd defending national champion to play in the Sugar Bowl. The last defending champ was Florida, the 2008 BCS National Champion, which rolled to a 51-24 win over Cincinnati in the 2010 Sugar Bowl. 

 

Back-to-Back Champs

This game marks just the second time since “Consensus National Champions” were named after the 1950 college football season that National Champions from the prior two seasons will face off against one another in a bowl game. The only other time was the 2000 Fiesta Bowl, when Tennessee (1998 National Champion) faced Nebraska (1997 National Champion). 

 

Playoff Post-Its

This year’s Allstate Sugar Bowl will be the eighth College Football Playoff Semifinal in history (including the Rose Bowl which will kick off at 4:30 on January 1). Higher-ranked teams are 5-1 entering this year with No. 1 Alabama’s loss to Ohio State in the 2015 Sugar Bowl being the only loss for a higher-ranked team – that game was also the only Semifinal decided by less than 17 points.

 

Playoff Semifinals

2014-15 Rose Bowl No. 2 Oregon def. No. 3 Florida State 59-20

2014-15 Sugar Bowl No. 4 Ohio State def. No. 1 Alabama 42-35

2015-16 Orange Bowl No. 1 Clemson def. No. 4 Oklahoma 37-17

2015-16 Cotton Bowl No. 2 Alabama def. No. 3 Michigan State 38-0

2016-17 Fiesta Bowl No. 2 Clemson def. No. 3 Ohio State 31-0

2016-17 Peach Bowl No. 1 Alabama def. No. 4 Washington 24-7

2017-18 Rose Bowl No. 2 Oklahoma vs. No. 3 Georgia

2017-18 Sugar Bowl No. 1 Clemson vs. No. 4 Alabama

 

The SEC and ACC in the Sugar Bowl

Alabama’s Sugar Bowl bid marks the 78th time a current member of the SEC has earned an invite to New Orleans. The league’s current membership has an all-time mark of 35-41-1 in the Sugar Bowl. Clemson will be the 31st ACC team (current membership) to play in the Sugar Bowl; the league is 17-12-1 in those appearances.

 

ACC vs. SEC in the Sugar Bowl

This year’s Sugar Bowl match-up will be the seventh official showdown between the SEC and the ACC in New Orleans (the SEC leads 4-2). However, when looking at current conference memberships, there have been 21 Sugar Bowls featuring teams from the SEC and the ACC with the ACC holding a narrow 9-11-1 edge. That number does not include the 1956 Sugar Bowl between Georgia Tech (then in the SEC) and Pitt (Independent).

 

The Coaches

Nick Saban is making his sixth appearance in the Sugar Bowl (2002, 2004, 2009, 2014, 2015), his first two with LSU and the last three with Alabama. He is tied with Bobby Bowden for third all-time in sugar Bowl trips, behind only Bear Bryant (9) and Johnny Vaught (8). Dabo Swinney will be making his Sugar Bowl coaching debut and will be the 96th different coach to direct a team to the annual New Orleans classic. However, it is not Swinney’s overall Sugar Bowl debut – see next note.

 

Alma Mater

Dabo Swinney is just the second coach in Sugar Bowl history to face off against his alma mater. Swinney, a 1993 Alabama graduate, joins Urban Meyer, who coached Florida to a 51-24 victory over his alma mater of Cincinnati in the 2010 Allstate Sugar Bowl. 

 

Champions

Clemson will be the 88th conference champion to play in the Sugar Bowl. The Tigers were also conference champions in their first Sugar Bowl visit following the 1958 season.

 

Player-Coach

Dabo Swinney is making his Sugar Bowl coaching debut, but the Alabama native was a wide receiver for Alabama in the Crimson Tide’s 1993 Sugar Bowl victory over Miami, which clinched a national title. Swinney was also on the Alabama roster for a 1990 Sugar Bowl loss to Miami. He will become the 10th person to be a player and a head coach in the 84-year history of the Classic. 

Name Player Coach

Gaynell Tinsley 1936, 1937 (LSU) 1950 (LSU)

Frank Broyles 1944 (Georgia Tech) 1962, 1963, 1969, 1970 (Arkansas)

Darrell Royal 1949, 1950 (Oklahoma) 1958 (Texas)

George Welsh 1955 (Navy) 1991 (Virginia)

Johnny Majors 1956 (Tennessee) 1977 (Pitt), 1986, 1991 (Tennessee)

Bill Battle 1962 (Alabama) 1971 (Tennessee)

Jimmy Johnson 1963 (Arkansas) 1986 (Miami)

Jackie Sherrill 1964 (Alabama) 1982 (Pitt)

Steve Spurrier 1966 (Florida) 1992, 1994, 1995, 1997, 2001 (Florida)

 

National Champions in New Orleans

The winner of the 84th annual Allstate Sugar Bowl could become the 28th national champion hosted by the Sugar Bowl in its history. Some of the national champions earned that title following a victory in New Orleans, some had been crowned as national champions prior to the Sugar Bowl (including two years in which the Bowl hosted two national champions) and one had to go on to win another game following its Sugar Bowl win to earn the crown (Ohio State in the 2015 Playoff Semifinal). See the Inside Front Cover of the History & Record Book for a full listing.

 

500 Yards of Offense?

Fans watching the last four Allstate Sugar Bowls are used to offensive fireworks as each of those games saw a team pile up over 500 yards of offense. Oklahoma (524 last year), Ole Miss (554 in 2016), Ohio State (537 in 2015) and Alabama (516 in 2014) each passed the 500-mark in their recent Sugar Bowl appearances. Prior to the current stretch, the most consecutive years with 500-yard performances was two (2006 & 2007). Only 12 of the 166 Sugar Bowl teams have tallied 500 yards of offense in the game.

 

70,000

While the numbers aren’t official yet, considering the early sellout of this year’s Allstate Sugar Bowl, this year’s game should mark the 62nd time in the Sugar Bowl’s 84-year history that it has featured over 70,000 fans.

 

Random Stat History

In the first 83 editions of the Sugar Bowl, the higher-ranked team has posted a 49-33-1 record – however, over the past four decades (since 1980), the higher-seeded team only has a 20-17-1 advantage. This year’s game will be the 21st Sugar Bowl to be played on a Monday. For what it’s worth, the higher-ranked team has posted a 14-6 mark in Monday Sugar Bowls. It will also be the 39th Sugar Bowl to be played at night versus 45 day games.

 

Coming Home

Eleven players from this year’s Sugar Bowl teams hail from The Pelican State, but the numbers are skewed between the two programs. Alabama features 10 players on its roster from Louisiana, while Clemson has just one in freshman running back Travis Etienne, who hails from Jennings.