Crimson Corner: The Case for Alabama to be Ranked No. 1
I don't think any of us were shocked when yesterday's college football polls were released.
This past weekend saw Alabama, the No. 2 team in the nation, put away the No. 3 Georgia Bulldogs with relative ease in the second half. Trailing by four at halftime, the Crimson Tide rallied and took complete control of the game from the Bulldogs, allowing zero points in the second half and cruising to a 41-24 win.
Clemson, the No. 1 team, travelled to Atlanta to take on unranked Georgia Tech. As expected, the Tigers dismantled the Yellow Jackets by a score of 73-7.
The weekend saw Alabama take the No. 1 spot in essentially every power rankings from major sports sites, including ESPN.
So tell me, how can Alabama be ranked on top of pretty much every set of power rankings out there, yet still be ranked No. 2 in the polls behind Clemson?
To begin our case study, let us first examine the No. 1 Tigers.
Everyone knows that the SEC is a tougher conference than the ACC. Well, except for ACC fans. However, I'd bet that if you gave them enough tequila the night before a game you might get them to admit the truth.
So far this season, Clemson has played a singular opponent ranked in the Top 25, that being No. 7 Miami. In the game, quarterback Trevor Lawrence passed for 292 yards and three touchdowns while running back Travis Etienne carried the ball for 149 yards and two scores. On defense, the Tigers held the Hurricanes to 17 points and 210 total yards in the 42-17 win.
Clemson's other wins are over Wake Forrest, Virginia, The Citadel and the aforementioned Georgia Tech.
That's it. That's the case. Miami is literally the only ranked opponent that the Tigers have beaten. A Hurricanes team that struggled to put away unranked Louisville (but to be completely fair was ranked No. 18 at the time).
The defense rests. Now it's time for the plaintiff to take the stand.
First point: Alabama now has two top-10 wins against SEC opponents in Texas A&M and Georgia.
Back on Oct. 3, Alabama hosted No. 13 Texas A&M, who has since moved up to No. 7 (but should be No. 6 since Ohio State still hasn't played a single game, but that's an argument for another day). In the 52-24 win, quarterback Mac Jones threw for 435 yards and four touchdowns. On defense, the Crimson Tide held the Aggies to 24 points, with the last seven being a garbage-time touchdown that had no impact on the game.
This past Saturday, though, is when Alabama really proved its case.
Georgia entered Bryant-Denny Stadium this past weekend as the No. 3 team in the country and with statistically the best-overall defense in the nation. The game was hyped with the usual fanfare that precedes an Alabama-Georgia game, and most knew that it was going to be a tough battle for both sides.
While the Crimson Tide didn't necessarily struggle in the first half, it was behind after the first 30 minutes by a score of 24-20 in favor of the Bulldogs. The second half was a completely different animal, though, as Alabama didn't allow a single point from Georgia and cruised to a 41-24 victory.
In the game, Mac Jones threw for his third-consecutive 400-plus yard game, with 417 yards and four touchdowns. Harris had his second-consecutive 150-plus yard game on the ground, rushing for 151 yards and a touchdown.
Defensively, Alabama picked off Georgia on three separate occasions, including two in the second half that ultimately led to the Crimson Tide victory. It also held the Bulldogs to just 146 yards in the second half on top of zero points.
Alabama's other wins were at Missouri and at Ole Miss.
Need I say more?
All of that being said, I was not surprised to see Clemson No. 1. After all, the Tigers have played one additional game so far this season (although it was just their non-conference game against The Citadel). I feel that Alabama has a point, though.
In national rankings, Alabama has the fifth-best overall total offense, averaging 561.3 yards per game. Clemson is eighth with 530.6.
Should I mention that Alabama has only run 270 plays on offense compared to Clemson's 388?
Now, I will give credit where it's due. In total defense, Clemson ranks third in the country with 264.6 yards per game while Alabama is all the way down at 61st with 458.3. Once again, however, I would like for you to take a look at the opponents that the Crimson Tide has faced and compare them to the Tigers'.
However, as everyone has been saying all year (myself included), the game of football no longer revolves around the defense. While defense is still important, high-powered offenses have now shifted to the forefront of the sport. It's how teams like Oregon, USC and Ohio State have stayed glued in the top 5 spots over the past decade (minus Oregon and USC these past few seasons).
If other teams have been ranked No. 1 in the past purely based on their offenses, then why can't it be Alabama's turn?
