The Ohio State Buckeyes failed to deliver on Saturday night, turning in their worst performance of the season in the Fiesta Bowl. Luckily for the Clemson Tigers, that led to a 31-0 shellacking of Ohio State to punch their ticket to the national championship.
The Tigers will now square off against the Alabama Crimson Tide in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game at Raymond James Stadium on Monday, Jan. 9.
This season’s national championship will be a rematch of last year’s title game, which Alabama won 45-40.
We're going back to the National Championship #Clemson #ALLIN pic.twitter.com/NmJmOVrmCd
— Clemson Football (@ClemsonFB) January 1, 2017
It was the first time in Urban Meyer’s head coaching career that his team was shut out.
Urban Meyer was shut out for the first time as a head coach tonight. #CFBPlayoff pic.twitter.com/0WTnUvUF8T
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) January 1, 2017
The Clemson defense was dominant throughout the evening, limiting Ohio State quarterback JT Barrett to just 19-of-33 passing for 127 yards and two touchdowns. Barrett struggled to get things rolling on the ground as well, rushing for -2 yards on 11 carries.
Clemson had much greater success on the ground, with Wayne Gallman rushing for 85 yards and a touchdown while quarterback Deshaun Watson added 57 yards and two touchdown runs. With his arm, Watson threw for 259 yards, one touchdown and two interceptions.
Kickoff between the Tigers and Crimson Tide is set for 8:00 p.m. ET on ABC. Let’s hope the national championship is a more competitive game.
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Photo Credit: Twitter
