Watson 1 of greats
Fitting end to superlative career
TAMPA — When Alabama quarterback Jalen Hurts sprinted through the middle of the tiring Clemson defense for a 30-yard touchdown run with 2:01 to play Monday night, giving the defending national champions a 31-28 lead, his alter ego on the Tigers sideline looked up and smiled. It was all good, even though it looked bad.
Not many people would be smiling about the prospect of needing to put one more score on the mightiest defense in college football to win the national championship, but Deshaun Watson is not many people. He was not only the best quarterback on the field Monday night at Raymond James Stadium, he was the best college football player in the land. For the second consecutive year, he didn’t win the Heisman Trophy to prove it, but he was about to win far more than that, and he knew it.
He knew it in the way only the special people know such things. The ones who make miracles appear with an ease baffling to the rest of us. He looked at the clock. That, not the scoreboard, told him the story.
“It was 2:01 on the clock, and I just kind of smiled and I told myself, ‘They left too much time,’ ’’ Watson said yesterday, less than 24 hours after directing a 68yard drive that ended with a 1-yard touchdown pass to walk-on receiver Hunter Renfrow with one second left, giving Clemson a remarkable 35-31 victory and its first national championship in 35 years.
“We practice two-minute all the time. . . . We had so many situations throughout the season where we did it before halftime and at the end of the game. So it was just another opportunity for us to show what we’re about, just on a bigger stage. It was a great way to finish off the game.’’
This night was slightly different from a year ago, when Alabama prevailed 45-40 for the title after the teams scored 40 points in the final 15 minutes. This time, Alabama dominated early with its running game, but as things progressed, Clemson wore the Crimson Tide down. Six times in the second half, Alabama went three and out, leaving the defense exhausted and holding on for dear life.
That’s not the only reason Clemson scored 21 fourth-quarter points to overcome a 10-point deficit, but it was a factor. Alabama had the best defense in the country, allowing only 11.4 points and 244 yards per game, but it was gashed for 511 yards Monday, 90 percent of which were produced one way or the other by Watson.
This shouldn’t have been a surprise. In two national championship showdowns with Alabama, Watson accounted for 941 yards and eight touchdowns, so the only real difference was Alabama survived his first assault. This time, it didn’t.
“He’s the best player in the country,’’ Clemson coach Dabo Swinney said. “If anybody doubts that right now, it’s just ridiculous. As I said earlier, and I’ll say it again, he didn’t lose out on the Heisman. The Heisman lost out on him. . . . This guy, his class, his humility, this was his Heisman tonight. This was really what he wanted. This is what he came to Clemson to do.
‘‘He set the standard. ... The moment will fade, but the work ethic, the will to win, the passion, the courage, the guts, the teamwork, the belief, how to think the right way, they’ll all take that with them forever.’’
They’ll take the memory of Watson dropping back with six seconds to play from the 2 and calmly waiting as Renfrow broke open to the pylon after teammate Artavis Scott picked off a defender just long enough. The instant Renfrow was free, the ball was on its way, much more than a game on the line as it spun.
“We knew they were gonna play Cover-0 inside the 5. . . . (Scott) picked him, and Renfrow got in the end zone, and I just kind of threw the ball and made sure he caught it, and that’s what he did,’’ Watson said. “It’s something we worked on all year long. It was a perfect time to call it.’’
Apparently so. That touchdown sent half the crowd of 74,512 into a frenzy. The other, draped in crimson and white, sat stunned, champs no more.
Alabama led until only 4:38 remained, having taken a 14-0 lead behind the pounding running of Bo Scarbrough (16 carries, 93 yards). But Scarbrough was knocked out of the game, and slowly Alabama’s offense began to grind to a halt as its defense wore out.
The Tide did score 17 second-half points, but they needed Clemson’s assistance in the form of a crucial turnover and a badly blown coverage assignment that sent last year’s hero, tight end O.J. Howard, off on a 68-yard touchdown that made it 24-14 late in the third quarter and seemed to seal the deal.
But Clemson’s thoughts weren’t on the past. They were on what was about to come to pass, primarily because of the way Watson’s passes were lacerating Alabama. By the end, he threw for 267 second-half yards (420 total) and three touchdowns, the best of them being the shortest.
“It was calm,’’ Watson said of his feeling as he trotted out with 2:01 on the clock. “I said ‘Let’s be legendary. Let’s be great.’ That’s what I want to be.’’
And so he was, perhaps the greatest Clemson QB since Steve Fuller and, dare one say, perhaps better.
Wherever you put him on that list, or on the Heisman ballot, one thing can no longer be denied him. When you rate Deshaun Watson’s team, the only number left is No. 1.