Alabama knows Clemson's offense well; stopping it is another matter

NEW ORLEANS — Alabama’s defense is the evil empire of college football, devastating and laying waste to rebellious upstarts in the Southeastern Conference and elsewhere with a degree of savagery buoyed by the desire to turn every inch into a mile. But even the Death Star had one weak spot — a potentially fatal flaw to be exposed, if only through unconventional means

For a decade, the Crimson Tide have chewed up traditional offenses but struggled with a certain type of opponent: teams with schemes rooted in the spread philosophy. Of the program’s 14 losses since 2008, the start of this active dynasty, just two, against LSU in 2010 and again a year later, came against teams running what might  be viewed as a standard system.

The common thread that ties together the remaining dozen outliers is not necessarily a commitment to passing on Alabama, even if that’s long been the most effective pathway to success. It’s more about the unpredictability of a spread scheme, the multiplicity of avenues to add inch upon inch of yardage on a stingy defense, and the ability to force the Tide’s base package of personnel — typically three linemen chaperoning four linebackers — to play not in tight nooks and crannies but in wide swaths of space.

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Urban Meyer-coached Florida did this. So did Utah, if just once. Auburn has done so three times. Mississippi twice. Johnny Manziel and Texas A&M famously knocked off the Tide once and nearly did so again. But no program has solved the riddle of Alabama’s defense quite like Clemson.

“They do a great job of just executing,” said Alabama linebacker Rashaan Evans. “That’s the thing with them. They’re able to make all of the plays you’re supposed to make at the right time.”

Across two meetings — one loss and one win — Clemson has amassed more than 1,000 yards of total offense, pushing Alabama’s defense past the breaking point to the point of no return. Regardless of the opponent and the stage, the Tigers are efficient, productive, explosive and greater than the sum of their parts, as shown in the continued success of this offense in the shift from Deshaun Watson to Kelly Bryant.

“They will make you play the width of the field, and they have the ability to stretch it down the field,” said Alabama defensive coordinator Jeremy Pruitt. “We're going to have a tremendous challenge slowing these guys down.”

If that sounds familiar, it’s because the same words and themes have come to define Alabama’s defense. The two units are mirror images of one another: The matchup of the Tigers’ offense and the Tide’s defense pairs two elite groups born of and maintained with similar ideals, which helps explain in part why Clemson has become Alabama’s perfect foil.

“The best teams don’t have to change a whole lot,” said Clemson co-offensive coordinator Jeff Scott. “We expect to know how they’re going to line up. I believe they know how we’re going to line up. It’s really going to come down to the team that executes the best over four quarters.”

For Alabama, familiarity with Clemson’s scheme has bred respect but yielded little comfort. The Tigers attack defenses the same way they have in the past, only with a different quarterback in the backfield, said defensive back Levi Wallace. But seeing it is one thing; stopping it has become another. Clemson more than any opponent during the Saban era has defenders thinking differently: Alabama is focused more on the end result than the process, in a subtle lessening of the program’s defensive standard for success.

“They could put up 5,000 yards and it really wouldn’t matter,” Evans said. “The whole point of this thing is to win the game. That’s just simple. As a defense, I don’t think we’re going to get clouded out with the numbers.”

Clemson would say the same, of course, so the respect runs both ways. Even an offense built to attack the Tide’s system needs to check the boxes of consistency, efficiency and productivity. The familiarity that comes with a third meeting in as many years carries along the knowledge that it’s a slippery slope to the top — one dropped pass and one missed block can mean the difference between two units of similar ability.

“It’s all about both teams just executing the game plan and who doesn’t make the most errors,” Alabama defensive tackle Da’Ron Payne said.

Hidden among the deeper meaning involved with this Sugar Bowl — that of the chance for a national championship — are the number of subtle consequences that would stem from a Clemson win. One is the blow another subpar showing against the Tigers’ offense would mean for the reputation of the Alabama defense, which would see its Death Star image sullied by three missteps in a row against the same opponent.

A second repercussion might be any remaking, however delicate, of the program’s defensive blueprint. For years, the Tide have forced opponents to alter themselves to Alabama’s standard. But even a slight shift in how to approach spread offenses would be in the cards should Clemson solidify the blueprint for attacking the Tide. Saban constantly has tinkered with scheme, especially in the secondary, never allowing the defense to rest on its laurels. Tackling this conundrum may require more drastic measures.

Yet the Tigers have separated themselves from the pack not by being different — nor by inventing or even reinventing some mythical blueprint — but by simply doing what they do better than anyone else. That has made Clemson not just Alabama’s perfect foil but the Tide’s greatest threat: With one more win driven by this offense, Clemson will have made the case to be viewed as the alpha dog in college football.

“We know what they’re going to bring and how tough the game is going to be,” said Clemson offensive tackle Mitch Hyatt. “It’s going to be a brawl.”

A brawl in theory, if not in practice. Alabama wants to put Clemson in a box and seal the lid, relying on its defense to clamp down on an offensive design that tends to negate much of the Crimson Tide’s effectiveness. Meanwhile, the Tigers aim to use every inch of the grass and turf at their disposal. In this new rivalry, Clemson’s approach has proved to be the more effective.

Two years after their first meeting, the latest pairing Alabama and Clemson will feature a new dynamic. Clemson has found the answer for Alabama’s defense, and it asks the Tigers to do what they always do — only a shade better. Now it’s on Alabama to solve the Tigers’ riddle.

“I think that’s the reason why this game is so significant, because anybody can make a big play, anybody can make something happen,” Evans said. “That’s what makes it exciting.”