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This Day In Sports…January 9, 2017:

Clemson interrupts Alabama’s dynasty drive with a 35-31 victory in perhaps the best college football game ever to decide a national championship. After the Tigers had taken their first lead of the game with 4:38 left in the game, freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts weaved his way 30 yards to give the Crimson Tide the lead back with 2:08 remaining. But It was one of those “the last team with the ball wins” games. Clemson quarterback Deshaun Watson then engineered a 68-yard drive in the final two minutes, capped by a two-yard touchdown pass to Hunter Renfro with just one second remaining.  

Alabama, riding a 26-game winning streak, was thwarted in its quest for an unprecedented fifth national title in eight years, and Clemson took home its first national title in 35 years after their 21-point fourth quarter. The Tigers, coached by Dabo Swinney, were the first team to beat a Nick Saban-led ‘Bama team in a national title game, and they avenged a 45-40 loss to the Crimson Tide the previous year in another classic in the CFP final.

It was Watson’s college finale, and he threw for 420 yards and three touchdowns and rushed for another 43. His 463 total yards threatened the record of 478 for a national championship game he broke himself a year earlier against Alabama. That mark had been held by Vince Young of Texas since the 2006 Rose Bowl. In two title tilts against Alabama, Watson amassed 825 yards passing and 116 rushing with eight total TDs.

The NFL fortunes of Watson and Hurts have kind of flip-flopped since that night. Well, maybe “fortunes” is the wrong word, as Watson, despite some lurid off-the-field allegations, landed a five-year, $230 million contract extension from the Cleveland Browns in 2022. The polarizing Watson ruptured an Achilles earlier this season and may not even play in 2025. Hurts, on the other hand, is the signal caller for the Philadelphia Eagles, a Super Bowl contender. He’s out of concussion protocol and returned to practice Wednesday to prepare for the NFC wild card game against Green Bay on Sunday.

(Tom Scott hosts the Scott Slant segment during the football season on KTVB’s Sunday Sports Extra. He also anchors four sports segments each weekday on 95.3 FM KTIK and one on News/Talk KBOI. His Scott Slant column runs every Wednesday.)

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