Alabama players talked for nearly a month about how their focus was off for last season’s inaugural four-team College Football Playoff and how that wasn’t the case this time around.
On Thursday night, the Crimson Tide went out and proved it with a 38-0 semifinal scalding of Michigan State in the Cotton Bowl.
“I’m really, really proud of our team,” Alabama coach Nick Saban said during a news conference early Friday morning. “Last year, when we got to this point, I think we were just happy to take part. This year, we wanted to take the game, and I really thought our guys had a vision of what they wanted, and everybody paid the price in what they had to do in preparation.
“This was a great team win for us. The focus that we had for this game was completely different from what we’ve ever had before.”
The Crimson Tide actually started quicker in last season’s semifinal against Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl, grabbing a 21-6 advantage. That quickly gave way, however, to an onslaught in which the Buckeyes amassed 537 yards in their 42-35 comeback triumph.