On Monday, January 7, 2019, No.1 Alabama and No.2 Clemson went head to head in the 2019 National Championship. Going into the game, the stage was set for Nick Saban to win another national title for Alabama, but Dabo Swinney and the Clemson team pulled through and embarrassed highly-acclaimed Alabama with a final score of 44-16.

In the first quarter, the score was neck and neck, but things went sour for Alabama shortly after. “They did not look like their normal selves,” said Conner White, a sophomore Bob Jones football player. “They looked pretty good for the first quarter but seemed to lose momentum through the second quarter and on through the rest of the game.” Clemson’s freshman quarterback, Trevor Lawrence, and running back, Travis Etienne, led the way for Clemson to score continuously throughout the game.

By the start of the second half, Clemson was in the lead with 31 points compared to Alabama’s 16. Unfortunately, Alabama would not score another point for the rest of the game. Alabama’s offense was stopped over and over again at the end zone by Clemson’s defense. By the end of the half, Clemson had 44 points. “Credit to Clemson for having a great offensive game plan,” said Conner White, “keeping the Alabama defense on their toes for the majority of the night.”

The outcome of the game came as a shock to many Alabama fans. “It seemed to be a foregone conclusion that Alabama would pull out a win,” said Cassie Volkin, a Bob Jones senior, “but I had no idea Clemson was such a strong team.” When the clock ran out, Clemson left with another national title, and Alabama suffered its worst defeat in years.