The Morn...NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!!!

As clear as can be, the Clemson Tigers are National Champions!

Sorry for the interruption of that headline, but WE'RE THE FREAKING NATIONAL CHAMPIONS OF COLLEGE FOOTBALL!

It sounds better every time I say it or write it or text it. What a whirlwind it has been since that late Monday night slash early Tuesday morning in Tampa. I'm not sure the smile has left my face.

Ladies and gentlemen, I present to you the best "The Morning After..." ever! It's The (third) Morning After... A NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP!

1) I'm pretty sure no one wearing orange and purple ever doubted Deshaun Watson. The poise and moxy he showed Monday night was something Tiger fans have seen since his first pass against Georgia three seasons ago. Down 14-0 and facing the best defense in college football, Watson and the Clemson offense found their rhythm. I've heard multiple reports of tweets and in-game analysis blasting Watson for being rattled and confused. But I'm here to tell you folks, he was just feeling out the game. That's what great quarterbacks do. They get a feel for the flow of the game and try to find that one play that puts the offense in motion.

Deshaun Watson has a moment with the only trophy that matters.
(Photo courtesy Associated Press)

That one play was a 44-yard screen pass to Deon Cain. From that point on, every player on Clemson's offense made play after play, from Mike Williams' insane ability to high-point the football to Jordan Leggett's crazy acrobatics to Hunter Renfrow's eye for the end zone in championship games. The preseason talk of all the weapons Clemson had on that side of the ball was justified. Clemson had playmakers making plays and no one, not even the No. 1 Crimson Tide was gonna stop them.

2) Aside from the touchdowns, there were two very important plays made. First, was the tackle out of nowhere after a Wayne Gallman fumble to begin the third quarter. With Clemson trailing 14-7 and receiving the ball after halftime, it appeared the Tigers would be able to sustain a drive and show the adjustments made at the break. Instead, Gallman fumbled and Ryan Anderson scooped it up for the Tide. Anderson was racing to the end zone for a few steps while looking over his right shoulder. But from the left came Renfrow, who took out Anderson's legs and saved a touchdown. Bama was set up at the 16, but a false start pushed them back and the drive stalled, forcing Nick Saban to send on his field goal unit. The kick was good and the Tide led by double-digits, 17-7. However, it could have been 21-7 - after another defensive TD for Bama - if not for the Renfrow tackle.

2B) The second was another game-changing tackle. With the score 24-21 Alabama, the Tide were nearing midfield. On 3rd and 10, QB Jalen Hurts tossed a short pass to OJ Howard. Howard had what looked like a clear lane for a first down. Freshman defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence was trailing the play, reached a paw out and grabbed a one of Howard's feet, tripping him up and forcing a fourth down. Bama punted into the endzone and although Clemson went three-and-out on the ensuing drive, the momentum was stopped. A first down there would have been devastating for the Tigers D. It would have been a first down on the Clemson side of the 50 and the drive very well could have resulted in points.

3) OK, OK, let's talk about "The Drive." How did we get there? Well, Gallman scored with 4:38 left to give Clemson its first lead of the night, 28-24. Tiger nation went berserk inside Raymond James Stadium and it looked like the defense would get a stop on the next series. Alabama faced 3rd and 16 after Ben Boulware perfectly read a screen pass and slammed the Bama running back to the turf, sending the orange-clad faithful into a frenzy. But Hurts floated a pass over the middle which was caught a yard shy of the first down marker. Bama converted on fourth down, ran a double-pass trick play later and Hurts finished with a 30-yard scamper to put the Tide back on top 31-28 with 2:07 to go.

I immediately, without hesitation, turned to the fans around me with two fingers in the air and said, "Too much time. They left us too much time." Again, referring to No. 1 of this post, I never doubted what would happen next. Watson put all of Clemson on his shoulders. First, a short pass to Leggett for positive yards to start the drive. Not monumental, but the perfect way to start the drive. Then, a stellar catch by Williams down the Clemson sideline for 24 yards into Bama territory. Clemson reached into its bag of tricks for a hook-and-ladder from Watson to Artavis Scott to Gallman. It looked like it might be stopped for a loss or no gain, but the Wayne Train kept chugging and gained six yards. Watson picked up another short gain before hitting Renfrow for a key third-down conversion. Watson clocked the ball setting up the biggest catch of Leggett's career. With 19 seconds to go, Watson dropped back and threw under immense pressure to a twirling Leggett. He was running down the left side, turned to his right just in time to see the ball sailing to the sideline, twisted and grabbed the pass out of the air to put Clemson inside the 10-yard line. I've seen the slow motion replay of this catch 50 times and it felt even slower in real time. Man, what a catch.

1st and goal - incomplete pass, an overthrow by Watson to Leggett in the right corner.
2nd and goal - incomplete pass, but a pass interference penalty moving the ball to the 2 and another 1st down.

Deshaun Watson sprints down the field arms open
while Hunter Renfrow celebrates in the background
after the Tigers scored with one second remaining.
(Photo courtesy Associated Press)

Then ... The Play: Crush.

Watson rolls right, Renfrow off the rub route is wiiide open. TOUCHDOWN TIGERS! One second left. As Dabo pointed out, it's the epitome of this program - a five-star quarterback recruit throwing to a no-name walk-on for the biggest play of the national championship. The rest is history.

4) I could not be happier for several players' accomplishments in the game. Watson has received his due, and rightfully so, but there are others who had their moments in the game.

• First and foremost in my opinion is Gallman's touchdown. The under-utilized tailback was able to score in the Natty. He only had 46 yards, but the 46th was arguably the biggest moment of his life. 
• Second, Williams' touchdown early in the fourth quarter and his two incredible leaping grabs. There's not a better physical receiver in the country and I can't wait to see him play on Sundays. 
• Leggett's aforementioned catch came shortly after he dropped a pass that would have kept a Clemson drive alive. In that moment, I felt awful for the decorated tight end. I didn't want him to be remembered as the player who let that one slip away. He made amends for it in a huge way. 
• Scott was almost invisible on this night, with just three catches for six yards and a run for no gain. But the junior receiver was able to hoist the trophy in front of family and friends in his home town. A great feeling for a guy who has done so much for the program while generally being the second or third option.
• Cordrea Tankersley absolutely shut down Calvin Ridley. The Bama receiver had five catches for 36 yards, but Tank did what he's done all year - not allowing a bigtime receiver to make a bigtime plays.

Clemson defenders Christian Wilkins, Ben Boulware and
Carlos Watkins celebrate on stage.
(Photo courtesy Getty Images)

5) Of course, I'd be remiss if I didn't mention the heart and soul of the defense, Boulware and Christian Wilkins. The passion those two showed this season and coming through on their promises from last January, that'll be something I'll always remember. Senior Carlos Watkins also gets a nod for going about his business with little fanfare.

6) Some noteworthy stats: Clemson's seven tackles for loss vaulted the Tigers to No. 1 in that category for the fourth straight season. ... Clemson closed the season defeating the No. 2 and No. 1 teams, according to the AP Poll. Each win was the highest-rated victory in program history. Previously, Clemson's best win was over a No. 3-ranked team (FSU 2003, Louisville 2016). ... Clemson had outscored opponents 176-27 in the first quarter this season and had never trailed after one quarter entering the game. Alabama led 7-0 at the end of the first. ... Clemson had not trailed at halftime either, but the Tide were up 14-7 at intermission. ... Alabama was 97-0 under Saban when leading by 10+ points in the fourth quarter. The Tide led 24-14, but were outscored 21-7 and lost 35-31. ... After trailing 14-0, Clemson outscored Alabama 35-17 the rest of the way, including 28-17 in the second half. 

7) I figured I'd end with this: What a season. My university has won a national championship for the first time in my lifetime. It was one of the most epic games in college football championship history. It was a thriller literally until the last second. You know what was great? We recovered the onside kick and celebrated thinking the game was over. For 10-15 seconds, we thought we were champions. Then, they announced the play was being reviewed. Clemson got the ball with one second, took a knee, and celebrated again. I thought to myself, "This is SO NICE, they're letting us celebrate TWICE!" Honestly, the celebration never ended, it just continued and is still ongoing.

Thank you to all my loyal TMA and BENched readers. I enjoy providing you my thoughts every fall weekend. I appreciate you being along for the ride once again. I will have plenty more from this game, including a full weekend recap in Tampa and some interesting things that happened at the game from my perspective. A different take on your typical TMA. One last thing:

WE'RE NATIONAL CHAMPS!

"At the top of the mountain, that Clemson flag is flying!" -Dabo Swinney

-BtW