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Time: 3 p.m. ET
TV: ESPN
Live Stream: WatchESPN
Odds: Alabama is favored win by 14 points, per OddsShark.
Will this be a game that we will remember, or just another beat down?
The Alabama Crimson Tide face off against the Washington Huskies in the semifinal of the 2016 College Football Playoff.
Alabama is very dominant, and whenever doubt creeps in, they tend to show us otherwise.
Does Washington have that potential to beat Alabama? Yes, they do.
The Huskies had a great regular season, only losing one game against USC, who of course was taken care of by the Tide back in the season opener 52-6 in Arlington. USC had gotten a little better when they saw Washington later on, but their defense was the most athletic the Huskies has ever faced this season.
Alabama has, arguably, the best defense in the nation and the Huskies will have their work cut out for them. QB Jake Browning will test this defense with his arm. Browning completed approximately 63 percent of passes with 42 touchdowns and only seven interceptions. The question heading into this game will be whether the Huskies offensive line can hold up to the Tide’s fearsome defensive line.
The Huskies offensive line has allowed Browning to get sacked 20 times this season. They have two pretty good running backs in Myles Gaskin and Lavon Coleman. Gaskin is the star, as he’s amassed 227 carries for 1339 yards and 10 touchdown. Alabama is known to keep the run to a bare minimum, allowing their opponent to rush around just 70 yards per game this season. Their secondary and special teams will be challenged by the Huskies’ speedster John Ross, who is great on returns, and has 17 touchdowns on 76 receptions.
Let’s not rule out Washington’s defense, either. Watching highlight reels of their games, the secondary is quite good. With an 11th overall ranking in defense, the Huskies lead the nation in forced turnovers and turnover margin. Can Jalen Hurts keep himself composed enough to avoid interceptions? The freshman has been having a little trouble throwing the ball to the correct receiver, giving up at least one interception in each of the five of the last seven games.
Alabama’s offense will give the Huskies the time of their life, though, and not in a good way. Running back Damien Harris will be a big factor going against Washington’s run defense and so will Hurts, what with being a dual-threat QB.
Alabama hasn't given up a lot of points to their opponents/ I think Washington is a good matchup and may give the Crimson Tide a hard time. However, Nick Saban has had nearly a full month to prepare for the Huskies, and you know what that means.
Score Prediction: Alabama 45, Washington 21