Alabama DB Tony Brown sent home from Cotton Bowl

“And for someone who doesn’t have the most resources, that’s nearly impossible to do”. “You have to focus on what you’ve done every game to get here and focus on the little things and not treat it any differently”. Following last years performances in the bowls, the SEC fans looked to defend their teams, while the SEC “haters” looked to embarrass and disgrace the SEC.

Both Michigan State and Alabama are known for their defense.

Both coaches said that they would be against expanding the playoff if it meant adding games to the college season. But nobody felt like they were satisfied, and I think that’s what allowed us to move forward sort of with a state of mind that understood that we need to play better. Nick Saban revolutionized it. That’s something to take note of considering that he carried the ball a total of 97 times in the four games prior to that.

What Michigan State does best is win.

Alabama’s offense will be powered by Heisman victor Derrick Henry and quarterback Jake Coker. Oklahoma has managed to finish 14th, 11th, 15th, and 15th, while Michigan State is dismal, as they finish 31st, 41st, 40th, 22nd in the past 4 years. The Spartans bring the seventh-best rush defense in the country to the table in this one, their secondary is not as good as it has been in recent seasons.

The Tide’s running back could torpedo the Spartans’ Cotton Bowl hopes.

#3 seeded Michigan State has Mark Dantonio leading the Spartans. When Cook is on he’s hard to beat.

Michigan State has won at least 11 games in five of the last six seasons.

The Spartans don’t need Scott to be Henry. Sometimes you talk about teaching programs and people think they don’t win a lot of games. “That’s something I want to get better at, working on my emotional consistency and not showing people that I’m up and down, showing them an even keel”.

“We’ve been through close games and know kind of how to push through it and win it”, defensive tackle Joel Heath said.

At this stage of the season, head coaches rely even more heavily on the star players who have most helped their teams. Arkansas did a good job of this, holding Henry to 95 yards on 27 carries. I wouldn’t say Michigan State has the most advantages. What will the Tide do if it is tested in the fourth quarter? He gets stronger as the game goes on, and the team feeds off of his energy. It just does not get any bigger than this. Avoid going backward when rushing the ball against the Crimson Tide’s defensive front and give Cook enough time on third down to make accurate throws down the field. The team as a whole ranks third with 46 sacks this season resulting in 293 yards.

Michigan State head coach Mark Dantonio, left, and Alabama head coach Nick Saban smile during a news conference for the Cotton Bowl NCAA college football game Wednesday, Dec. 30, 2015, in Arlington, Texas.

This game is going to be a grinder.

Game Preview: Alabama enters the matchup as a heavy favorite. Henry and Cook are going to have good games because this is the kind of environment that each thrive in. No – they do a great job of teaching, they do a great job of interacting, getting feedback from their players.

Number three Michigan State (12-1) and number two Alabama (12-1) will square off on Thursday night at AT&T Stadium for a spot in the National Championship game.