Alabama Wins Cotton Bowl, Advances to National Championship

Lawson, who intends to turn pro after this season, said he’ll be ready to go in his final college game. Then following another Michigan State three and out, on the first play of the next Alabama drive, Coker heaved a 50-yard touchdown pass to Ridley to crank the score up to 31-0. And Coker, thanks in no small part to the efforts of his receivers, was excellent: 25-of-30 for 286 yards and two touchdowns. Ridley has seven catches for 132 yards.

Jones added a high-stepping 57-yard punt return touchdown for the Tide, which hardly even had to use the 242-pound Henry. Since 1999, the beginning of the BCS era, the betting favorite has won 10 of 17 national championship games.

What is the Vegas line on the Championship Game between Alabama and Clemson? Clemson piled up 550 yards in the game. Officials initially ruled that Ridley was out of bounds, but changed that after review.

Top-ranked Clemson and No. 2 Alabama will face off in the desert for the national championship after dominating wins in the College Football Playoff semifinals Thursday.

Alabama has the ball to start the second half.

On Alabama’s next drive, Coker hit O.J. Howard for a 41-yard gain, getting the Tide inside the Spartans’ 25-yard line. Michigan State ran for a mere 29 yards on 26 carries. Be sure that number is now eight after he became the first Tide player to score take four punts back for TDs in the same year. Well, hopefully for college football fans anyway because the semifinals weren’t very good after the first half of OU-Clemson.

The Tide looked like a team with no weaknesses against overmatched Michigan State (12-2). But, on the next play, Cook threw an interception.

Adam Griffith’s 47-yard field goal made it 10-0.

Coker was 16 of 20 at intermission for 177 yards.

Watson also showed his versatility: The Orange Bowl was his FBS-high ninth game this season with both a passing touchdown and a rushing touchdown.

“(MSU) played a hard physical game”, Coker said.

Oddly enough, Heisman Trophy victor Derrick Henry didn’t have a big night statistically, not that he needed to. “The pass rush was there”. Swinney’s coaching career began in Tuscaloosa under Mike DuBose, who got fired late in the 2000 season.

Michigan State’s best chance came just before halftime – only to end in heartbreaking fashion. The ball rolled into the end zone. If there was any question before this game about whether Alabama could win without a great day from Henry, the answer appears to be yes. Henry had two touchdowns, which supported his 78 yards on 20 carries, his third lowest total of the season. He is the 19th FBS player to break that plateau. Coker wound up attempting 59 passes all season for barely 400 yards, a far cry from the expectations unduly placed on him. If this was a game where people were looking for scoring, they didn’t get it in the first quarter.

The closest Michigan State came to scoring was late in the second quarter.

Saban is the one who brought Dantonio to Michigan State, hiring him for his staff in 1995.

Michigan State needed the big plays, but it was Alabama that made them. Ridley, a freshman, streaked by defenders on deep throws and outfought them on jump balls. His 23 rushing touchdowns tied an SEC record, and are the most in the nation.

After four consecutive bowl wins, Michigan State had hoped to prove it belonged among the elite with a victory over storied Alabama. Michigan State helped the cause with two 15-yard penalties on the possession. But this blowout loss provided a dose of reality, similar to when Alabama clubbed the Spartans 49-7 in the Capital One Bowl after the 2010 season.

The Crimson Tide (13-1) provided the ideal measuring stick, having delivered a 49-7 reality slap to the Spartans in the 2011 Capital One Bowl, their last bowl loss.

Alabama is playing for another title after being upset by Ohio State in the semifinals of the inaugural College Football Playoff.

After the Spartans lost their Big Ten basketball opener at Iowa on Tuesday night, they were told they were flying to Minnesota for a few days in advance of their next game Saturday against the Golden Gophers.