The Alabama Crimson Tide are heavily favored against the Ohio State Buckeyes, who will look to prove critics wrong again in the Sugar Bowl.
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No. 1 Alabama enters the College Football Playoff as the favorite to win the national championship, and they will play No. 4 Ohio State in the Sugar Bowl, which will be the other College Football Playoff semifinal game.
The Crimson Tide and Buckeyes each hold a 12-1 record, and they both won their respective conference championships.
Alabama won, 42-13, against Missouri in the SEC Championship as quarterback Blake Sims put on a clinic with 262 yards and two touchdowns on 23-of-27 passing.
Running backs Derrick Henry and T.J. Yeldon also helped set the tone with two touchdowns apiece, and wide receiver Amari Cooper made himself a Heisman finalist by finishing with 12 catches for 83 yards.
In the Big Ten Championship, Ohio State made a giant statement with a 59-0 shutout win over Wisconsin despite missing second-string quarterback J.T. Barrett, who filled in for Braxton Miller impressively before suffering a season-ending leg injury.
Third-string quarterback Cardale Jones threw three touchdown passes while running back Ezekiel Elliott ran for 220 yards and two touchdowns.
Jones will face the ultimate test in the Alabama defense, which ranks third in the country with 16.6 points allowed per game.
The biggest storyline of this game will be the coaching though as Alabama head coach Nick Saban will face off against Ohio State head coach Urban Meyer, and they are arguably the top two coaches in the game.
Prediction: Alabama 27, Ohio State 17
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