The 2018 Sugar Bowl was a College Football Playoff semifinal bowl game that was played on January 1, 2018 at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. The 84th

Sugar Bowl The Sugar Bowl is an annual American college football bowl game played in New Orleans, Louisiana. Played annually since January 1, 1935, it is tied with the Orange Bowl and Sun Bowl as the second-oldest bowl games in the country, surpassed onl ...

game, it matched two of the top four teams selected by the Selection Committee- Alabama from the SEC and Clemson from the

ACC ACC most often refers to: * Atlantic Coast Conference, an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic conference located in the US *American College of Cardiology, A US-based nonprofit medical association that bestows credentials upon cardiovascular spec ...

to compete to face the winner of the Rose Bowl ( Georgia) in the

2018 College Football Playoff National Championship The 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship was a college football bowl game that determined a national champion in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision for the 2017 season. The Alabama Crimson Tide defeated the Georgia B ...

played on January 8, 2018, at

Mercedes-Benz Stadium Mercedes-Benz Stadium is a multi-purpose stadium located in Atlanta, Georgia, United States. Opened in August 2017 as a replacement for the Georgia Dome, it serves as the home stadium of the Atlanta Falcons of the National Football League (NFL) ...

in Atlanta, Georgia. It was one of the 2017–18 bowl games that concluded the 2017 FBS football season. Sponsored by the

Allstate The Allstate Corporation is an American insurance company, headquartered in Northfield Township, Illinois, near Northbrook since 1967. Founded in 1931 as part of Sears, Roebuck and Co., it was spun off in 1993 but still partially owned by S ...

insurance company, the game is officially known as the Allstate Sugar Bowl. The contest was televised on ESPN and ESPN Deportes, with a radio broadcast on

ESPN Radio ESPN Radio, which is alternately platform-agnostically branded as ESPN Audio, is an American sports radio network and extension of the ESPN television network. It was launched on January 1, 1992, under the original banner of "SportsRadio ESPN". ...

and XM Satellite Radio, with kickoff at 8:00 PM CT (9:00 PM ET).

Teams

The #1-ranked Clemson Tigers, champions of the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate athletic conference located in the eastern United States. Headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina, the ACC's fifteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athletic Associa ...

, faced the #4-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide, co-champions of the SEC West Division (along with Auburn who won head-to-head over Alabama.) This was the third consecutive year in which Clemson and Alabama met in the CFPs, though the previous two meetings were in the CFP Championship Game.

Notes

* January 1, 2018 – The Rose Bowl in

Pasadena Pasadena ( ) is a city in Los Angeles County, California, northeast of downtown Los Angeles. It is the most populous city and the primary cultural center of the San Gabriel Valley. Old Pasadena is the city's original commercial district. Its ...

hosted the other semi-final game. This was Alabama's first Sugar Bowl win of the Nick Saban era. This was also their first win in a Sugar bowl since 1993 against Miami. The Tide had lost games in the 2008–2009, 2013–2014, and 2014–2015 football/bowl seasons. This was also the first win for the Southeastern Conference in the Sugar Bowl since 2010 (Ole Miss has to vacate a win over Oklahoma State), including losses to Louisville, Oklahoma (twice) and Ohio State (twice).

Game summary

The Crimson Tide immediately took a 10–3 lead at halftime. Alex Spence was the only player to score for the Clemson Tigers with just two field goals. Alabama's defense was a huge factor in the game holding the Tigers to only six points. This matchup was a rematch of the

2017 College Football Playoff National Championship The 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship was a bowl game that was used to determine a national champion of college football in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision for the 2016 season. The game was played at Raymond Jame ...

in which the Tigers won with quarterback Deshaun Watson leading the team as the game's MVP. The Tigers were not able to perform without Watson and with

Kelly Bryant Kelly Bryant (born September 25, 1996) is a professional gridiron football quarterback for the Arlington Renegades of the XFL. He played college football for the Missouri Tigers after previously playing for the Clemson Tigers. Early years Br ...

Scoring summary

Statistics

References

{{Clemson Tigers bowl game navbox 2017–18 NCAA football bowl games 2017–18 College Football Playoff Sugar Bowl Alabama Crimson Tide football bowl games Clemson Tigers football bowl games