No. 9 Alabama climbed out of a 17-0 hole and beat No. 8 Oklahoma 34-24 to advance to the quarterfinals of the College Football Playoff. It was the first road win for a team in the playoff in the second year of the 12-team format.
The Crimson Tide will next face No. 1 seed Indiana in the Rose Bowl. The 17-point comeback matches the largest in playoff history set by Georgia against Oklahoma in the 2018 national semifinals at the Rose Bowl.
Alabama quarterback Ty Simpson completed 18 of 29 attempts for 232 yards and two touchdowns without an interception, carrying an offense that couldn’t produce on the ground.
The rematch of Oklahoma’s defense-driven 23-21 win against the Crimson Tide in early November – one that launched the Sooners off the periphery of the playoff race and into at-large position – took on a much different feel by halftime.
The Sooners scored first on a touchdown run by quarterback John Mateer with 5:29 left in the first quarter. Oklahoma added a 51-yard field goal by Lou Groza Award winner Tate Sandell to lead 10-0 after the opening quarter.
After forcing another Alabama punt, Oklahoma then went 63 yards in eight plays, ending with a touchdown pass from Mateer to Isaiah Sategna III, to lead 17-0 just over four minutes into the second quarter.
Alabama would respond with a barrage that left the game tied at halftime.
First, Simpson’s 10-yard touchdown pass to Lotzeir Brooks cut the lead to 17-7 with 6:52 left in the quarter. On fourth down on the next possession, Oklahoma punter Grayson Miller fumbled when dropping the ball toward his foot, setting up the Tide at the Sooners’ 30-yard line and resulting in a 35-yard field goal by kicker Conor Talty to make the score 17-10.
Worse was to come: Back to pass on second down near midfield with just over a minute left in the half, Mateer was intercepted by Alabama’s Zabien Brown, who went 50 yards for a touchdown to even the score.
While things slipped away in the final seven minutes of the second quarter, Oklahoma went into the break outgaining the Tide by 136 yards while giving up just a single third-down conversion and -3 rushing yards.
But Alabama’s run continued into the third quarter. After forcing a punt, the Tide went 60 yards in three plays, ending with Simpson’s 30-yard touchdown pass to Brooks, to take their first lead at 24-17. A freshman, Brooks finished with five catches for 79 yards.
Another Oklahoma three-and-out led to a nearly five-minute Alabama drive that resulted in a 40-yard field goal and a 27-17 lead. The Sooners entered the playoff having allowed 27 points just twice during the regular season and gave up a combined 19 points in wins against Missouri and LSU to end the regular season.
Alabama gained 106 yards in the third quarter after gaining 100 yards in the first half and held Oklahoma to just 37 yards and two first downs.
But the Sooners began to regain their composure in a drive bridging the end of the third quarter and start of the fourth, with receiver Deion Brooks taking a short Mateer completion 37 yards for a touchdown on the first play of the final quarter. The score was set up by an Alabama pass interference penalty on the previous play.
While the Tide barely inched past midfield on their next drive, Blake Doud’s punt went out at the Sooners’ 7-yard line. After a costly offsides penalty on third down, Oklahoma’s 32-yard punt set up Alabama at the 40-yard line with 9:14 remaining.
Four plays later, running back Daniel Hill’s 6-yard touchdown pushed Alabama’s lead back to double digits at 34-24 with 7:24 to play.
This time, Oklahoma didn’t have a response. Needing at least a field goal to stay within a possession with time running out, the Sooners’ next drive ended with Mateer sacked on third down by Alabama defensive lineman Kelby Collins.
Regaining possession with 4:52 remaining after an Alabama punt, Oklahoma converted one fourth down with a 38-yard Mateer completion but opted for a 36-yard field goal attempt on a second fourth-down try with 2:53 to play. Amazingly, Sandell missed for just the second time this year in 26 attempts.
Sandell would also miss a 51-yarder in the final two minutes that ended any chance of an Oklahoma comeback.