Despite being undefeated and the number one team in the College Football Playoff ranking, the Clemson Tigers are playing the role of underdog for a second straight postseason game Monday night when they take on Alabama for the national championship. Alabama opened as a 5.5-point favorite and is currently anywhere between a 6.5 to seven-point favorite according to the latest odds. Alabama tends to get a couple of points leeway from the oddsmakers just for being Alabama, and most seem to understand that is always going to be the case. That doesn’t mean Clemson players have to like it.
Continuing the no-respect narrative orchestrated by head coach Dabo Swinney, Clemson cornerback Mackensie Alexander suggested he has had enough hearing about how great Alabama is and is ready to prove Clemson is indeed the best team in the country.
“We are 14-0, and we were underdogs last week, it’s all a brand thing,” Alexander said Saturday during media day (via Al.com). “Everyone cares about the brand, the Alabama brand. I understand it’s a lot of fans, and they’ve done it for a long time, but this is a new year, and it’s our time.”
Alexander will be squaring off with Alabama wide receiver Calvin Ridley in one of the top matchups to watch in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game. With that being the case, Alexander has been asked plenty about the man he will be covering Monday night.
Clemson CB Mackensie Alexander on Calvin Ridley: “What do you want me to say about the guy? He’s fast. I’m fast. This isn’t my first rodeo.”
— Joe Schad (@schadjoe) January 9, 2016
Clemson appears to be run with the disrespect card to their advantage. If it worked against Oklahoma in the semifinal matchup in the Orange Bowl, the hope is it works again tomorrow night.
“They said Oklahoma was the best team, and we just went out there and proved them wrong,” Clemson safety Jayron Kearse said. “So that’s the same thing we have to do with Alabama. They say Alabama’s a seven-point favorite; we have to go out there and prove them wrong.”
For purely entertainment purposes, Alabama is 8-7 against the spread this season. Clemson is 7-8 against the spread, and 1-0 against the spread as an underdog.