Alabama–Clemson football rivalry

The Alabama–Clemson football rivalry is a college football rivalry^[2][3][4] game between the Crimson Tide of the University of Alabama and the Tigers of Clemson University.

Alabama–Clemson football rivalry

Alabama Crimson Tide Clemson Tigers
First meeting	November 29, 1900 Clemson, 35–0
Latest meeting	January 7, 2019 Clemson, 44–16
Next meeting	2027
Statistics
Meetings total	19
All-time series	Alabama leads, 14–5[1]
Largest victory	Alabama, 74–7 (1931)
Longest win streak	Alabama, 13 (1909–2016)
Current win streak	Clemson, 1 (2019–present)

150km
100miles

Clemson

Alabama

  

Locations of Alabama and Clemson

History

The two southern schools have long, decorated histories in the sport of college football.^[5] They first met on the football field on November 29, 1900.^[6] Clemson won the inaugural matchup by a score of 35–0.^[7] The Crimson Tide and Tigers met again in 1904 and 1905, with Clemson winning both games.^[8] Beginning with the next meeting between the two squads in 1909, Alabama won the next thirteen matchups against Clemson.^[8] The Tide posted the biggest margin of victory in the rivalry in 1931, whopping the Tigers by a margin of 74–7.^[9][10] In the first seven games of Alabama's 13-game streak, Clemson only scored seven total points and was shut out in six of the seven games.^[8] After a 56–0 shutout Alabama victory in 1975, the squads didn't meet again until 2008, when they squared off on opening weekend in Atlanta, Georgia.^[11] The Tide emerged with a 34–10 victory.^[12]

The last four matchups between the squads had national championship implications and have greatly intensified the rivalry. The teams squared off in the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship in Glendale, Arizona, with Alabama emerging with a thrilling 45–40 victory.^[13] The next year, the teams again found themselves doing battle in the 2017 College Football Playoff National Championship in Tampa, Florida, with Clemson emerging with a thrilling 35–31 victory and their first win over the Crimson Tide since 1905.^[14] Once again the teams did battle in the 2018 Sugar Bowl in New Orleans, Louisiana with a trip to the 2018 College Football Playoff National Championship game on the line.^[15] Alabama won the contest by a score of 24–6.^[16] In the build-up to the 2018 Sugar Bowl, players and coaches from both teams referred to the series as a "respectful" rivalry. The next week, on January 8, 2018, Alabama would win the national championship over Georgia by a close score of 26–23, their 5th title in 9 seasons and 17th title overall.^[17][18] The two teams met again in the 2019 College Football Playoff National Championship, the fourth playoff match-up in the series in as many years, and the third to be in a championship game. Clemson blew out Alabama 44–16 in that meeting, to win their 3rd title, and their 2nd in 3 years.^[19]

There are numerous connections between the two programs. Clemson's top three winningest head coaches, Frank Howard, Dabo Swinney, and Danny Ford, all played at Alabama, as did Clemson coaches Hootie Ingram and Charley Pell.^[20][21]

Game results

Alabama victories

Clemson victories

No. Date Location Winning team Losing team 1 November 29, 1900 Birmingham, AL Clemson 35 Alabama 0 2 October 8, 1904 Birmingham, AL Clemson 18 Alabama 0 3 October 25, 1905 Columbia, SC Clemson 25 Alabama 0 4 October 16, 1909 Birmingham, AL Alabama 3 Clemson 0 5 October 11, 1913 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 20 Clemson 0 6 November 14, 1931 Montgomery, AL Alabama 74 Clemson 7 7 November 10, 1934 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 40 Clemson 0 8 November 9, 1935 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 33 Clemson 0 9 October 3, 1936 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 32 Clemson 0 10 October 8, 1966 Tuscaloosa, AL #4 Alabama 26 Clemson 0 No. Date Location Winning team Losing team 11 October 28, 1967 Clemson, SC Alabama 13 Clemson 10 12 October 26, 1968 Tuscaloosa, AL Alabama 21 Clemson 14 13 October 25, 1969 Clemson, SC Alabama 38 Clemson 13 14 September 20, 1975 Tuscaloosa, AL #14 Alabama 56 Clemson 0 15 August 30, 2008 Atlanta, GA #24 Alabama 34 #9 Clemson 10 16 January 11, 2016 Glendale, AZ #2 Alabama 45 #1 Clemson 40 17 January 9, 2017 Tampa, FL #2 Clemson 35 #1 Alabama 31 18 January 1, 2018 New Orleans, LA #4 Alabama 24 #1 Clemson 6 19 January 7, 2019 Santa Clara, CA #2 Clemson 44 #1 Alabama 16 Series: Alabama leads 14–5[1]

Results by location

State	City	Games	Alabama victories	Clemson victories	Years played
Alabama	Tuscaloosa	7	7	0	1934–1936, 1966–1975
	Birmingham	2	0	2	1900, 1904
	Montgomery	1	1	0	1931
South Carolina	Clemson	2	2	0	1967, 1969
	Columbia	1	1	0	1905
California	Santa Clara	1	0	1	2019
Louisiana	New Orleans	1	1	0	2018
Florida	Tampa	1	0	1	2017
Arizona	Glendale	1	1	0	2016
Georgia	Atlanta	1	1	0	2008

Record by game type

Game type	Games	Alabama victories	Clemson victories
Regular season	15	12	3
CFP Final	3	1	2
CFP Semifinal	1	1	0

See also

• List of NCAA college football rivalry games

References

1. "Winsipedia – Alabama Crimson Tide vs. Clemson Tigers football series history".
2. Armour, Nancy (December 31, 2018). "Appreciate another edition of Alabama-Clemson, a rivalry for the ages". USA Today. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
3. McGee, Ryan (January 7, 2019). "Clemson-Alabama is the perfect embodiment of modern football rivalries". ESPN.com.
4. Kussoy, Howie (January 8, 2019). "Clemson-Alabama rivalry just 1 of 2019's intriguing story lines". New York Post.
5. "Clemson-Alabama playoff rivalry continues in Sugar Bowl". December 3, 2017. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
6. "Alabama vs. Clemson: A Football History". January 11, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
7. Brown, Matt (January 8, 2016). "Clemson seeks its first win vs. Alabama since 1905". Archived from the original on February 26, 2018. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
8. "Clemson's lost 13 straight to Bama since 1905". January 6, 2017. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
9. "Interesting facts about Clemson and Alabama you should know before the big game – Charleston Daily". charlestondaily.net. January 2018. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
10. Nobles, Charlie (September 12, 1993). "College Football; Florida State Leaves Clemson in Awe". The New York Times. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
11. "Alabama To Play Clemson In Season Opener At Georgia Dome :: Will be the first meeting in 33 years between the two teams – College Sports Official Athletic Site". www.cstv.com. Archived from the original on January 13, 2008. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
12. "Alabama vs. Clemson – Game Recap – August 30, 2008 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Archived from the original on October 27, 2017. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
13. "Alabama vs. Clemson – Game Recap – January 11, 2016 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
14. "Clemson vs. Alabama – Game Recap – January 9, 2017 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
15. "Alabama suffocates Clemson in dominant Sugar Bowl victory to set up all-SEC title game". USA Today. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
16. "Alabama vs. Clemson – Game Recap – January 1, 2018 – ESPN". ESPN.com. Retrieved July 3, 2018.
17. "Is Alabama-Clemson a rivalry? Players from both sides are (mostly) in agreement". December 30, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
18. "Dabo Swinney on Alabama vs. Clemson: Rivalry has developed that's "healthy, respectful'". December 11, 2017. Retrieved July 12, 2018.
19. "Clemson vs. Alabama – Game Recap – January 7, 2019 – ESPN".
20. Fralick, Brad (April 26, 2018). "Dabo Swinney will be inducted into Alabama Sports Hall of Fame Saturday". Retrieved July 12, 2018.
21. Walsh, Christopher. "The Clemson connection". Retrieved July 12, 2018.