The Season-Opening Upset that Began a Football Dynasty, and Revealed a Surprising Principle for Success Beyond the Game
College football fans awaiting the 2008 season were looking forward to a new treat from Chick-fil-A to debut on August 30 and it had nothing to do with chicken sandwiches.
Instead, this was an appetizer on the football menu called the College Kickoff, a neutral site contest to start the season featuring two quality teams squaring off in Atlanta’s Georgia Dome. The inaugural participants were the Clemson Tigers and the Alabama Crimson Tide, who arrived in Atlanta with vastly different positions on the preseason hype train.
Tommy Bowden’s Tigers were ranked #9 in the nation, fresh off a 9-4 record in the 2007 season that included dramatic wins over Florida State and archrival South Carolina. The Tide, meanwhile, had lost their last four regular season games in 2007, including a stunning defeat at the hands of Louisiana-Monroe and a sixth straight loss to Auburn. The Alabama faithful managed some optimism based on Nick Saban’s history as a national championship coach at LSU and a stellar group of freshmen making up his first full recruiting class, but the prevailing opinion was that the rebuilding process would take time. Clemson, after all, returned several starters on both sides of the ball, headlined by the “Thunder & Lightning” running back duo of James Davis and C.J. Spiller. The more realistic Bama fans hoped to simply make a competitive appearance and set the stage for consistent improvement throughout the season as the Tide built for the future.
From the opening moments of the game, however, it became apparent that Alabama was there not just to be competitive, but to dominate. The Tide scored on all three of its first quarter possessions and by halftime stretched the lead to 23 – 3. At that point, the underdogs led in rushing yards 126 – 7, and in time of possession 21:30 to 8:30.
Bowden’s halftime interview put the first half into perspective, as he said simply, “They’re tougher than we are right now.”
Alabama never trailed and cruised to a 34 – 10 win. Experienced players on the offensive and defensive lines pushed Clemson around all night, and junior placekicker Leigh Tiffin contributed four field goals for the Tide.
But it was the youngsters whose play stated emphatically that the rebuild was already well underway. Freshman Mark Ingram had his coming out party, gaining 96 yards in the victory, while “Thunder & Lightning” combined for just 20 yards. Ingram was one of several freshmen who played key roles in the game. Highly touted wide receiver Julio Jones became the first true freshman ever to start his first game at that position for Alabama, and his 4-yard touchdown catch in the third quarter put the Tide up 31 – 10.
On the defensive side, Donta Hightower recovered a fumble on Clemson’s second play from scrimmage to set up a Tiffin field goal. In all, 10 true freshmen saw action in the game. These recruits established the formula that remade Alabama football in the Saban era.
As talent began to gather at the Capstone under Saban, players often had to wait their turn or split time with talented, more seasoned upperclassmen. Despite having been a high school star at Flint Southwestern (MI), Ingram shared carries with redshirt junior running back Glen Coffee, who gained 90 yards of his own versus Clemson and over 1,300 yards on the year. The next season, when Ingram became the first Tide player ever to win the Heisman Trophy, he had to work hard to beat out freshman phenom Trent Richardson. Richardson, in turn, had to be willing to defer playing time to Ingram. And so the process went.
With a team full of members applying this principle, Alabama would go 14 – 0 in 2009 and win the first of its six national championships under Saban. Interestingly, the 2008 game seemed to set Clemson and Alabama on a collision course for future championship contests. Bowden resigned before the 2008 season was over, and Clemson assistant coach and Alabama graduate Dabo Swinney took the helm of the Tiger program.
After several outstanding recruiting classes of his own, Coach Swinney would lead his team into four consecutive championship or playoff matchups with Saban’s Crimson Tide, winning national championships in 2017 and 2019, while Alabama prevailed in 2016 and 2018.
In time, “Built by Bama” became a description for how good players become better players, and better players become star players, who then develop into championship players. It may seem counterintuitive, but stars, despite their incredible individual talent, don’t become champions without investing in and investment from others. The real power of “Built by Bama” may have been first revealed to the college football world on August 30, 2008, but, like the principle of “Iron Sharpens Iron,” this truth has been around for at least a few thousand years and will continue forever. TG
Photos courtesy Alabama Athletics
