It was the third edition of the College Football Playoff (CFP) and involved the top four teams in the country as ranked by the College Football Playoff poll playing in two semifinals, with the winners of each advancing to the national championship game.
The three playoff games earned an average Nielsen rating of 12.7, with the championship scoring 15.4, a four percent upgrade from the previous edition.
The 2016–17 CFP selection committee was chaired by Texas Tech athletic director Kirby Hocutt.
Its other members were Wisconsin athletic director Barry Alvarez, former Southern Miss head coach Jeff Bower, former Central Michigan athletic director Herb Deromedi, former NCAA executive vice president Tom Jernstedt, former head coach Bobby Johnson, Arkansas athletic director and former CFP selection committee chairman Jeff Long, Oregon athletic director Rob Mullens, Clemson athletic director Dan Radakovich, former United States secretary of state Condoleezza Rice, former USA Today reporter Steve Wieberg, and former college head coach Tyrone Willingham.
[1] The first CFP poll of the season was released on November 1, 2016, with four conferences represented in the top six: No.
7 in the AP Poll at the time, surprised some with their inclusion in the top four, though they dropped out after their upset loss to Mississippi State the following week.
[5] Louisville, following an upset loss to Houston,[11] then fell out of the top six, and were replaced by Wisconsin.
1 Alabama, defending national champions making their third consecutive CFP appearance, with No.
Alabama took the lead on a field goal shortly into the second quarter and did not relinquish it, scoring two further touchdowns on an interception return by Ryan Anderson and another rush by Scarbrough, who won offensive Most Valuable Player.
In all, ten of Alabama's twenty-four points came off of turnovers, and the interception return was their eleventh defensive touchdown of the season.
[24] at University of Phoenix Stadium • Glendale, Arizona The Fiesta Bowl semifinal matched No.
[25] A 45-yard field goal by Clemson placekicker Greg Huegel was followed by a Deshaun Watson rushing touchdown in the game's opening quarter, and Clemson scored a touchdown in each of the remaining three quarters—a reception by C.J.
Fuller and rushes by Watson and Wayne Gallman—to finish as Fiesta Bowl champions by a thirty-one point margin.
[26] Clemson head coach Dabo Swinney praised the defense's performance, including that of Clelin Ferrell, the game's defensive MVP, recorded three tackles for loss, including a sack.
[28] Alabama was first to score on a touchdown rush by Bo Scarbrough after the Crimson Tide had gained possession following a turnover on downs by the Tigers.
[29] They doubled the lead on another Scarbrough rush in the second quarter,[28] and the teams traded scores for the majority of the rest of the game.
[30] Clemson took their first lead with less than five minutes remaining on a 4-yard touchdown rush by Wayne Gallman.
This was the first of three lead changes in the fourth quarter, the last of which came on a touchdown pass from Watson to Hunter Renfrow with one second remaining.
[28] The Associated Press remarked that the game-winning two-yard strike was "one of the easiest throws [Watson] had to make all night".
[31] The championship's Nielsen rating of 15.4 represented a 4% year-over-year increase, and the game broke records for average audience and unique viewers.
The three playoff games averaged a 12.7 rating and increases of at least 25% in streaming audience and unique viewers.