With the college football National Championship Game on tonight, who should Tennessee Volunteers fans root for between Alabama and Clemson?
So 2016 didn’t exactly end up feeling like 1998 for Tennessee. There was no national championship, no SEC championship, and no divisional title.
Despite the strong start to the season, those dreams were dashed in October. This means that Tennessee fans will have to sit on the couch and once again watch one of their most hated historical rivals in Alabama face off against a big regional opponent in recruiting that has simply dominated the Vols for prospects (even in their own backyard) in Clemson for the national title.
So if you’re a Tennessee fan who will be watching this game tonight (as the overwhelming majority will be, I assume), then who should you be rooting for?
Well, the simple answer is really neither of these teams. It basically is a lose-lose situation for the Vols no matter which way you look at it. If Alabama wins their “17th” national championship, it’ll just be another piece of hardware in the trophy case for the Tide and will further inflate their fans’ already immense egos.
If Clemson wins, then a program that has already plundered some key talent from the state of Tennessee (Tee Higgins, Amari Rodgers) as well as other Tennessee targets will cement themselves a national powerhouse and become even more of a desirable program for recruits to flock to.
It’s just a real positive situation all-around for Vol fans, isn’t it? Either arguably your biggest rival gets richer in Alabama’s case or a program that has become a thorn in your side in recruiting becomes 100x as enticing than they already were in Clemson’s case.
But if you feel that you need to be at least a little invested in one team over the other tonight, then you must pull for the Clemson Tigers to get their revenge over the Tide tonight.
It all comes down to the fact that Tennessee has to play Alabama every year and they don’t have to face Clemson at all. So anything that is a negative towards the Crimson Tide is a positive for the Vols. It means a small break from the Bama Dynasty, no gloating from Tide fans for at least a year, and several sure-to-be hilarious memes all offseason at Bama’s expense.
Yes, while there will be consequences for recruiting that has already become not as great as it once was for Tennessee, do realize that Clemson and Dabo Swinney will most likely get who they want in the near future regardless of tonight’s outcome. In fact, losing the title game could help recruiting in some cases. Swinney could say to a prospect that “we could’ve won if we had you on the field with us.”
And even if Clemson does become an even more powerful program, just remember that the likelihood of Tennessee having to face them is small and would only occur in a bowl/CFP Playoff game.
Oh and let’s not forget that the whole concept of rooting for Alabama or any other SEC team in a championship game because of “Es Ee See Prahd Paaaaaaaul” and getting to taunt your Ohio State fan cousin on Facebook is an asinine concept and should be mocked at every opportunity.
So sit back tonight and hope for a great football game like we had between these teams last year and enjoy the last college football we will get to see for eight months. Just don’t think about the consequences of either outcome. If you do, then I hope you’re at a bar.