Source: SI.com / #2 Clemson ran away from #3 Notre Dame, jumping out to an impressive 23-3 halftime lead.
Source: tsj101sports.com / Clemson's performance in their total domination of the Irish was a true work of art.

College Football Playoff Semifinals Recap: Notre Dame Gets Demolished; Roll Tide

#3 Notre Dame and #2 Clemson went to battle on Saturday afternoon from the Cotton Bowl for a right to play for the National Championship. Only one team managed to show up, however, as the Tigers thoroughly dominated the Irish in all facets of the game en route to a 30-3 victory. After a close first quarter, the Tigers pulled away in the second quarter.

Clemson Freshman QB Trevor Lawrence went to work on the Irish secondary, taking advantage of an injury to one of Notre Dame's starting cornerbacks and connected with star wideout Justyn Ross for touchdown passes of 52 and 42 yards respectively. Lawrence and the Tigers weren't done with their second quarter scoring-spree however, as Lawrence hit Tee Higgins for a 19-yard TD with just 2 seconds to go in the half, putting Clemson up 23-3 at the break, and effectively putting the game away before they even reached the second half.

Source: sportingnews.com / Freshman QB Trevor Lawrence had a huge 2nd quarter on his way to over 300 yards passing and 3 scores

For the Irish, it was a disappointing performance all-the-way around, as head coach Brian Kelly failed to win "the big one" yet again. Quarterback Ian Book had come in to this one looking fantastic, and many believed that ND was being completely overlooked as double-digit underdogs, with virtually no pundits picking the Irish to win. The lack of respect, figured to motivate the Irish, however, their offense never got going and Book and co. were limited by a ferocious Clemson defensive front, lackluster running game, and ultimately, ultra-conservative gameplan from Kelly.

Book was limited to just 17-34 passing for 160 yards with an interception and no touchdowns. The run game was equally disappointing, totally just 88 yards on 35 attempts, good for a pitiful 2.5 yards per carry. Meanwhile, Lawrence carved the Irish up for 327 yards through the air on 27-39 passing, and the 3 TDs. All-American HB Travis Etiene added a 62 yard touchdown run late in the 3rd quarter to put an emphatic exclamation point on the game, as he finished with 109 yards rushing on just 14 carries. Wideout Justyn Ross finished with 6 catches for 148 yards and the two long 2nd quarter scores. Clemson advanced to the Title game yet again, as head coach Dabo Swinney and his Tigers will get the opportunity to play in the National Title game for the 3rd time in 4 years.

Source: sportingnews.com / All eyes were on the highly-anticipated QB duel between the top two Heisman Trophy Finalists in Oklahoma's Kyler Murray and Alabama's Tua Tagovailoa

In the other College Football Playoff Semifinal, Alabama rolled over Oklahoma in the Orange Bowl, as the Tide proved the old adage, "Defense wins Championships" to be true. As exciting as Oklahoma's offense has been all season behind Heisman Trophy-winner QB Kyler Murray and co., the defense has been absolutely pitiful. The Sooners' sieve of a D was on full display right from the get-go as Alabama raced out to a 21-0 lead after the first quarter. After Josh Jacobs hauled in a 27 yard touchdown pass from QB Tua Tagovailoa, the Crimson Tide made it 28-0 just minutes into the 2nd quarter.

Oklahoma finally woke up and scored the next 10 points of the game, but a Crimson Tide FG late in the first half extended the lead back out to 21, at 31-10 @ the half. Murray came to life in the second half, but it wasn't nearly enough, as he threw a 49-yard TD pass in the 3rd quarter and added another in the 4th quarter. The closest it ever got the Sooners was 11 points, however, as Murray needed an 8-yard TD scamper late in the game just to get the Sooners to cover the 14-point spread. In the end, the Crimson Tide prevailed 45-34 in a game that really wasn't as close as the final margin.

Source: yahoosports.com / The Crimson Tide steamrolled the Sooners en route to an early 28-0 lead. The Sooners had trouble stopping the Tide all night long.

Alabama QB Tua Tagovailoa easily won the much-ballyhooed quarterback showdown with Murray as he was nearly perfect, completing 24 of 27 passes for 318 yards and 4 touchdowns without an interception. The top two vote-getters in the Heisman voting put on a display, but Murray was unable to make up for an incredibly slow start to the game on both sides of the ball by the Sooners. Murray finished with 308 yards passing with two scores, but completed just 19-37 in the game. He did add another 109 yards and a score on the ground, but it just wasn't nearly enough to make up for the poor defensive showing. Alabama piled up 528 yards of offense in the game, including an even 200 on the ground, as the Crimson Tide will have the opportunity to win yet another National Championship under Nick Saban. It should be one heck of a title game, as it is abundantly clear that we have the two best teams in the nation squaring off after the two lackluster semifinals. Best of luck to both the #2 Tigers and #1 Crimson Tide as they continue their recent postseason rivalry.