College Football Championship 2017: Players to Watch for Clemson vs. Alabama

A tremendous amount of talent will take the field on Monday, as the Alabama Crimson Tide battle the Clemson Tigers once again in the 2017 College Football Championship.

Alabama finished with a top-five recruiting class nationally in each of the past five years, while Clemson ranked in the top 30 in every year during the same time frame.

While there will be high-caliber players and potential future NFL stars at all levels of each team, a few guys who may not be the biggest names stand out as X-factors in this game. The top players will certainly have their say, but complementary pieces will decide which team ends this season with a national title.

Let us take a look at two guys on each team that must have big nights. Here also is the schedule for Monday night.

Date	Location	Start Time (ET)	Network
Monday, Jan. 9	Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, Florida	8 p.m.	ESPN

Minkah Fitzpatrick, Alabama

While Jonathan Allen, Reuben Foster and Marlon Humphrey are key cogs and the players pushing for first-round selections in Alabama's top-ranked defense, sophomore defensive back Minkah Fitzpatrick is the glue that makes this unit great.

Fitzpatrick plays all over the secondary, and that will come in handy against Clemson.

He can match up with speedy receivers in the slot, which can neutralize Hunter Renfrow's ability to take advantage of linebackers and slower safeties in coverage. Fitzpatrick can also help out with downfield coverage, which is key with burners like Deon Cain and Mike Williams on Clemson's offense. 

These diverse weapons created problems for Alabama last season, as the Crimson Tide allowed 550 yards to Clemson in the 2016 national title game. That performance lingers in Fitzpatrick's mind, per ESPN.com's Edward Aschoff, and his increased role in this team's defense could give the Tigers more trouble.

"The whole defense really didn't play that well [against Clemson last year]," Fitzpatrick said. "They didn't really see the real 'Bama last year. They just saw a little flash of it. I hope this year, we are gonna play right, and they're gonna get a little taste of the real 'Bama—the whole taste."

Fitzpatrick led Alabama with six interceptions, including two returned for touchdowns, this season to go along with five tackles for loss and a sack. He can make plays from all over the field, so expect to hear Fitzpatrick's name called plenty on Monday night.

Wayne Gallman, Clemson

Deshaun Watson ripped Alabama for 405 yards and four touchdowns passing to go with 73 rushing yards last year. Thus, the Crimson Tide are certainly going to sell out to make sure Watson is not as successful this time around, and that is where Wayne Gallman must step up.

The bruising junior tailback is among college football's most complete rushers when he is in rhythm. He can break tackles and wear down defenses on the interior while also possessing the speed to get to the edge, which he showed against a top defense in Ohio State in the Fiesta Bowl, courtesy of ESPN:

With so much attention heading Watson's way, Gallman must be able to consistently break off quality runs to give his quarterback space with play action and zone-reads. Gallman ran for 1,087 yards and 16 touchdowns this season, a year after going for 1,527 yards and 13 scores on roughly 70 less carries, so he has shown he can take pressure off of Watson.

Doing so on Monday will be a tall task, as Alabama tops the nation in rush defense at 62 yards allowed per game. Clemson's offense will force the Crimson Tide linebackers to spread out though, which should create some more running room for Gallman.

However, if he fails to make Alabama pay for the extra space, then Clemson's offense will have a tough time being able to move the ball against the size and strength the Crimson Tide can deploy on the boundary. If the the running back eclipses 100 yards, the Tigers will be in excellent shape.

O.J. Howard, Alabama

Perhaps no player made as significant a difference in last season's national championship game than O.J. Howard, as the tight end gashed Clemson for several huge plays.

Howard's physical abilities have never been in question, but the 6'6" senior has yet to post the huge numbers expected for someone who poses such a daunting matchup problem with his speed and strength. The SEC Network's Cole Cubelic noted Howard's modest stat lines heading into the last two championship games:

Yet, he went off for 208 yards and two touchdowns against Clemson last year, as the Tigers just could not cover Howard downfield with their linebackers and safeties. Howard will undoubtedly garner more attention from Clemson this time around, but he does not have to replicate the same type of performance.

As long as he can stay involved in the offense and make plays on third down, Alabama's offense could do big things. This ensures that the Tigers will still have to respect Howard's role and playmaking ability in the Crimson Tide's offense, which gives dynamic receivers Calvin Ridley and ArDarius Stewart more one-on-one situations.

Either of those two receivers are bound to create a huge play if left with minimal coverage, so Howard must play his role and eat up pass defenders in the middle of the field. Then, when Clemson starts to dish out help on the outside, look for Howard to make a downfield play of his own.

Dexter Lawrence, Clemson

Despite losing stars like Kevin Dodd and Shaq Lawson from last season's superb defensive line, Clemson still boasted a phenomenal unit this year thanks in large part to the emergence of freshman defensive tackle Dexter Lawrence.

Rated as a 5-star prospect and the No. 2 defensive tackle in the nation in the 2016 class, Lawrence was as good as advertised this season. He is fourth on the team with 58 total tackles, seventh with nine tackles for loss and second with 6.5 sacks. As his head coach Dabo Swinney noted, there was not much of an adjustment period with Lawrence and the college game, per Scott Keepfer of the Greenville News:

His elite quickness and strength allow Lawrence to eat up double-teams inside to give Carlos Watkins, 10.5 sacks, more opportunities to make plays while clearing out blockers for linebacker Ben Boulware at the next level. Watkins certainly recognizes this, per Fox Sports' Stewart Mandel.

“Once he puts it all together, I don’t see anyone stopping him,” Watkins said. “You don’t see many guys who can dominate in the trenches at his level.

“[Lawrence] is going to be the No. 1 pick in the draft.”

Lawrence's play will be instrumental to the success of Clemson's defense, as the unit must shut down the Alabama run game.

The Crimson Tide needed Bo Scarbrough to go off for 180 yards and two touchdowns to get by Washington in the Peach Bowl, since quarterback Jalen Hurts struggled mightily with just 57 passing yards. Hurts relied on his legs all season, rushing for 891 yards and 12 scores. Damien Harris led the team with 1,016 yards.

Clemson will need to force Hurts to beat its defense with his arm, which will require Lawrence to clog up the middle and create penetration against the Alabama offensive line. The freshman will face his toughest challenge yet with a group that handled most of the defensive lines on its schedule, but still look for Lawrence to have an impact on Monday.

Recruiting information is according Scout.com. Individual statistics are courtesy of CFBStats.com. Team statistics are courtesy of NCAA.com.