Peach Bowl 2016: Schedule, Top Storylines to Follow in Washington vs. Alabama

Undefeated Alabama heads into the College Football Playoff as the reigning champion and the favorite to capture a second consecutive national title. While that much is clear, exactly how much of a threat Washington poses is a topic of debate heading into the 2016 Peach Bowl on Dec. 31.

The Huskies are coming off a strong regular season of their own. They went 12-1 with notable victories over Stanford, Washington State and Colorado. And their only loss came to a USC squad that was virtually unstoppable over the final couple of months of the campaign.

Of course, nobody Washington faced can match the physical superiority of the Crimson Tide, who haven't lost since September 2015. With the in mind, let's check out all of the important details for the anticipated matchup and then analyze some key storylines ahead of the New Year's Eve battle.

Game Information

Where: Georgia Dome in Atlanta

When: Saturday at 3 p.m. ET

Watch: ESPN

Live Stream: WatchESPN

Tickets: ScoreBig.com

Top Storylines

Jake Browning's Moment To Shine

Although Browning wasn't a finalist for the Heisman Trophy, Washington's sophomore signal-caller had a strong case for a spot on the stage in New York City. He threw for 3,280 yards and 42 touchdowns with just seven interceptions. He also added four rushing touchdowns.

Exceptional quarterback play is essential to upset Alabama. The Crimson Tide's only one-score victory of the year came on Sept. 17 against Ole Miss in an entertaining 48-43 win. Chad Kelly threw for 421 yards and three scores in that game to give the Rebels a chance.

Browning will likely need to craft a similar masterpiece for the Huskies to remain within striking distance deep into the four quarter. While that's not out of the question, it illustrates the small margin of error for the Tide's opponents.

Michael Casagrande of AL.com noted Bama head coach Nick Saban heaped praise on Browning for everything he does to keep the Washington offense moving:

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I was very, very impressed with their offense in terms of how they execute, the balance that they have and their ability to run the ball with some very good backs, some very talented receivers. But a quarterback who really understands his offense very well, executes it very well, gets the ball out of his hand quickly, knows when to throw the RPOs and when to hand the ball off and can make plays down the field, as well, and is athletic enough to scramble, extend plays and make plays with his feet.

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One thing to keep an eye on is the Alabama secondary trying to jump routes. As Saban alluded to, the Huskies like to get the ball out quickly in the passing game, and they'll probably try to double down on that to neutralize the Bama rush. The Tide will try to force a few interceptions to offset the approach.

All told, one could argue Browning deserved a spot on the Heisman stage. However, beating Alabama and earning a trip to the title game would be an even greater accomplishment for him.

Huskies Not Shying Away from Bama Hype

Washington head coach Chris Petersen is no stranger to the underdog role from his years helping bring the Boise State program to national prominence. Going up against Alabama over the past of couple years is one of the toughest tasks the college game has ever seen, though.

Tim Booth of the Associated Press noted Petersen isn't trying to downplay the challenge. "You know, probably the best college team I've seen," he said. "So what can you do but keep humor about it?"

He also talked about not trying to keep his players away from the outside talk about Bama's greatness:

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We're not trying to block it out, and I don't think that's realistic, just like you're saying. So we just talk to our kids all the time about where they need to focus. They're going to hear it. They're going to know what everybody says, for the most part. But what do we think about, what do we pay attention to, where do we focus? How do we treat all this attention coming their way? And they've been great about it.

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It's a refreshing take on the situation at a time when the easy route would be to play the "us against the world" card. Letting his players take in all the pregame talk should allow those same feelings to come naturally rather than trying to force it into their mindset.

Furthermore, it's important for Washington to understand exactly how good Alabama is because most of those accolades are warranted. The Crimson Tide are the most complete team in the nation, which is why they are the favorite and the top playoff seed.

Any competitor who spends nearly a month hearing about how good the other team is should have no shortage of motivation. That could work in the Huskies' favor in the CFP semifinal.

Prepare for a Defensive Battle?

As mentioned, the most common blueprint for a Washington upset focuses on Browning enjoying an otherworldly performance to lead the Huskies to a high-scoring victory. Getting Alabama into a shootout isn't easy, but Ole Miss showed it's possible two years in a row.

Not everybody believes the game is destined to become a Tide blowout or a back-and-forth offensive showcase, though. Lance Zierlein of NFL.com came away from his film study thinking the game could end up being a defensive struggle:

Alabama edged LSU 10-0 in a contest that saw just 448 total yards on Nov. 5. It's not an uncommon end game when Bama faces some of its fiercest SEC rivals, but it is less expected against a spread-it-out Pac-12 team like Washington.

That said, the Huskies would love to receive that type of performance from their defense. If you told them they'd hold the Tide to around 300 yards and 10 points, they would gladly accept that and hope their offense could handle the rest.

Of all the potential ways the game could play out, the only one that's hard to imagine is a Washington blowout. Alabama has too much talent, even if it falls behind early. But don't be surprised if the Huskies manage to keep it close heading into the fourth quarter despite the Tide's status as the heavy favorite.