EUGENE -- It wasn't long after Bobby Williams arrived at Oregon that he told the Ducks about "Pop Kick."
Late on the night of Jan. 11, 2016, Alabama lined up to kick off to Clemson in the College Football Playoff national championship game. The score was tied at 24, but Clemson's offense had found success against the Crimson Tide all night, and rather than give the Tigers the ball back, head coach Nick Saban called for a surprise onside attempt. He called the play "Pop Kick."
Saban believed the gamble would work because of what he'd seen during film sessions with Williams, the Tide's special teams coordinator.