This Saturday, the Michigan Wolverines and Washington Huskies will face off for the second time in 2024, but the stakes are much lower than their initial meeting. In January, these two teams battled it out for the national championship title at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. This time around, Michigan is fighting to stay in the running for a spot in the expanded college football playoff, while Washington is struggling to find its footing after losing two of its last three games.
History suggests that this rematch could be an exciting one. Since the inaugural BCS National Championship Game in 1998, only four national title rematches have taken place in the following season, with three of those games being decided by a single score.
Let’s take a look back at those four rematches:
In 2018, Alabama took on Georgia in the SEC championship game, just a year after their thrilling national title matchup. The Crimson Tide came from behind to win 35-28, thanks in part to Jalen Hurts’ relief efforts after Tua Tagovailoa’s injury.
The year prior, Alabama faced off against Clemson in the College Football Playoff semifinals, a rematch of their iconic 2016 national title game. While the semifinal game didn’t quite live up to the hype, Alabama still managed to come out on top 24-6.
In 2016, Clemson got its revenge against Alabama in the national title game, winning 35-31 in a back-and-forth thriller. The game saw three lead changes in the final five minutes, with Deshaun Watson finding Hunter Renfrow for the winning score with just seconds left on the clock.
Finally, in 2012, Alabama took on LSU in a rematch of their 2011 national title game. While the initial matchup was a blowout, the rematch in Baton Rouge was a nail-biter, with Alabama emerging victorious 21-17 thanks to a late touchdown pass from A.J. McCarron to T.J. Yeldon.
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