Wait, so I guess Alabama’s dynasty isn’t dead?

Nick Saban’s Alabama has now won four national championships in seven years, claiming 16 overall. It’s the first program to do this since Notre Dame in the 1940s, and what the Tide have done is somehow far more impressive. The Irish pulled that off well before modern scholarship limits, only had to win eight or nine games per title year (Bama’s 14-1 this year), and benefitted from World War II shutting down football at dozens of programs around the country.

But a few months ago, when Bama lost a wild game to Ole Miss, columnist types rushed to declare the dynasty finally dead. We made fun of all the premature dirt-patting, having seen the undead Tide pull off this zombie championship run annually. Saban griped about it at the time and did so again Monday night, saying his players responded to the death knells.

So let’s maybe not do this again the next time Bama loses a single game, aight?

Oh, good. Bama’s good at everything now. Would you ever believe it if someone told you Saban called a Les Miles-ian trick and then Bama’s special teams went out and won a huge game? Not even Tide fans can believe it.

The other play that will be memorialized in one of those Bama paintings is Derrick Henry’s whirling second effort to put the game away. (Elsewhere, Henry was too fired up to allow his QB to hydrate at a time like this, scored a TD when Bama put 630 pounds’ worth of defensive tackle in the backfield, and towered over human bowling ball Mark Ingram.)

Bama’s breakout star weapon on offense was O.J. Howard, last seen being a megahyped recruit many distant years ago.

College football’s breakout star was Clemson’s Deshaun Watson, who turned in a Vince Young-grade performance despite only being a sophomore. Let’s also remember the Tigers had suffered injuries to their top two defenders. Speaking of, here’s a way-too-early 2016 top 10!

MEGACAST highlights: Paul Finebaum took another call from the New Year’s Eve drunk Bama fan, who’s still drunk, and Marcellus Wiley talked about eating ear wax.

ESPN’s pylon cam had a wonderful debut season, capped by Kenyan Drake dunking a 95-yard kick return right onto it.

Goodbye to Kirby Smart, who’s now the head coach at Georgia, but not before getting so geeked that he blocked Saban’s view of the field.

Saban smiled!

But did the Pac-12 refs deliver? You bet they did! Dabo Swinney hollered at them after they cost his team an extra shot at a score before halftime.

Cam Robinson blocked this dude into February.

Lane-uary continues. Kiffin did the following wondrous acts:

Same. Lee Corso picked the Tigers, saying he was doing so because common sense is his enemy.

Elsewhere!