NEWS RELEASES

Alabama Quarterback Jake Coker earned the 80th Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic’s J. Curtis Sanford Offensive MVP Award, after leading the No. 2 Crimson Tide into the College Football Playoff National Championship Game with a 38-0 victory over No. 3 Michigan State.

Coker threw for a career-high 286 yards in a clinic of quarterback efficiency. The senior from Mobile, Ala., completed 25-of-30 attempts with two touchdowns and no turnovers. Coker’s College Football Playoff Semifinal performance set his career highs in completions, passing yards and efficiency.

This is the seventh Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic to be played at AT&T Stadium.

Derrick Henry is the ninth player to win the Heisman Trophy and compete in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic in the same season. The other Heisman winners were Doak Walker (SMU, 1948 Heisman, 1949 CBC), Roger Staubach (Navy, 1963, 1964), Earl Campbell (Texas, 1977, 1978), Doug Flutie (Boston College, 1984, 1985), Bob Jackson (Auburn, 1985, 1986), Tim Brown (Notre Dame, 1987, 1988), Ricky Williams (Texas, 1998, 1999) and Johnny Manziel (Texas A&M, 2012, 2013) HENRY FINISHED THE GAME WITH 75 YARDS ON 20 CARRIES AND TWO TOUCHDOWNS RUSHING.

COTTON BOWL CLASSIC RECORDS

Michigan State became the eighth team to be shut out in Cotton Bowl history and the first since LSU shut out Texas in the 1963 Classic. There have been two scoreless ties in Cotton Bowl history.

Alabama also recorded the most decisive shutout in Cotton Bowl history (38-0). The previous record was held by Oklahoma A&M who recorded a 34-0 shutout over TCU.

Alabama’s 38 point win over Michigan State was the third-largest point differential in Cotton Bowl history.

The preparation is now complete.

All that is left is for the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide and for the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans are to meet in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic to see which team will move on the play for a national championship.

The Crimson Tide (12-1, 8-1 SEC) went through a brief walk-through at AT&T Stadium this afternoon in anticipation for its New Year’s Eve showdown with the Spartans (12-1, 7-1 Big Ten).

Michigan State completed its final on-field preparation for the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic by conducting a walk-through at AT&T Stadium on Wednesday afternoon.

The No. 3 Spartans (12-1, 7-1 Big Ten) spent more than an hour doing light work for their New Year’s Eve game against No. 2 Alabama (12-1, 8-1 SEC) before heading back to the team hotel for final meetings. The winner advances to the College Football Playoff National Championship on Jan.

Michigan State turned in its final practice for the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic on Tuesday, capping a full day.

The team started the day with pre-dawn wakeup calls so they could bus from the team hotel to AT&T Stadium for an hour-long media session. After more preparation back at the hotel, they returned to the stadium in the afternoon and worked vigorously for two hours.

“Long day,” Head Coach Mark Dantonio said.

After the fun associated with an hour-long media day session, the No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide quickly got back to the business at hand and squarely put its focus on the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans.

The Crimson Tide (12-1, 8-1 SEC) put the final touches on its College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic preparation with a two-hour workout in shells and shorts in the team’s third practice, in what would normally be a “Thursday” practice, at AT&T Stadium.

Michigan State's focus has sharpened each day since beginning on-site practices for the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

How that will carry over to game day is hard to know, Head Coach Mark Dantonio said Monday."My wife asks me that all time, how it's going to be," Dantonio said. "I just say, 'Hey, we'll see when the game gets here.'"

"I think our attention to detail is very good. I think the focus is good.

Head Coach Mark Dantonio and the entire Michigan State Spartan squad spent their Monday afternoon visiting at Texas Scottish Rite Hospital for Children. Patients, staff members and supporters of the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic gathered around the hospital’s cafeteria and welcomed the football team along with their coaching staff in grand fashion.

President and CEO of Texas Scottish Rite Hospital, Bob Walker, started the event thanking the Spartans for visiting with them, followed by remarks from Chairman of the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Dan Novakov.

Head Coach Nick Saban, and the entire University of Alabama football team, spent their afternoon sharing inspiration and cheer to patients of Children's Health/Children's Medical Center Dallas. Joining them were staff members, Cotton Bowl Chairmen, past and present and President and CEO of Children's Health System of Texas, Chris Durovich.

"What a great privilege it is for us to have Coach Saban, and Derrick Henry, this year's Heisman trophy winner," said Durovich.

The No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide put in another elongated practice session with more than two hours in full pads at AT&T Stadium.

Intensity continued to build and focus continued to sharpen as the Crimson Tide ready for its College Football Playoff Semifinal clash at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic against the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans (12-1, 7-1 Big Ten) three days away.

“I feel pretty good (about today’s practice), said LB Reggie Ragland. “Guys were flying around, being in the right position to get better today, so overall it was good.

Even as he prepares for the biggest game of his career, Michigan State Head Coach Mark Dantonio had the Dallas-area storm victims on his mind Sunday.

At least 11 people died, many others were injured and hundreds of homes were damaged when tornadoes tore through nearby cities Saturday evening. It was the first thought Dantonio shared Sunday after completing the team’s second practice for the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

“Our thoughts and our prayers go out to the people that are affected by the tornadoes,” Dantonio said.

The No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide got down to business for its College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic with a two-hour practice in full pads on the AT&T Stadium turf in Arlington.

The Crimson Tide (12-1, 8-1 SEC) held a spirited workout in preparation for its New Year’s Eve matchup with the No. 3 Michigan State Spartans (12-1, 7-1 Big Ten).

“Practice has been going well,” said C Ryan Kelly. “This is a team with a honed vision of what we want when we started this a long time ago when we dreamed of getting here.

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Michigan State began its on-site preparation Saturday for the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

The Spartans practiced for the first time in seven days, working 2½ hours in full pads at AT&T Stadium.

“Good practice today,” Head Coach Mark Dantonio said. “We got a lot of things done and got reconnected with the environment here, you could say, and had good work.”

The Spartans (12-1, 7-1 Big Ten) started the year at AT&T Stadium when they rallied from 20 points down to beat Baylor 42-41 in the 2015 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.