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Deshaun Watson watching Cam Newton, Johnny Manziel to prepare for Alabama

By Patrick Schmidt

Jan 9, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson answers questions during media day at Phoenix Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports
Jan 9, 2016; Phoenix, AZ, USA; Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson answers questions during media day at Phoenix Convention Center. Mandatory Credit: Matthew Emmons-USA TODAY Sports /
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Clemson Tigers quarterback Deshaun Watson is trying to channel Cam Newton and Johnny Manziel as he prepares to take on the Alabama Crimson Tide in the College Football Playoff National Championship Game.

If Clemson is going to pull off the upset and beat Alabama for the national title on Monday night, quarterback Deshaun Watson is going to have to play his best game of the year.

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The third-place finisher in this year’s Heisman vote is the best quarterback in the nation but he hasn’t faced a defense like the one Alabama has, but in an effort to make plays and expose the Crimson Tide’s No. 1 defense in the nation, he’s studying Cam Newton and Johnny Manziel to see what they did to have success vs. Alabama.

Both of those quarterbacks has more success than any other signal-caller since Nick Saban turned Alabama back into a perennial powerhouse, and Watson can do some of the things that both of those Heisman winners did to beat Alabama.

Newton helped erase a 24-0 deficit in 2010 when he threw for three touchdowns and ran for another to win the SEC and later win the national title against Oregon. His dual-threat ability gave Saban and Kirby Smart’s defense fits trying to figure out if he was going to throw it or tuck and run.

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The biggest quarterback success story is Manziel accounting for more than 500 yards of offense as a freshman when he led the Texas A&M Aggies to a stunning upset over Alabama and pave his way to becoming the first freshman to win the Heisman.

Both players have improvisational skills that would make the best improv comics envious and Watson, while not in Newton’s or Manziel’s class, just yet, he can take a big step toward joining that elite fraternity with a standout performance against the nation’s best defense and lead Clemson to their first national title since 1981.

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