Charone Peake laughed a little recalling a moment from Tuesday's Senior Bowl practice in Fairhope. Just two weeks after meeting as opponents on college football's grandest stage, the former Clemson receiver is teammates with five Alabama players.
Those 15 days separated Peake from a near miss in his final collegiate game. His Tigers led into the fourth quarter before Alabama won the national title game, 45-40.
"It was weird today, Jake Coker was throwing me the ball while Cyrus Jones was guarding me," Peake said with a grin. "So that was kind of weird. We're all cool about it. It was just a game at the end of the day. We're all friends."
But there are still a few lingering feelings left over from that night outside Phoenix. Clemson controlled good portions of that game, outgained the Tide and had a few opportunities to break things open. Alabama's 24 fourth-quarter points and a few special-teams momentum swings changed everything.
"We felt like we dominated the game," Peake said. "Those couple two or three plays took over and kinda overshadowed our play. The scoreboard didn't show it but I felt like we dominated the game."
Clemson gained 550 yards to Alabama's 473. The Tigers' offensive output was the most allowed since Auburn's 630 in the 2014 Iron Bowl. Alabama also won that game, 55-44.
Tiger quarterback Deshaun Watson made his early case for 2016 Heisman consideration throwing for 405 yards (30-for-47) with four touchdowns and one interception. He also ran 20 times for 73 yards, converting a few third downs with his feet.
"They really hadn't seen anybody like him," Peake said. "We were pretty confident in our o-line. ... We came in with a really, really good plan and we executed it."
Peake, who caught six passes for 99 yards, said they knew how effective Alabama's front seven had been all season. So Clemson wanted to test the perimeters more than the interior, using Watson's speed to the Tide's disadvantage.
"More outside runs," Peake said, "move them around a little bit and try to get them tired."
He could see some degree of fatigue, but was impressed with the depth of Alabama's defense. Fresh bodies kept coming.
On defense, Clemson tackle D.J. Reader felt good about the effort his group made that night. Also in Mobile for the Senior Bowl, Reader saw the same themes as Peake. They were in good position, but recognized a few big plays cost Clemson a title.
"They don't make mistakes," Reader said. "They capitalize. If you're going to beat them, you really have to beat them. You can't go out there and have a fluke game and just win against them. You have to beat them straight up. That's what I respect about them as a team. They're going to do the things that matter. They're going the little tackles, even if it doesn't count, they're going to make them. They just do things the right way."
Clemson's few misfires were major factors.
There were the 50-plus-yard touchdown passes to O.J. Howard, Kenyan Drake's 95-yard kickoff return and the onside kick recovery by Marlon Humphrey early in the fourth quarter. That surprise trick play followed a game-tying field goal with 10:34 to play.
"It definitely played a big part," Peake said. "We had a chance to take a lead. It was a good play call. I'll give them that. We weren't expecting it at all. They executed it, got the ball back and scored off of it."
Reader took pride in the way Clemson defended Alabama's top offensive threat. Derrick Henry finished with 36 carries and 167 rushing yards -- 50 of which came on a first-quarter touchdown.
"We gave up some big runs because of misfits, but when we had it fitted right, it wasn't like he was just running through our defense," said Reader, owner of four tackles in the game. "He's a great back, don't get me wrong, but just a couple of misfits."
Neither Clemson player in Mobile this week felt any shame in the effort displayed that night in Arizona.
"I know for a fact every guy in that locker room gave everything they had, so there's nothing to be disappointed about," Peake said. "A lot of the guys on the team are young. They'll have a chance to go back there next year."