Inside the Play: Alabama's defense turns in a performance for the ages against Michigan State

Among the many fine efforts that the Tide defense put forth in 2015, perhaps the magnum opus occurred during the CFB Playoff Semifinals/Cotton Bowl performance against Michigan State.

This 38-0 shellacking gave us a few quotables that will live in Alabama lore, Jonathan Allen’s Marty Lyon-esque "Alabama does," and a visibly shaken, terrified Connor Cook screaming "they’re f*****g everywhere!"

We forget in that dominance, that Cook moved the ball decently to start the game, mainly working the seams in the middle of the field, and that again the Spartans threatened at half time. Those would be the best opportunities for points. The two best Michigan State scoring threats ended in calamity, as the Tide forced turnovers or got the ball back.

The beatdown of a top-five Big Ten team has never felt so pedestrian. That’s what elite teams do.

Roll Tide.