2016 SEC Championship Game

For the SEC men's basketball championship of the same year, see 2016 SEC men's basketball tournament.

The 2016 SEC Championship Game was played on Saturday, December 3, 2016, in the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, and determined the 2016 football champion of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The game was played between the Eastern Division champion, Gators, and Western Division champion Alabama. The Eastern Division team was the designated home team, and the game was broadcast nationally by CBS for the 16th consecutive year.^[2] This was the final SEC Championship Game in the Georgia Dome, which was demolished on November 20, 2017, after its successor, Mercedes-Benz Stadium, opened on August 26 of the same year. The title game moved to the new stadium and will remain there through at least 2027.^[3]

2016 SEC Championship Game
Conference Championship
2016 SEC Championship logo.
Alabama Crimson Tide Florida Gators (12–0) (8–3) 54 16 Head coach:  Nick Saban Head coach:  Jim McElwain AP Coaches CFP 1 1 1 AP Coaches CFP 15 16 15
1 2 3 4 Total Alabama 16 17 7 14 54 Florida 9 7 0 0 16
Date	December 3, 2016
Season	2016
Stadium	Georgia Dome
Location	Atlanta, Georgia
MVP	Reuben Foster
Favorite	Alabama by 24
Referee	Matt Loeffler[1]
Halftime show	Dr Pepper Tuition Givaway
Attendance	74,632[1]
United States TV coverage
Network	CBS, Westwood One, SEC Radio
Announcers	CBS: Verne Lundquist (play-by-play) Gary Danielson (color) Allie LaForce (sidelines) Westwood One: Brandon Gaudin, Derek Rackley, and Ross Tucker SEC Radio: Dave Neal, Dave Archer, and Dave Baker
SEC Championship Game  ← 2015  2017 →

2016 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf.							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Eastern Division
No. 14 Florida x		6	–	2					9	–	4
No. 22 Tennessee		4	–	4					9	–	4
Georgia		4	–	4					8	–	5
Kentucky		4	–	4					7	–	6
South Carolina		3	–	5					6	–	7
Vanderbilt		3	–	5					6	–	7
Missouri*		2	–	6					4	–	8
Western Division
No. 2 Alabama x$^		8	–	0					14	–	1
No. 24 Auburn		5	–	3					8	–	5
No. 13 LSU		5	–	3					8	–	4
Texas A&M		4	–	4					8	–	5
Arkansas		3	–	5					7	–	6
Mississippi State		3	–	5					6	–	7
Ole Miss*		2	–	6					5	–	7
Championship: Alabama 54, Florida 16
^ – College Football Playoff participant $ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions * Ole Miss and Missouri vacated all wins due to NCAA violations. Rankings from AP Poll

Alabama earned a berth in the SEC Championship on November 12 after clinching the SEC West.

2015 season

In the 2015 SEC Championship Game, Alabama defeated Florida 29–15. Alabama went on to defeat Michigan State 38–0 in the Cotton Bowl, which served as a College Football Playoff semifinal, and defeated Clemson 45–40 in the national championship game.

Verne Lundquist retiring

This would be Verne Lundquist's final SEC Championship Game broadcast.^[4] He retired from calling college football following the Army-Navy Game. He was succeeded by Brad Nessler.

Teams

Florida

Main article: 2016 Florida Gators football team

Alabama

Main article: 2016 Alabama Crimson Tide football team

Game summary

Scoring summary

Quarter Time Drive Team Scoring information Score Plays Yards TOP ALA FLA 1 9:51 10 64 5:09 FLA Antonio Callaway 5-yard touchdown reception from Austin Appleby, Eddy Piñeiro kick good 0 7 1 6:58 4 –1 0:58 ALA 31-yard field goal by Adam Griffith 3 7 1 5:06 3 2 1:52 ALA Interception returned 44 yards for touchdown by Minkah Fitzpatrick, Adam Griffith kick good 10 7 1 1:42 – – – ALA Joshua Jacobs 27 yard blocked punt return, Adam Griffith kick blocked 16 7 1 1:42 – – – FLA David Reese defensive PAT conversion 16 9 2 11:55 7 88 2:58 ALA Gehrig Dieter 6-yard touchdown reception from Jalen Hurts, Adam Griffith kick good 23 9 2 6:27 7 36 2:01 ALA 25-yard field goal by Adam Griffith 26 9 2 3:47 5 62 1:43 ALA Joshua Jacobs 6-yard touchdown run, Adam Griffith kick good 33 9 2 0:19 10 92 3:28 FLA DeAndre Goolsby 25-yard touchdown reception from Austin Appleby, Eddy Piñeiro kick good 33 16 3 3:32 8 98 3:16 ALA Bo Scarbrough 2-yard touchdown run, Adam Griffith kick good 40 16 4 9:15 15 91 7:34 ALA Bo Scarbrough 1-yard touchdown run, Adam Griffith kick good 47 16 4 3:48 4 21 2:24 ALA Derrick Gore 10-yard touchdown run, Andy Pappanastos kick good 54 16 "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. 54 16

Source: ^[1]

Statistics

Statistics[1]	ALA	FLA
First Downs	18	16
Total offense	372	261
Rushing yards–TD	234–4	0–0
Passing yards–TD	138–1	261–2
Passing: Comp–Att–Int	11–20–0	26–39–3
Fumbles: Number–Lost	1–0	1–0
Penalties: Number–Yards	2–14	7–53
Punts: Average Yardage	40.5	43.6
Kickoffs: Average Yardage
Sacks: Number–Yards	4–23	2–11
Field Goals: Good–Att	2–3	0–0
Points off turnovers	17	0
Time of Possession	24:52	35:08