By KACE KIESCHNICK, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
No. 5 Alabama (6-2, 4-2 SEC) at No. 14 LSU (6-2, 3-2 SEC), College Football Playoff rankings)
Saturday, Nov. 7 • 2:30 p.m. • ABC
Baton Rouge • Tiger Stadium (“Death Valley”)
Spread: LSU -6 | O/U 52.5
OVERVIEW
The yearly matchup between LSU and Alabama dating back to 1964 comes to an end in 2026 with yet another high-stakes matchup. The No. 5 Crimson Tide (6-2, 4-2 Southeastern Conference) travel to Baton Rouge to face the No. 14 Tigers (6-2, 3-2 SEC) as both teams fight to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive. Bama got a favorable spot in the first CFP rankings, but without many big games left on the schedule, it is now or never for the Tide to get a big win to punch their ticket to the postseason. LSU, on the other hand, has plenty of opportunity with three top 15 opponents on the November slate, but the Tigers have yet to notch a statement win over a potential playoff team this season. Lane Kiffin’s Tigers and Kalen DeBoer’s Crimson Tide both have explosive offenses led by dynamic quarterbacks Sam Leavitt and Keelon Russell. LSU has dominated its last two SEC opponents like it has in all of its wins this season while Alabama limped into the bye week ravaged by injuries following back-to-back losses to Georgia and Tennessee. Both teams took the open week to get healthy and prepare for their most important matchup of the season yet.
KEY STORYLINES
The Alabama Infirmary
It is hard to talk about anything in this game without mentioning the significant injuries Alabama faces. While the Tigers will still likely be without star linebacker Whit Weeks as he was listed as doubtful on the Initial SEC Availability Report, the Crimson Tide have five starters listed as questionable. They are center Racin Delgatty (knee), wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams (knee), offensive guard William Sanders (ankle), cornerback Zabien Brown (lower leg) and defensive lineman Terrance Green (ankle). Each of them have made a significant impact for Alabama this season and change the complexion of the game if they are available. Delgatty’s absence has caused Alabama’s improved O-line to shift along the interior back to mediocrity. Losing Sanders is another blow. Coleman-Williams is perhaps the Tide’s biggest star and certainly their most explosive offensive weapon. Brown was a preseason All-American for a unit that has now been decimated by injuries the past few weeks, and Green is one of Bama’s best run-stuffing interior linemen. With all five of them listed as questionable, there is a realistic chance a near-full strength Alabama enters Tiger Stadium on Saturday, something the Tide has not been since its grueling heavyweight bout with Georgia.
The Tide’s Run Game Refusing to Roll
Alabama’s running game went from being one of the strengths of its dominant offense to a glaring weakness. DeBoer’s Tide had an almost identical rushing attack to LSU last season – non-existent. The offensive line took great strides to open this season, and the duo of running backs Daniel Hill and Trae’shawn Brown found great success. Their best outings, of course, came against East Carolina and Florida State, but Bama was still able to put up over 150 rushing yards against Kentucky and Georgia. The Tide averaged 182 rushing yards a game through the first six weeks, good enough for fifth in the SEC behind LSU and ahead of Florida if they had kept pace. Instead, the last two weeks Alabama totaled 54 yards on the ground against Tennessee’s star-studded front and 64 yards against Texas A&M’s mediocre one. The biggest change has been missing Delgatty in those two games, causing backup left guard Mal Waldrep Jr. to shift over to center. When Sanders then went down at left guard versus A&M, the Tide turned to third-string Kaden Strayhorn. Even before the problems on the inside, Alabama’s offense favored outside runs. Defensive ends Princewill Umanmielen and Jordan Ross will be asked to contain both Russell and the run game on the edge, while LSU’s speed at linebacker and STAR could help them limit explosive runs. If the offensive line was able to use the bye week to get healthy, Alabama’s rushing attack could return to competency, but if not, they have already shown what the offense looks like when a potent pass rush is allowed to tee off on a young quarterback in a hostile environment – Tennessee won 26-10 and allowed 201 yards of offense.
Bama’s Opportunistic Defense
The Bama defense has been feast or famine this season. When they are clicking, Kiffin has pointed out their physicality and length is reminiscent of the dominant Saban defenses. Other times, they allow over 400 yards of offense to Florida State and South Carolina. Bama ranks No. 5 in the SEC in rushing defense (104 yards allowed per game) and No. 9 in passing defense (222.38), but where it really shines is creating big turnovers. The Tide is No. 5 in the nation with 12 interceptions this season, No. 4 with seven fumble recoveries and No. 1 with five pick-sixes. Leavitt has cleaned up his turnovers and thrown zero interceptions the last two weeks, but he has thrown eight interceptions this year and should have had another versus Auburn. He has been more accurate and on-time with his throws as the season has gone on, and he is making safer decisions by taking open check downs since the Kentucky game. But if he finds himself trying too hard to make a play and forces a ball into traffic, this Bama defense knows how to capitalize in a big way.
Dueling Dual-Threat Quarterbacks
So often in marquee college football matchups, the game comes down to who has the better quarterback. With both rosters loaded with explosive weapons on offense and physical talents on defense, quarterback play is the obvious tie breaker, and Leavitt and Rusell are two of the nation’s top passers. Leavitt slightly edges out Russell statistically this season. He is 180-of-256 for 2,173 yards, 17 touchdowns and eight interceptions. Russell has completed 148 of 221 passes for 2,057 yards, 15 touchdowns and five interceptions. Leavitt has also run 72 times for 324 yards and eight touchdowns while Russell has totaled 251 yards and five touchdowns on 66 carries. Both are electric as both passers and runners, and each have had their share of struggles this season. Leavitt started slowly after an offseason sidelined away from his new team and receivers, and Russell has shown his inexperience at times, reminding viewers he is just a sophomore in his first season as a starter. That gap between the first-year starter and the redshirt junior with a CFP start under his belt could be the difference on Saturday. Leavitt is playing some of the cleanest football of his career, completing over 71% of his passes in each of his last five games as he leads LSU to the No. 7 passing offense in college football. Both defenses will be waiting for one of the signal-callers to make a mistake, and whoever blinks first could decide the game.
CRIMSON TIDE PLAYERS TO WATCH
QB Keelon Russell: 148-of-221 for 2,057 yards, 15 touchdowns and five interceptions, 66 carries, 251 yards, five touchdowns
WR Ryan Coleman-Williams: 23 receptions for 425 yards and four touchdowns, preseason All-SEC first team (questionable)
LB Caleb Woodson: Leads team with 63 tackles, including 4.5 tackles for loss and two sacks
DB Bray Hubbard: One of four Bama players with two interceptions, leads secondary with 41 tackles and second on team with 3 passes defended.
KEY MATCHUPS
LSU Tight End Trey’Dez Green vs. Alabama Defensive Coordinator Kane Wommack
Bama, like every team in America, does not have a defender who can easily match up with Green one-on-one, so it will be up to defensive coordinator Kane Wommack to scheme up answers for LSU’s 6-foot-7 pass catcher. Green will get looks against multiple defenders, but his most common opponents will be linebackers Luke Metz and Caleb Woodson, inside corner Red Morgan and safety Keon Sabb. Morgan is listed at just 6-0, 191 pounds, a terrible physical matchup for the Tide, but the others are all 6-3. Sabb’s athleticism gives him the edge as the top coverage option against the tight end, but Green has the physical advantage if they were to meet after the catch. In his second game back from injury after a bye week, it will be a group effort to stop a fully healthy Green.
Bama Interior Offensive Line vs. LSU Defensive Tackle Deuce Geralds
If Alabama’s offensive line is not back to full strength, it could be time for the loud return of the freshman D-tackle. After an explosive start to his LSU career with five sacks in his first five games, he has not recorded another in his last three. Uanmielen and Jordan Ross have continued to shine in the LSU pass rush and will deservedly take a lot of the attention of a Bama offense that has allowed 23 sacks this season. That could free up Geralds to cause havoc on the inside. If the ends are able to do their jobs and pressure the mobile Russell without breaking contain, it will be up to Geralds and the defensive tackles and linebackers to collapse the pocket on top of him.
Alabama Wide Receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams vs. LSU Cornerbacks DJ Pickett and PJ Woodland
If Coleman-Williams cannot play on Saturday, Lotzeir Brooks and Rico Scott are also dangerous weapons for the Alabama offense, but when Coleman-Williams is on his game, he is one of the most explosive threats in college football. If he is available he will see plenty of reps on the outside matched up with one of LSU’s two lockdown corners. He is averaging 18 yards a catch this season and only one of his receptions all season has not resulted in a first down or touchdown. If LSU can trust its secondary to guard him man-to-man, it frees up coordinator Blake Baker to creatively pressure the Tide’s young quarterback.
STATS AND TRENDS TO KNOW
Alabama dominates the all-time series with a 58-27-5 record and a 30-10-2 record in Baton Rouge.
Saturday is the 34th meeting between the schools featuring two ranked teams. LSU is 10-22-1 in those matchups. It is the 25th time it is a top 15 matchup. LSU is 6-18 in those games and 2-10 when they are played in Baton Rouge. The two wins came in 2010 and 2022.
That 24-21 LSU win was also the last time the Tigers and Crimson Tide did not kick off at night in Tiger Stadium.
Kiffin is 0-5 against Alabama as a head coach. DeBoer is 2-0 against the Tigers.
Kiffin is just 9-6 coming off a bye week and 0-3 against Alabama after a bye while DeBoer is 8-0 following a bye as a head coach and 5-0 against ranked opponents.
THE OUTLOOK
On paper, LSU wins almost every key comparison there is. Whether thanks to its loaded roster or staggering production on both sides of the ball this season, a side-by-side comparison of the teams, especially given LSU’s recent form, tells the tale of a potential blowout. Ask any LSU fan, though, and they will tell you that rarely matters on the first Saturday in November. Just because Nick Saban is not on the opposing sideline does not mean the Tide have been any less dominant in the series so far without him. If Alabama gets its necessary reinforcements back from injury, a high-flying offensive clash could be brewing in Tiger Stadium, and if LSU’s costly mistakes in big games this season return as well, there could be trouble for the Tigers. However, the offense should keep humming as long as the interior and right side of the offensive line can hold up well enough to give Leavitt time and not jeopardize the run game. If Bama cannot produce a rushing attack of its own and Russell is left to shoulder the whole burden of the offense, the “Bayou Bandits” could put Bama through a similar struggle . The electric atmosphere of “Death Valley” – even at 2:30 p.m. – could be the difference.
Tiger Rag Staff Predictions
Kace Kieschnick, Staff Reporter – LSU 37, Alabama 31.
Glenn Guilbeau, Editor – Alabama 27, LSU 24.
Todd Horne, Executive Editor – LSU 34, Alabama 24
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