It’s the most important regular-season college football game so far this season. Saturday’s matchup between No. 2 LSU and No. 3 Alabama has plenty of intrigue, due in large part to the playoff implications. Remarkably, the last time Alabama was the lower-ranked team in a regular-season game was 2015.
LSU vs. Alabama
- When: Saturday, November 9
- Time: 3:30 p.m. ET
- TV: CBS
- Live Stream: fuboTV (watch for free)
This is the matchup many have had circled on their calendar for weeks, and it is finally here. Both LSU and Alabama have had extra time to prepare for the game since both were idle last weekend. While LSU’s program has floundered as Alabama has dominated the SEC and won multiple National Championships, you can’t help but feel this time is different.
Asked plenty of questions at his Tuesday press conference, Alabama head coach Nick Saban said one of his biggest concerns coming into the game is LSU quarterback Joe Burrow’s ability to extend plays and make first downs with his legs. Burrow, who’s in the Heisman Trophy conversation, has used the team’s core of top wide receivers to his advantage. LSU’s Justin Jefferson is the top SEC receiver with 819 yards and nine touchdowns. He’s topped 100 yards in a game four times, including 163 against Texas.
While plenty of talk centered around whether Alabama quarterback Tua Tagovailoa would play vs. LSU, all signs point to him taking the field. Rehab and recovery have gone well for Tagovailoa, who is almost three weeks removed from undergoing surgery to repair the high ankle sprain he suffered against Tennessee.
Defensively, the Tide has allowed just six passes longer than 30 yards, one longer than 40 and none longer than that. LSU has given up eight of 30 or more yards and two of 40 or more. However, both teams are likely to give up more big plays Saturday than they have in any game this season due to the explosiveness of student-athletes at the skill positions.
The matchup between Alabama’s wideouts, especially Jerry Jeudy, and the LSU secondary will be something important to watch. Nobody has been able to stop Alabama’s receivers yet, but the Crimson Tide have not faced a secondary like LSU’s. It could come down to a stop late in the game to decide who will win.
Will Alabama’s school-record 31-game home winning streak reach 32? Will LSU’s losing streak to the Tide reach nine?
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