LSU football hosts Alabama on Saturday in Baton Rouge. Here are your three keys to a Tiger victory.
By Matt Zemek
The LSU Tigers and national college football observers could not have imagined this, as is the case with so many other scenarios in this year of the pandemic: The defending national champions, who put together one of the most dominant and majestic seasons in college football’s 151-year history in 2019, are now 29-point underdogs to Alabama as they host the Crimson Tide Saturday night in Tiger Stadium.
Everyone knew LSU’s roster attrition was going to affect the Tigers to some extent this season, but the degree of erosion in LSU football from one year to the next – affected not just by the NFL draft, but also COVID-19 and the coaching carousel – has been staggering. LSU hasn’t merely lost a few games and mildly declined compared to 2019. This is a night-and-day difference from last year, a considerable downfall for head coach Ed Orgeron, who is facing the predictable but premature chorus of “You’re just another Gene Chizik at Auburn!” statements from rival fans and national pundits. It’s really too early to say that.
Nevertheless, the sobering reality of life after Joe Burrow is undeniable for LSU. Let’s see what Coach O should focus on as he prepares his team for the No. 1 Crimson Tide:
1 – Get in the zone
Zone coverage has to be the play for LSU in this game. We know Alabama is going to move the ball and pile up a large number of yards. That’s going to happen. There’s no point in pretending it won’t. Never fear, though: LSU simply has to make sure that when Alabama gains 70 yards on a drive, those 70 yards don’t come on one or two plays, and that they lead to a red-zone field goal attempt.
If Alabama wants to drive 70 yards in 10 plays and settle for a 27-yard field goal, let the Tide do that all night long. Let Alabama drain the clock. Let Alabama dink and dunk the ball for short gains which move the sticks but don’t achieve the quick-strike success the Crimson Tide have often found against inferior SEC defenses. Let Alabama control the ball in exchange for forcing a bunch of short field goals. LSU has to make Alabama stack field goals in this game. It’s not going to prevent Bama from moving the ball; it just has to deny the home run and then stand tall in the red zone. That’s as good as LSU can reasonably expect when playing defense in this game.
2 – Shoot your shot on offense
While getting Alabama’s offense to stack field goals, LSU has to hit home runs on offense. Auburn had some big plays available against the Alabama secondary this past weekend, but either the Bo Nix throw was bad, or receiver Seth Williams couldn’t come down with the catch. Nevertheless, Alabama’s defense – which has hardly been airtight this season; the offense is the star of the show for Nick Saban in 2020 – will give up some plays, or at least allow receivers to get open down the field. LSU has to hit those shots and put up several touchdowns. If LSU accumulates sevens and Alabama accumulates field goals, this game could somehow be close in the fourth quarter.
3 – The A&M carryover
LSU’s team is highly flawed, but the way LSU’s defense has grown and competed in recent weeks has been encouraging. Yes, LSU didn’t face an elite offense against either Arkansas or Texas A&M. Nevertheless, the Tigers – who gave up 48 points to Auburn – have in fact improved in recent weeks. The A&M game was a moment when the defense could have sulked and stopped competing, given how abysmal the offense was. Instead, LSU kept fighting to the very end. That kind of effort gets noticed by a coaching staff, and if LSU carries that pride into this game against Alabama, the Tigers’ persistence might be rewarded in surprising ways.
Saturday‘s game kicks off at 7:00 PM CT (8:00 PM ET). You can watch this LSU football game on the CBS Network.
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