The Chase With Jace Alabama Preview:
Once again, the nation will have their eyes on LSU/Alabama with College Gameday in attendance for the first time since 2018 and also what is essentially a College Football Playoff elimination game.
“We’re excited about having them here. Certainly, it’s great for the community and our campus. The exposure does a great deal for the entire identity of Baton Rouge, the state of Louisiana and LSU.”
LSU HC Brian Kelly on having College GameDay
Both the LSU Tigers (6-2) and Alabama Crimson Tide (6-2) both enter the game with multiple losses, but also find themselves in the Top 15 with the Tide being ranked 11th and the Tigers being ranked 15th in the College Football Playoff poll.
The LSU/Alabama rivalry will have a fresh take this year as for the first time since 2006, Nick Saban will not be on the sidelines for Alabama. The Hall of Fame head coach, who also helped build LSU to being a college football powerhouse that it is today will also be making his return to campus as part of College GameDay.
Replacing the greatest college football coach of all time at Alabama is Kalen DeBoer, who has steadily gone up the coaching ranks from Sioux Falls to Fresno State to Washington to now Alabama. Brian Kelly, who is the active winningest coach in college football can relate to DeBoer as they both went up the coaching ranks from the DII level to coaching two of college football’s biggest brands.
“Kalen and I didn’t get the chance to speak much maybe in passing. It is one of those things where he was playing for a national championship and then he got the job. It’s been kind of a whirlwind for him. Anyime that we have gotten together, it has been in passing, but we do share a common bond in that we both worked our way up. We both had to do the laundry literally and figuratively. Those kind of experiences lend themselves to having a mutual respect for each other. I respect the work that he has done and he has continued to do it at every level.”
LSU HC Brian Kelly on Kaleb DeBoer
LSU is coming off a bye week in which they are eagerly looking forward to getting back in Tiger Stadium, especially after playing their worst half of the season in a 38-23 loss to Texas A&M. However, the Tigers are focused on the task at hand knowing that there is a current five way tie for the top spot in the conference with LSU being in the mix with Texas, Georgia, Tennessee, and Texas A&M.
“We’re much more focused on playing four quarters of football. All that other stuff is out there, but it doesn’t help us relative to what we do. This is about playing our best when our best is needed.”
LSU HC Brian Kelly on playing four quarters
In order for the Tigers to get the win Saturday night, they are going to need their best from Garrett Nussmeier. Nussmeier had his worst half of his career throwing three interceptions on the road against Texas A&M, but that does not take away from the season he is having right now as the Tigers’ gunslinger is ranked second in the SEC and top 10 in the country in touchdown passes with 20 while also being ranked top five nationally in yards passing per game with 328.4 yards per game.
“Obviously, we weren’t the same team in the second half that we were in the first half. It just comes down to execution. I made some mistakes and gave them a chance to catch momentum and turned the ball over and gave them some short fields. I beat myself up about it for a week and had to flush it. Now, our focus is on Alabama.”
LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier
What will help Nussmeier gain his confidence back and put himself back on track is his offensive weapons. Kyren Lacy leads the team in receptions (41), yards (618), and touchdowns (6). Aaron Anderson has proven to be quite a bright spot for the Tigers’ offense with 36 catches for 614 yard and four touchdowns. Mason Taylor continues to be Mr. Reliable with 39 catches for 369 yards and two touchdowns.
“They have been huge for our offense obviously. I don’t think people have been able to just double cover Kyren because those other guys have stepped up and have made a lot of plays. Throughout the entire receiver room, guys have been just there when we needed them to make plays. They have made some clutch plays for our offense.”
LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier on the team’s offensive weapons
The offensive skillplayers will be at full strength returning not only Chris Hilton Jr., but also CJ Daniels, who Coach Kelly has said is healthier than he was at this time heading into the Texas A&M game.
Despite LSU’s ability to pass the football at a high level, the run game has been anything but that ranking dead last in the conference with 123 yards per game. It is going to be tougher to run the ball this weekend as the offensive line will be without Garrett Dellinger, who will be unavailable Saturday after undergoing tightrope surgery. The expectation is for the senior to return for Florida and in his place will be Paul Mubenga.
Caden Durham, who has given the Tigers a spark in the running game, will be going against an Alabama defense that is not as tough against the run as they were in the past. In fact, the Crimson Tide is 14th in the conference giving 144 yards per game against the run so something has to give.
There are still talented defenders on Alabama’s defense led by two Butkus Award semifinalists Jihaad Campbell and Deontae Lawson along with safety Malachi Moore. The Crimson Tide defense is also coming off an impressive showing against Missouri two weeks ago pitching a 34-0 shutout before approaching the bye week.
On the other side, LSU’s defense will be challenged once again by another dual threat quarterback that can damage defenses with his arm and legs in Jalen Milroe, who has accounted for 25 total touchdowns and 2,317 total yards of offense. Last season, it was Milroe’s legs that killed the Tigers in Alabama’s win last year with Milroe running for 155 yards and four touchdowns.
“Last year, I didn’t know what they wanted to do with Milroe because it was a quarterback controversy. They were playing multiple quarterbacks at Alabama and then, they settled on Milroe just before they got to us. It was the big chunk play. It was run the quarterback. Here, they had all spring and they settled on a system with a starting quarterback. It was consistency week in and week out doing the same thing week in and week out. There’s a comfort level within the offense. When we got to him last year, you weren’t sure what you were going to get. It was a little bit of everything. Now, there’s a consistency within their offense and their structure. There’s a comfort level with what he is doing.”
LSU HC Brian Kelly on Jalen Milroe
Jam Miller and Justice Haynes have also proven to be nice contributors on the ground as well by combining for 800 yards and 12 touchdowns. However, if the Tigers’ defense can contain Milroe as a runner, that usually results in good fortune. For Alabama’s two losses this year to Vanderbilt and Tennessee, Milroe only combined to rush for 21 yards in both games.
The defensive front has played well this year and needs to have a bounce back game after giving up three touchdown runs by Marcel Reed on the ground. Whit Weeks and Greg Penn have combined for 134 tackles while the defensive end combination of Bradyn Swinson and Saivion Jones has been quite a productive duo with Swinson having eight sacks and 10.5 TFLs and Jones having 4.5 sacks and 5.5 TFLs.
Milroe also has a big play arm and he has a big play receiver in dynamic freshman Ryan Williams. As mentioned plenty of times before on various broadcasts, the 17 year old is showing why he is already one of the best offensive players in the country with 702 yards receiving and seven touchdowns, averaging 20.1 yards per catch on 35 receptions this season.
“This is as probably as balanced of a football team that we are going to play this year. Talent level across the board, there are apparently no weaknesses compared to their talent level. When we look at teams and potential weaknesses at a particular position, I don’t see any. Defensive line, secondary, linebackers, safeties, corners, offensive line, quarterback, running backs, wide receivers, this is an extremely talented football team with no weaknesses. They are well coached and certainly a football team that we will have to play our best against.”
LSU HC Brian Kelly on Alabama
In order for LSU to get a huge primetime win over Alabama in prime time, Coach Kelly listed his keys to victory.
“The keys to success are pretty obvious from an offensive perspective is to take care of the football. We will have to have better balance offensively and that will be a prerequisite. Defensively, it is about stopping the quarterback. That is going to be paramount. Milroe is outstanding. He also can throw the football. He is a dual threat. First down is an important down as well. They are one of the best third down and short conversion teams in the country. We need to get them behind the chains. We need to continue to get the ball to our playmakers and continue to play to our strengths.”
LSU HC Brian Kelly on the keys to victory
LSU and Alabama will kickoff on ABC at 6:30 P.M. in what should be an electric night in Tiger Stadium.
Score Prediction: LSU 35 Alabama 31
It is hard to beat LSU at night in Tiger Stadium as Brian Kelly is undefeated in night games at Death Valley and has lost only one home game. After a disappointing showing at Texas A&M and a bye week to get ready for this game, LSU will be ready to play. The offense will move the football on Alabama’s defense and the offensive line will do a good job in keeping Garrett Nussmeier clean. The key is if the Tigers can just get a little bit out of the running game, it can help its passing game out as well. Defensively, Blake Baker will have a plan for Jalen Milroe in trying to limit his damage on the ground while trying to keep him throwing in the pocket. The crowd will also become a factor and Alabama has shown to be undisciplined with penalties and slow starts on the road case in point with their two losses this season. This is a huge opportunity for Brian Kelly to take control of this rivalry and silence the narratives about him being unable to win the big game. A win over Alabama with a head coaching transition could be as good of a chance to change that and to be back in the College Football Playoff hunt.
Press Conference Interviews:
67
0
17
20
