LSU football at No. 4 Alabama score prediction, scouting report as Tigers aim for upset
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BATON ROUGE — LSU football is gearing up for its biggest matchup yet as it travels to Tuscaloosa to face No. 4 Alabama in Week 11 of the college football season.
After losing their last two games and parting ways with their head coach and offensive coordinator, the Tigers are itching to find some success this week. It’ll be easier said than done though, as Alabama hasn’t lost a game since Week 1 and have been running through the Southeastern Conference so far this season.
Interim head coach Frank Wilson is hoping to lead the Tigers (5-3, 2-3) to that upset victory. A win won’t change their fate in the 2025 College Football Playoff race, but will feed Tiger nation that’s been starving for some positive news.
Here are three things that could decide the game Saturday (6:30 p.m., ABC).
Can LSU’s secondary handle Bama’s pass game?
All season long, the Crimson Tide has been lighting folks up with their pass game, with redshirt freshman Ty Simpson leading the charge. Against South Carolina, he threw for 253 yards and two touchdowns, completing over 50% of his passes. LSU will have to bottle him up and his host of wide receiver weapons if they want a shot at winning.
The Tigers secondary has allowed opponents to a little over 191 passing yards per game so far this season, and safety A.J. Haulcy is a key reason behind their success. The past few games, Haulcy has led the Tigers in total tackles and has snagged two interceptions.
LSU will need lockdown defense from Haulcy and its other weapons in the secondary, especially against wide receivers like Ryan Williams and Germie Bernard who are known for explosive playmaking for Alabama.
Battle of the pocket passers
It’s going to be a battle of the pocket passers with Simpson and LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier leading their teams’ respective offenses. Looking at the numbers, Simpson has Nussmeier beat, throwing for 20 touchdowns and over 2,100 yards entering the matchup. Nussmeier isn’t too far off with 12 touchdowns and 1,806 passing yards.
All the numbers will get thrown out the window Saturday, as it’ll be the more efficient pocket passer to prevail. For Nussmeier, he’ll be looking to air it out to his go-to targets such as Trey’Dez Green, Zavion Thomas and Aaron Anderson.
He’ll look to find that swagger back that he had against South Carolina once again as the Tigers will need more from him to keep up with Alabama’s offense.
Who’s going to rule in the Trenches?
Outside of the passing game, establishing the run game will be key for both squads in this matchup. The Crimson Tide has been a pass-first team this season but have a host of players making up its rushing attack. Six different players have found the end zone this season, with running back Jam Miller leading the charge.
The Tigers defensive line will look to keep Miller and company in check, while on the flip side, their offensive line will look to create running lanes. So far this season, running backs Caden Durham and Harlem Berry have been LSU’s one-two backfield punch. But in the past two games, they haven’t been as fruitful as they would’ve hoped far.
Against Texas A&M, they rushed for a combined 95 yards and one touchdown. In the loss vs. Vanderbilt, the duo was held scoreless for a combined 114 rushing yards. The duo will need much more than that and from its offensive line if it wants to run through the Crimson Tide.
LSU football at Alabama score prediction
Alabama 30, LSU 24: It’ll be a dogfight kind of matchup between the Tigers and Crimson Tide with both teams having their fair share of explosive plays. Alabama will jump out to a lead that the Tigers just won’t be able to catch up to as they’ll drop their third game in a row.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: LSU football at No. 4 Alabama score prediction, scouting report
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