No. 5 Alabama and No.
14 LSU are set for another heavyweight night in Baton Rouge, and this one comes with the kind of ranked-on-ranked tension that has made the series one of college football’s best modern rivalries. It will be the 91st meeting between the programs, with Alabama holding a 58-27-5 edge overall and a 13-2 advantage over the last 15 matchups.
The setting only sharpens the edge. This is the 25th time both teams have been inside the AP Top 15, and Alabama’s recent rise to a top-five spot in the College Football Playoff rankings adds another layer to the matchup. LSU, meanwhile, has plenty of confidence in Tiger Stadium, where the Tigers are 32-3 in their last 35 home games.
There’s also a personal angle for LSU coach Lane Kiffin, who has yet to beat Alabama as a head coach. He lost to Nick Saban once at Tennessee in 2009 and then four more times from 2020-23 at Ole Miss, when the schools were SEC West rivals. That 0-5 mark against the Crimson Tide hangs over this one, and it gives LSU another reason to believe a home win could help push it back into the playoff conversation.
Alabama’s health situation is one of the biggest variables on the board. Starting center Racin Delgatty has already missed multiple games with injury, and the Crimson Tide have felt it up front.
After putting up 49-plus points in back-to-back wins over Florida State, South Carolina and Mississippi State, Alabama’s offense has cooled. The Tide have failed to reach 70 rushing yards as a team in each of their last two games, and they’ve allowed 21 sacks in SEC play, which ranks 14th out of 16 teams in the league.
Alabama is also waiting on updates for star wide receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams and cornerback Zabien Brown.
LSU’s passing game, on the other hand, has been rolling. No SEC team threw the ball better in October, with the Tigers averaging 339.5 passing yards per game across four contests.
They went 3-1 in that stretch, with the lone loss coming by one point at top-10 Kentucky on a walk-off two-point try. On the season, LSU leads the SEC and ranks tied for seventh nationally at 318.0 passing yards per game, thanks to Sam Leavitt’s improved play and the rise of Jackson Harris as a featured target.
The Hawaii transfer didn’t score his first touchdown until his fourth game, but he has since caught seven touchdowns over the last five games, including four multi-touchdown outings. His 17.6 yards per catch rank fourth among SEC pass catchers.
Kalen DeBoer’s résumé in big games is part of why Alabama trusted him with the job after Nick Saban’s retirement. He is 21-8 against AP-ranked teams as a head coach, which ranks fourth in AP poll history among coaches with at least 20 games. He’s also won eight straight games after a bye, with his last loss in that spot coming in 2020 at Fresno State.
The matchup points to a game that could come down to defense and field position rather than a shootout. Alabama’s injuries have made the offense less efficient, and LSU’s defense is the toughest test the Tide have seen since the loss at Tennessee.
At the same time, LSU’s passing game could create turnover chances for an Alabama defense that has been excellent at taking the ball away, with the Tide’s +7 turnover margin tied for 11th nationally. That combination sets up a lower-scoring game, with the home team getting the nod to make the decisive plays late.
Pick: Under 52.5
Among the picks listed for the game, every selection except one points to LSU.
In Other News...
Alabama Heads To LSU With One Big Availability Question
With the Southeastern Conference now requiring injury reports for football, basketball and baseball conference games starting in 2024, Alabamas weekly availability picture has become part of the conversation as much as the matchup itself. Heading into its seventh SEC game of the 2026 season against LSU, the Crimson Tide is still sorting through a roster that has been hit by injuries, even as head coach Kalen DeBoer said several previously sidelined players are making progress in their recoveries.
There is still no shortage of uncertainty around the depth chart, though, and Alabama is carrying some season-ending absences into this stretch, including Jeremiah Beaman and Cayden Jones. For a team entering one of the SECs biggest rivalry games, the question is less about who is already ruled out and more about which of the recovering players can actually make it back in time to matter against LSU. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Heads Into LSU Week With One Big Availability Problem
Alabamas first availability report for LSU week brought a familiar kind of late-season concern, with five starters and one key running back listed as questionable because of injuries. There is some optimism around several of those names, including Ryan Coleman-Williams, Terrance Green and Racin Delgatty, but the list also leaves room for real uncertainty as the Crimson Tide work through the week.
Zabien Brown, Will Sanders and EJ Crowell are among the players whose status remains less clear, and that is where the issue starts to matter beyond just the injury report itself. How much depth Alabama has to lean on, and how effective it can be if a few of those pieces are limited or unavailable, could shape the way this matchup with LSU unfolds. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Faces A Brutal LSU Warning Ahead Of Playoff Test
The buildup to Alabamas next test has turned into a warning label, and Joel Klatt is not sugarcoating it. In previewing the matchup with LSU, the Fox Sports analyst pointed to the Tigers pass rush and overall defensive play as the kind of pressure that can expose some of Alabamas recent issues on the ground, a concern that matters even more with the playoff picture tightening.
Klatt also leaned into LSUs recent momentum at quarterback, noting Sam Leavitts strong play, while the injury situation for both teams adds another layer to a game that already feels like a measuring stick. He went as far as to pick LSU to win, projecting a 30-17 final, which only sharpens the stakes for Alabama as it heads into a matchup where the margin for error looks thin. [Read more 🡒]