The storyline around Alabama and LSU is already getting noisy, and Lane Kiffin is at the center of it.
Kiffin, who gave Alabama a needed offensive lift before the end in Tuscaloosa, has been working the public angle hard for days. He’s good at getting attention. He’s also been whining at full volume.
The latest gripe came when the Nov. 7 matchup was set for an afternoon kickoff. Kiffin took aim at SEC leadership, said the league would never do LSU any favors, and suggested the timing was a shot at him.
Wanting a Saturday night game is one thing. Kiffin’s complaint is another, especially since TV networks, not the SEC, determine kickoff times.
And the game hasn’t even started yet.
Kiffin likely won’t stop there, either. Even with defensive standout Whit Weeks expected back, he’ll probably keep pushing the idea that LSU is battered up.
After LSU’s blowout of Auburn, Kiffin said he pulled Trey'Dez Green because Auburn was trying to injure him. Green was not 100% after missing four games with a sprained knee.
Kiffin has also stressed that other players are out for the season and that neither Green nor Weeks will be at 100%.
Kalen DeBoer won’t play that game publicly. If Alabama has injury issues, he’ll keep them quiet. Even if it’s true that the Crimson Tide will have more players below full strength, DeBoer would never come out and say it the way Kiffin would.
The setting itself should deliver plenty of drama. Saturday nights in Tiger Stadium have long been a show, and Alabama knows it well.
The Crimson Tide have three times more road wins against LSU than road losses, but the atmosphere still matters. Once the sun goes down in Baton Rouge, the second half turns dark, with sunset projected at 5:12 PM CST.
Then comes the familiar stadium announcement: "Ladies and Gentlemen, the sun has found its home in the western sky, it is now Saturday night in Tiger Stadium."
Of course, nobody can honestly say they know exactly how this one ends. Computer models will lean LSU.
Most national college football voices will expect Alabama to lose. Either team can win.
What’s at stake after the game is clear enough. If Alabama wins, the Crimson Tide move closer to Playoff certainty. If LSU wins, the fallout could be Alabama fans wondering whether Greg Byrne should have hired Kiffin.
In Other News...
Alabama Still Has One Noah Rogers Decision Hanging Over The Offense
Noah Rogers has been back in the mix since Week 4, but Alabama still has not fully unlocked what it wants from the NC State transfer. A knee injury in spring practice slowed his rollout, and while the staff has clearly been interested in finding more room for him on offense, the challenge has been fitting him into an already crowded rotation without pulling someone else off the field.
Kalen DeBoer has said the Tide would like to involve Rogers more, which leaves this as more than a simple health update. It is a usage question now, and one that will keep lingering as Alabama sorts out how to balance its personnel. Elsewhere around the program, sophomore guard Amari Allen is entering the year with some real buzz after being named preseason All-SEC first team by league coaches following a strong freshman season and a solid preseason showing. [Read more 🡒]
Kalen DeBoer Just Landed In An Alabama Scenario Fans Will Hate
Kalen DeBoer is already getting pulled into the kind of rumor mill Alabama fans never want to see around a coach who is still settling in. After signing a long-term deal with the Crimson Tide, DeBoer has nevertheless surfaced as a name to watch if USC ever decides to make a change with Lincoln Riley, whose tenure in Los Angeles has yet to produce a national championship or a College Football Playoff berth.
For Alabama, the concern is obvious: whenever a coach starts showing up on another blue-bloods wish list, the speculation follows. DeBoers contract was built to give the Tide stability, but the USC angle keeps his name in circulation for a job that would be hard for any coach to ignore, and it leaves Alabama fans waiting to see whether the noise fades or grows louder. [Read more 🡒]
Alabamas Dre Kirkpatrick Jr. Exit Raises A Bigger Accountability Issue
Dre Kirkpatrick Jr.'s exit has quickly become more than a roster note for Alabama, turning into a test of how the program handles off-field conduct when a player falls short of its standards. Kalen DeBoer confirmed the dismissal after Kirkpatrick was suspended and later arrested on doxing and harassing communication charges, a sequence that left the Crimson Tide dealing with another reminder that scholarship talent comes with expectations beyond the field.
Cam Newton weighed in publicly on the situation, using it as a moment to stress accountability and the responsibility that comes with being a scholarship athlete. For Alabama, the issue is no longer just about replacing a defensive back, but about reinforcing the line the program says it will hold when a player crosses it. [Read more 🡒]