Saturday night in Death Valley carries real weight for both sidelines. No.
9 Alabama and No. 15 LSU each come in with two losses, and both are staring at the possibility of being pushed out of the College Football Playoff picture.
They’ve also had the same advantage heading into this one: a bye week, and two full weeks to get ready.
There’s more than postseason pressure hanging over this matchup, too. It will be the first time Lane Kiffin meets Alabama as LSU’s head coach, adding a little extra edge to a game that already had plenty. And it’s the last annual meeting between the programs, since the SEC left the rivalry out of each team’s three protected games.
Alabama enters at 6-2 overall and 4-2 in the SEC, while LSU is 6-2 and 3-2 in conference play. ABC will carry the game, with Sean McDonough, Greg McElroy and Molly McGrath on the call. On the radio side, the Crimson Tide Sports Network will have Chris Stewart on play-by-play, Tyler Watts on color, Damion Square on the sideline and Roger Hoover hosting.
The most recent meeting came last season in Tuscaloosa, when Alabama handled LSU 20-9 in the first game of the post-Brian Kelly era. By the time that matchup arrived, LSU’s season had already gone off the rails.
Both teams are coming off wins in their last outings before the break. Alabama snapped a two-game losing streak with a 31-20 victory over Texas A&M, getting a 300-yard passing day from Keelon Russell, a career-best 156 yards from Rico Scott and two fourth-quarter sacks from Fatutoa Henry to help slam the door late.
LSU’s last game was even more convincing. The Tigers rolled past Auburn 38-17 after Auburn had just knocked off No.
2 Georgia. Sam Leavitt threw for 388 yards and three touchdowns, added another score on the ground, Jackson Harris piled up 178 receiving yards, and the defensive front finished with seven sacks in what looked like the cleanest version of the Lane Kiffin offense all season.
In Other News...
Alabama Just Got An Early Reality Check For LSU Showdown
The first betting line for Alabamas Week 10 trip to LSU already says plenty about how close this rivalry matchup is expected to be. Both teams are ranked, both are sitting on similar records, and both come in off bye weeks, which only adds to the sense that this one could carry real weight in the College Football Playoff race and the SEC title picture.
Even with Alabama holding a 58-27-5 edge in the series and a three-game winning streak in the rivalry, the opening number has LSU favored by 4 points. For a game this early on the 2026 schedule, it is a reminder that the Tigers are expected to bring plenty of punch at home, and that Alabama may already have a little extra motivation as the matchup starts to take shape. [Read more 🡒]
Derrick Henry Keeps Building An All Time Case Alabama Fans Love
Derrick Henry kept adding to a rsum that already sits in rare company, even in a Ravens loss to the Bills. The former Alabama star scored again Sunday, and with it came another benchmark for a career that keeps climbing the all-time lists, the kind of production Crimson Tide fans have long watched with pride as he continues to deliver on Sundays.
The touchdown was Henrys 40th rushing score with two different franchises, putting him alongside Marcus Allen and Marshall Faulk in that class, according to NFL and ESPN Insights. It also gave him 136 career touchdowns, tying Faulk for seventh-most in NFL history, another reminder that Henrys place in the record book is no longer a future conversation but an ongoing one. [Read more 🡒]
Alabama Just Added More Pressure To A Huge Stretch For Nate Oats
Zion Greens commitment gives Alabama basketball another headline in the 2027 class, and it arrives at a time when Nate Oats could use every bit of momentum he can get. The five-star power forward joins Chase Lumpkin in that group, a sign that Alabama is still landing premium talent while the program continues to sit near the top of the national conversation. The Crimson Tide also climbed one spot to No. 9 in the AP Poll, keeping the profile high as the season moves deeper into a critical stretch.
The timing matters because the pressure around Alabama is only growing. The Tide opened as a 3.5-point underdog against LSU before the line swung heavily in the Tigers favor, and there are always ripple effects around recruiting when coaching changes hit elsewhere, including Florida State moving on from Mike Norvell. Even with Alabama soccers regular-season finale loss to Mississippi State, the broader athletic department remains in the spotlight, and Oats now has another prized recruit attached to a stretch where every result seems to carry extra weight. [Read more 🡒]