Sports
Link Gumbo: Bama Week
If the point spread gets bet down below Double Digits then watch out
Welp, November is nigh, and we are in a familiar spot, although most didn’t expect what is happening this year. And you can say that about both programs going into this game. The SEC west in on the line late in the year, and this is absolutely lower on the card this weekend than the game of the year, which is UT vs UGA. It has been a looooong time since Bama wasn’t involved in the highest stakes game of the weekend, let alone the year. I say we give it our all and give them their wish, you can’t scream about how much you hate Gary when CBS stops featuring Bama, and if LSU wins, they will be in the driver’s seat.
I have a ton of respect for this Bama team, especially their stars. Bryce Young isn’t going to repeat winning the Heisman this year, but that does not mean he is not playing at the highest level of the sport. Greg McElroy has the most apt comparison in terms of a collegiate player, its Johnny Football, but Young is much better at staying on schedule and is more accurate than his former Heisman counterpart. Will Anderson scares me in this match up. He is great at pressuring the QB, but I am REALLY afraid of his run defense and how well he uses his hands to disrupt running plays. And Gibbs is Kamara.
And the spread started high, in some books it lands at 11. Which is apt. Bama was an 11 point favorite the last time they lost to LSU in 2019 when those books opened. And much like 2019, I carry the confidence that LSU can win this game. Nick Saban has evolved, you don’t become the greatest coach over the last 20 years by staying stagnant, but even in his evolution, the one bugaboo that has ALWAYS plagued his defenses was the mobile QB. And we have the fastest QB I have ever seen play at LSU and the best one at running the ball that I have seen in the SEC since Cammy Cam. I’m excited about the game and excited about the build up this week.
Brody tries to give us the truth and distinguish the myths we are perpetuating
LSU truths or myths: QB play makes SEC title possible? Brian Kelly is overachieving? – The Athletic
Our two biggest weaknesses coming into the year will get their biggest tests. I think the secondary will have its hands full. Not to the extent that UT gave them (those receivers are all world), but on the level of Young’s ability to extend plays and throw into the tightest of windows. As for the O Line, if they are healthy, I think they play well. And if JD can get into the second level on these draw plays then Too’Too’ is gonna lose some draft dollars this weekend.
Bama will come in touting stats in their favor, but there are a few that can really hurt them:
Dandy Don’s LSU Sporting News – Dishing out a daily dose of Tiger News since December 17, 1996
Turnovers. Penalty yards per game. Red Zone Touchdown Rate. Third Down Conversion Rate. All in LSU’s favor. And the passing yards per game as well as rushing yards per game are negligible. I like where we sit.
The game is at night by the way
and when a Bama fan screams about their record in BR, remind them about their record in Tuscaloosa over the last 40 years.
Apparently, this series has played in 6 different locales
LSU vs. Alabama: The 10 things every fan should know about the rivalry (saturdaydownsouth.com)
my favorite line. “The following year, in a season condensed by the COVID-19 pandemic,”
asterisk years bring asterisk verbiage.
Why is nobody comparing them to 2020 Bama?
I’ve seen a few of these this week. Stewart Mandel wrote an excellent one along the same lines as well. And nobody brings up 2020 Bama when comparing unstoppable offenses. We know where they stand…in the same storage closet that holds the WWII trophies and the spanish flu season trophies. It’s so great.
