Saturday Night Football will see a major prime time contest between the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide and the LSU Tigers in SEC action. The game is scheduled for an 8:00 pm start time and it will be televised nationally on CBS. Currently the odds for the game have Alabama favored by 8 points.
The rematch. In what has been circled for nearly a year as the biggest day in college football, the top-ranked Alabama Crimson Tide roll into Baton Rouge for a battle with their nemesis LSU Tigers. Alabama has won the last two games in this series outright, obviously, clinching the national championship last season in a game that didn't see LSU cross midfield offensively.
The Tigers come into tonight's game with one of the best defenses Les Miles has ever had. Imagine if the Honey Badger could just put the weed down and stay out of trouble. LSU this season is giving up just two touchdowns per game and they've beaten two straight ranked opponents in South Carolina and Texas A&M since losing their only game at Florida. The Tigers have had two weeks to prepare for this game, having a bye last week. Let's not fool ourselves, LSU is a great football team.
LSU has won an incredible 22 straight home games and Alabama has struggled in Baton Rouge, winning just once in their last three trips. But in order for LSU to win this game on the field, a lot of good things are going to have to happen.
A.J. McCarron has been flat out money for the Tide so far this season. He hasn't thrown an interception yet this season and has tossed for 18 touchdowns and more than 1,600 yards to date. There's no doubt that he is legit. That Alabama defense is as well, allowing an NCAA best 8.1 points per game. In fact, the most points scored all year on the Crimson Tide were 14 by Michigan and Ole Miss. In fact, as we dig a little deeper, we can say that Alabama have held its last 21 FBS opponents to 14 or fewer points dating back to the 2010 Capital One Bowl.
Last week, the Tide beat up on Mississippi State in a game a lot of people thought the Bulldogs could hang around in. However, they just couldn't move the ball against the Bama defense and got smoked. Tonight, LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger is going to have to find a way to get the ball downfield. Just lining it up and running the ball against Alabama isn't going to work.
We all know Miles is a Big Game Hunter and the Mad Hatter is going to come at the Crimson Tide with everything he's got. The question is whether or not it's going to be enough. LSU doesn't lose night games in Baton Rouge. A great stat for Miles' teams? LSU is 13-7 against undefeated opponents and only one of those losses came by 10 points. Alabama has been a machine for some time now, but we think they run into a buzz saw tonight.
LSU has only lost once in its last 21 games in the regular season and that was to Florida this year. The Tigers opened this game as a double digit home dog for the first time since 2001, but those numbers were quickly eaten up. LSU sits at +9 in the turnover department while Alabama is at +18 because they just don't turn the football over. We're expecting a great one tonight.
Free Pick: Alabama 17, LSU 16
College Football Free Picks: Alabama at LSU Betting
What college football bettors need to know about Alabama Crimson Tide at LSU Tigers on Saturday (11/03/12) - a free pick from Pregame.com's Bryan Leonard with Marco D'Angelo and host Scott Spreitzer.
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