Ninth-ranked Alabama travels to No. 15 LSU on Saturday in a matchup that could effectively end the loser’s College Football Playoff hopes.
The game adds a new chapter to a 90-game series that has produced some of college football’s most memorable moments, including dramatic finishes, SEC championship implications and national title consequences.
For Alabama, which was fifth in the College Football Playoff selection committee’s first ranking of the season, it’s another opportunity to strengthen its postseason résumé. LSU, 14th in this week’s CFP ranking, will look to deliver a statement win against one of its biggest rivals.
FULL STORY: Alabama-LSU: The games, drama and moments that define SEC heavyweight showdown
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Here’s a quick primer on the rivalry, as two teams with College Football Playoff aspirations prepare to collide in what should be an electric atmosphere at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge:
- Game details: No. 9 Alabama visits No. 15 LSU on Saturday, Nov. 7, for a pivotal SEC showdown at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC, with both teams entering at 6-2 overall. The Crimson Tide are 4-2 in conference play, while LSU is 3-2. The Tide have won three straight and 13 of the past 15 in the series.
- Series history: The rivalry dates to 1895, with the programs meeting 90 times over the years. Alabama holds a commanding 58-27-5 advantage in the all-time series and has lost only twice in Baton Rouge since 2010.
- Afternoon rarity: Afternoon kickoffs have become increasingly rare for this rivalry, which has almost exclusively occupied prime-time television windows in recent years. The last afternoon meeting was in 2019, when Alabama hosted LSU at 3:30 p.m. ET in Tuscaloosa. It’s even rarer in Baton Rouge, where the Tigers haven’t hosted an afternoon matchup against the Crimson Tide since 2010, making this year’s 3:30 p.m. ET kickoff at Tiger Stadium something of an exception to the rivalry’s recent tradition.
- Defining games: Few rivalries have produced as many memorable moments. The 2011 “Game of the Century” ended in a 9-6 overtime victory for LSU before Alabama dominated the BCS National Championship rematch 21-0. In 2019, Joe Burrow threw for 393 yards in a 46-41 LSU victory that snapped Alabama’s eight-game winning streak in the series. Three years later, Jayden Daniels connected with Mason Taylor on a two-point conversion in overtime to deliver a 32-31 upset of the Crimson Tide.
- Kiffin subplot: Lane Kiffin brings an interesting twist to this year’s matchup. The LSU head coach served as Alabama’s offensive coordinator under Nick Saban from 2014-16, giving him firsthand knowledge of the Crimson Tide program and its expectations. Now on the opposite sideline, Kiffin has an opportunity to deliver a signature victory against his former team as the Tigers look to stay in the playoff race.
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Mike Garbett is a content specialist working with McClatchy’s Content Innovation Lab.
This report was produced with the assistance of a proprietary tool powered by artificial intelligence and using our own originally reported, written and published content. It was reviewed and edited by our journalists.