For the first time since 2018, No. 10 LSU and No. 6 Alabama will square off in a packed Tiger Stadium on a Saturday night.
Things have changed since then as future NFL star quarterbacks Tua Tagovailoa and Joe Burrow were the field generals running their respective offenses and Ed Orgeron was the head coach of LSU.
However, there are two things that have remained the same; Nick Saban is still the head coach at Alabama and Alabama still has a top 15 defense.  The Crimson Tide houses the nation’s 14th ranked defense, averaging 295 yards allowed per game, which is a nine-yard improvement from last year. Alabama is also 7th in yards per-play defense with 4.3 yards per play.
Alabama’s rush defense is 12th in the country where it only allows 93 yards per game. Offenses only average 2.7 yards per carry against the Crimson Tide’s stalwart front seven.
Alabama’s defense has not been able to garner turnovers. The Crimson Tide is 108th in the country in turnovers gained with only eight turnovers on the year through eight games. They are also 117th in interceptions gained, which is troublesome considering that they have gone up against a pass-happy Tennessee and a struggling Texas A&M offense. Last year, Alabama netted 22 turnovers as a team.
However, Alabama’s pass defense has been solid all year, allowing 200 passing yards per game. They have also only surrendered eight passing touchdowns all year. Five of those touchdowns however, came in Alabama’s lone loss against Tennessee. Besides the Tennessee game, Alabama has only allowed three touchdowns and has hauled in two interceptions.
Here’s who Alabama has matched up against LSU, what they like to do on the defense and what LSU can do to move the ball down the field against Alabama’s daunting defense.
Personnel
Without a doubt, Alabama has one of the best, if not the best, linebacker corps in the country. Alabama’s best player is outside linebacker Will Anderson. Although he is not having the monstrous season he had last year with 34.5 tackles for loss and 17.5 sacks, Anderson is someone that defensive coordinators have kept their eyes on all year.
Anderson, who is a unanimous first team All-American and the reigning SEC Defensive Player of the Year, leads his team in both tackles for loss, 12, and sacks, six. He also has one interception, where he returned it 25 yards for a touchdown against Louisiana-Monroe.
His partner-in-crime on the other side, Dallas Turner, is also a force to be reckoned with. Turner has 28 tackles on the year along with five tackles for a loss and two sacks. Although he may not get the sacks, his presence on the outside is strong as he has six quarterback hits on the year.
Linebacker Henry To’oto’o is one of the best inside linebackers in the country. He leads his team in tackles with 60 and also has one sack to boast as well. Jaylen Moody is also a very good inside linebacker as well as he has 34 tackles, 4.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
Alabama has one of the best secondaries in the country as well. The best of the bunch is cornerback Kool-Aid McKinstry. McKinstry has had 23 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack. Even though he hasn’t had an interception, he has virtually held all of the receivers on his of the field quiet this season.
McKinstry has 11 pass breakups on the season, which ranks fifth in the country. He also ranks seventh in the country in plays-per-game- made on the ball with at 1.38.
Terrion Arnold has been a solid cornerback as well. Arnold has had 32 tackles, one interception and four pass breakups. Due to the recent emergence of Eli Ricks, Terrion Arnold might move up to his natural position at safety. 
Safety DeMarco Hellams has been a force all year for the Tide as well. Hellams leads his team in solo tackles with 38. He also has two tackles for a loss, an interception and has six pass breakups on the year. Hellams also forced a fumble as well.
Alabama’s defensive line is also formidable. They’re a huge reason why Alabama has had so much success stopping the run.
Philosophy
Nick Saban has been one of the most influential coaches in college football. His coaching tree includes Jimbo Fisher, Kirby Smart, Lane Kiffin, Mark Dantonio and many others.
Even though Alabama has been known for its offense, the team’s defense has been its bread-and-butter. Alabama has consistently produced top 10 defenses due to the defensive IQ of Saban.
Saban implemented a Cover Seven scheme at Alabama, which uses zone with man-match principles. At its simplest, this defense scheme creates rules to allow defenders to attach in man coverage based on the depth of the route and the alignment of the receivers.
No matter how many top tier players he loses to the NFL Draft, his defenses keep on maintaining their high level production. Even though Alabama has five-star recruits waiting in line to become the next big thing, it doesn’t mitigate the fact that his defensive scheme is incredibly sound.
Saban’s biggest component of his defense is the apex defender. The apex defender is usually a box-to-box linebacker and is the first underneath defender inside of the cornerbacks and a two safety look. They are often split out to the called strength and are usually responsible for the No. 2 receivers.
A common scheme Saban and Alabama use is man outside deep, or MOD. The defender will only attach to the receiver if they run a route over 5 yards. If the receiver runs vertically 5 yards or less or goes within 5 yards, the corner will become a zone player and let the receiver transfer to another member of the defense.
To put it more simplistically, the apex will get the first receiver to the flats, the cornerback and safety will get the first vertical receiver to enter the deep quarter zone and the inside linebacker collects the No. 3 receiver wherever they are.
Alabama also likes to blitz from the outside. They are not afraid to blitz their corners to put pressure on the quarterback to make quicker decisions. Due to the defensive line causing all kinds of problems in the interior, Alabama doesn’t mind blitzing their inside linebackers as well.
Keys to Surf the Tide’s Defense
1. Even though LSU is a much better team as the game goes on, LSU must start off hot like it did against Florida. Against a team like Alabama, you can’t start off the game being down 17-3 or 14-0.
Alabama is a well-coached team and has a standout defense. Alabama’s defense is most likely the best defense LSU will see all year and if they start slow early and often, it will be a long day for LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels and the offense.
2. LSU’s tackles Will Campbell and Emery Jones must protect Jayden Daniels on the outside. Alabama has one of the best pass rushing duos in Anderson and Turner. As solid as they both are, this could be a mismatch for both Campbell and Jones due to them being freshman and the fact they haven’t seen edge rushers like the ones the Crimson Tide has.
If they can protect Daniels from the outside rush, it will give Daniels more time to make the right decisions and not have to worry about getting tackled in the backfield for a sack.
3. If LSU is going to pull off the upset against Alabama, the Tigers need to run the ball effectively. Even though Alabama only allows 93 rushing yards and 2.7 yards per carry per game, it struggled against teams that run the ball effectively. Arkansas and Tennessee, No. 6 and No. 25 in total rushing yards respectively, had ran the ball with success against the Crimson Tide. In those two games, Alabama’s defense averaged 184 yards per game along with allowing 4.2 yards per carry.
The biggest reason why LSU was able to beat Alabama in 2019 was because of LSU’s efficient run game. LSU ran the ball for 166 yards and was able to get 4.1 yards per carry. In the previous five years dating back to 2014, LSU ran an average of 86.6 yards per game along with averaging 2.8 yards per carry.
If LSU can run the ball for at least four yards per carry, it could be enough to put the Tide’s defense on its heels. With the running back duo of Josh Williams and Armoni Goodwin and Daniels’ running ability will allow LSU to mix up their running attack which averages close to 184 yards per game.