Colin Jeter knows what the future holds as well as anyone.
Saturday is the senior tight end’s third time around on the front lines of the LSU-Alabama rivalry. He knows the shield and spear struggle that is to come.
“It’s going to be a juggernaut battle,” Jeter said. “It’s going to be basically a street fight. We’re going to come out, and we’re going to hit each other in the mouth.”
So what happens when an unstoppable force clad in purple and gold meets an immovable object draped in crimson?
No. 15 LSU and No. 1 Alabama battle at 7 p.m. on Saturday at Tiger Stadium in a contest that will surely be decided by dueling front lines.
“This is the No. 1 team in the country and one of the best defenses in the country, if not the best,” Jeter said. “It’s time to test the offense for real … We’ve had a few tests but nothing that’s going to be like Alabama. It’s going to take perfect execution by all of us.”
LSU (5-2, 3-1 Southeastern Conference) resembles a freight train since Ed Orgeron took over for Les Miles, handily winning three consecutive games and imposing its will on the ground to the tune of 304 rushing yards per game set up by an enhanced passing attack.
Junior running back Leonard Fournette is back, fresh off an LSU single-game rushing record performance, coupled with the NCAA fourth-leading yards per carry rusher, sophomore running back Derrius Guice.
LSU’s back to full strength on the offensive line for the first time since Sept. 17, too.
Orgeron indicated that sophomore right tackle Toby Weathersby would return from a high ankle sprain that has kept him out of the lineup. Sophomore left guard Will Clapp admitted that returning against Alabama (8-0, 5-0 SEC) isn’t ideal for Weathersby, but having the 6-foot-5, 302 pounder back will be a substantial boost for an offensive line on the heels of a dominating rushing performance.
“We’re probably in the best shape we’ve been physically and injury-wise this Saturday night,” Orgeron said.
The unstoppable force, of course, is the same team that ended Fournette’s Heisman candidacy last season. Fournette averaged 193.1 rushing yards per game and thrice eclipsed 200 in the season’s first seven games, but Alabama held the 6-foot-1, 235-pound back to 31 yards on 19 rushing attempts.
“For any player — any competitor — when stuff like that happens, it’s frustrating,” Jeter said. “But Leonard’s a tough guy. He’s proved that his whole life … He just comes to work every day, whether he’s putting that frustration on the field, running someone over — whatever he has to do.”
The 2016 season has remained consistent for the defending national champion Crimson Tide, which Orgeron said has a defense ranking among the finest he’s ever seen.
Alabama coach Nick Saban’s squad allows a nation-leading 70.1 rushing yards per game with its physically imposing three-man front and punishing linebackers’ signature blend of speed and power.
Junior fullback J.D. Moore recognizes that blocks won’t come as easily against a physical and technically sound Alabama front seven that holds opponents under 2.2 yards per carry and is tied for the 10th-most tackles for loss, 64, in the nation. But all-out dominating their physical specimens isn’t necessary for success, he said.
“Obviously a knockout blow is not always going to be the result of a block,” Moore said. “We’ll take a stalemate over a knockout.”
A winning game plan requires loosening the Tide up through the air so they can’t drop a safety into the box to shut down any semblance of a rushing attack, senior center Ethan Pocic said.
“We’re going to do some things with Leonard that he’s able to do,” Orgeron said. “Whatever happened last year is the past. We have a great game plan for Leonard. But … it’s going to be very tough moving the football on this defense.”
For Moore, a fondness for contests decided at the line of scrimmage is a fundamental characteristic of linemen and fullbacks, who relish the between-the-tackles battles in a sport that’s increasingly spreading the field and replacing big guys with speedsters.
“I don’t know what else you could ask for,” Moore said. “There’s going to be a whole lot of emotions and motivation out there. I think we’ll be ready to go. … It’s going to be fun.”