LSU coach Les Miles is aware of the hype and the chatter.And he knows the storylines surrounding his team’s matchup this weekend with Alabama: Nick Saban is returning to Baton Rouge, and the Tigers are taking on the No. 1 team in the country.But Miles said LSU’s primary focus will be avoiding the distractions surrounding Saturday’s game and focusing more on Alabama.”I enjoy that ESPN will be on campus,” he said. “I enjoy that GameDay will be here. And I enjoy the big crowds… But I can tell you that I really don’t care because the fact is we have to perform and play better. My instruction to the team this morning was to keep everything on the periphery there, and let’s focus on being our best team.”One area concerning Miles is the opening quarter of Saturday’s game.Alabama has outscored its opponents, 108-6, in the first quarters of games — something Miles said LSU can’t fall victim to if the Tigers want to dethrone the Crimson Tide.”The commitment to us is to play four quality quarters of football,” he said. “That is our push to play our best game against possibly our best opponent.”Like Miles, the LSU players are trying to deflect the hype surrounding Saturday’s game.Senior defensive lineman Marlon Favorite likened Saturday’s game to a championship boxing match.”If you look at a fight, there’s hype leading up to the fight, and there are a lot of words before the fight,” he said. “But the main focus for those guys is to focus on the fight.”Like boxing, where famous fights have names like “The Thrilla in Manilla” or “The Rumble in the Jungle,” Favorite said he had a name for Saturday’s game.   “I think this game should be called ‘The Battle of the Determined,'” he said. “Here in the SEC, our conference has games with a lot of hype. Teams like ourselves and Alabama and Florida all know we have to go out there and play to the best of our ability each week, and you have to approach each game like it’s your last.”GETTING HEALTHYMiles said about 20 LSU players received treatment following LSU’s win against Tulane.LSU junior halfback Charles Scott was one of the Tigers to leave Saturday’s game early.But Miles downplayed Scott’s injury and said he will be completely healthy this weekend against the Crimson Tide.Senior safety Curtis Taylor and junior tight end Richard Dickson were also nicked up against the Green Wave.Miles said he expects both players to play this weekend, and he is confident in junior Danny McCray’s ability to serve as a replacement if Taylor is unavailable.Miles said McCray and junior defensive end Rahim Alem were named two of the team’s most valuable players after the Tulane game.”I think Danny McCray did a great job with Curtis Taylor being limited,” he said. “I hope Curtis gets back, and I suspect that he will.”Miles did not mention anything about sophomore quarterback Andrew Hatch, but freshman Jarrett Lee said he is preparing to carry the majority of the load for the second-straight week.”It’s unfortunate what happened to Andrew,” he said. “But coming into this game, I have to realize that when your number is called, you have to go in there and do the best that you can.”DEMOCRATIC MILESMiles stepped away from football to open his press conference by saying he stressed to his team the importance of casting a ballot on Election Day.”I told my team that at the very minimum this is a historic vote that we’re responsible for and should participate in,” he said. “I suggested that they get in a position to fulfill their responsibilities as a citizen of the United States and vote.”—-Contact Casey Gisclair at [email protected]