Third-ranked Alabama and fifth-ranked LSU (7-1, 4-1 SEC) will contend for first place in the SEC West at 2:30 p.m. Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa, Ala.
CBS will televise the game nationally.
“We know we are going against the most talented team we have played all year across the board in all three phases,” said Alabama coach Mike Shula. “We are going to have to play our best if we have any chance, for sure.”
The game marks the first time since 1959 that an LSU team ranked in the top five will play another top five team in the regular season. On Oct. 31, 1959, the then-No. 1 Tigers defeated No. 3 Ole Miss 7-3 in Tiger Stadium, thanks to an 89-yard punt return by Billy Cannon.
“This is why you come to a school like LSU, Alabama, Florida or Tennessee – to play in really big football games like this,” LSU senior defensive tackle Kyle Williams said. “There are not many schools in the country that can say they had a match up where the No. 4 and No. 5 teams in the country played and had their division lead at stake in the game. It is definitely something that you are thinking about when you are picking a school.”
The Crimson Tide’s offense went from high-scoring to struggling when Alabama lost receiver Tyrone Prothro to a season-ending broken leg on Oct. 1.
In the Crimson Tide’s first three games with Prothro – against SEC opponents South Carolina, Arkansas and Florida – the team averaged 31 points per game with 11 offensive touchdowns but managed to score only one offensive touchdown against SEC teams without him.
Since losing Prothro, Alabama (9-0, 6-0 SEC) has scored only 12 points per game against SEC opponents Ole Miss, Tennessee and Mississippi State.
Shula said during his weekly press conference Tuesday that the offense needs to play more consistently.
“We lost a great player and now we lost our center [J.B. Closner] who was a three-year starter,” Shula said. “You can’t deny the fact that we might not be as effective without them.”
Alabama’s running game has also been stumbling lately. The Tide averaged 196 yards and 4.7 yards per carry with Prothro but has rushed only 123 yards per game and 3.3 yards after losing him.
Since throwing seven touchdowns against SEC teams with Prothro, Alabama has completed only one without him.
But their defense has stiffened against their last three SEC opponents, allowing only 4.3 points per game. Before losing Prothro, the Tide was allowing 10 points per game against SEC teams.
“Our past two games we have not played exceptionally well on offense,” Shula said. “When we have a first down and get seven or eight yards and we cannot convert on third and one, there is something wrong. We cannot play like that against a team like LSU.”
The Tigers have won four of their past five games against the Tide and seek their first-ever three-game winning streak over Alabama.
LSU coach Les Miles said he knows the Tigers’ offense faces a tough battle against Alabama’s defense, which is nationally ranked No. 1 in scoring and No. 3 in total defense.
“We need to do the things that make an offense move the football, like no negative plays, scramble for yards, rushing the football and making sure we put the ball where it’s supposed to be when we throw it,” Miles said.