The stage is set, and Alabama is set to take on the fighting Lane Kiffins for the first time since Nick Saban retired, and this time, Kiffin has the force of the Bayou behind him. Who knows, maybe this time Kiffin will have what it takes to finally get his much-desired win over Alabama.
And boy, has Kiffin got that offense humming. At 40.1 points per game, the Tigers are the top scoring unit in the SEC, and 7th in the whole country. And they're doing so with a balanced and efficient attack – 318 passing yards on 37 attempts and 192 rushing yards on 42 attempts per game. Just impressive stuff across the board. They've lost two games, but in one of them, they still scored 34 points on Kentucky, and in their loss to Ole Miss, they only scored 24 – but it's the only time they've been held below 30 all season.
The real key to offensive explosion has been the addition of transfer portal QB, Sam Leavitt. The former Arizona State QB was the most sought-after QBs in the portal last year, and his presence has been transformative for the Tigers. He's completing 70% of his pass attempts with an impressive 53% success rate on passing plays, and is averaging a solid 8.5 yards per attempt with 2173 yards and 17 touchdowns. The only thing has been that he has has been prone to tossing an interception in most every game – he's willing to throw into trouble just a little bit more than Kiffin probably wants.
Still, Leavitt has been extremely efficient and effective through the air, on top of adding 324 yards and 8 touchdowns as a rusher. He's an excellent scrambler, and LSU is more than happy to call QB runs to keep a defense stressed.
The receiving crew is a whole cast of new names this year as well. Jackson Harris transferred in from Hawaii, where he was an All-Mountain West player. Turns out, those skills transferred to the SEC, and Harris has been one of the most effective players in the SEC this year, averaging almost 18 yards per catch for 634 yards and 7 TDs so far this season. Flanking him is Florida transfer Eugene Wilson, who was a big time player for UF back in 2023, but saw his time diminish the last couple of years. He's mostly been used as a quick underneath receiver for LSU, as he has 27 catches but only 284 yards. Then there's slot man Winston Watkins, the Ole Miss transfer who followed Kiffin. The undersized speedster leads the team with 37 catches, though, like Wilson, he's used in a lot more underneath stuff and only has 487 yards.
Outside of the top three receivers, RB Dilin Jones transferred in from Wisconsin (hey, he had 5 carries for 25 yards against Alabama last year!) and has 30 catches for 217 yards of his own, so he's a big part of the passing game. Then there's tight end Trey'Dez Green, the only returning starter among the skill positions who wasn't a transfer portal addition. Green is a crazy athletic 6'7" tight end that's been pretty highly hyped the last couple of years. He has 272 yards on only 19 catches, so he's definitely making an impact from the TE spot.
Their rushing game is solid, too. Dilin Jones has been the leader of the clubhouse, taking 149 carries for 657 yards and 6 touchdowns. He's spelled by Harlem Berry, who was probably LSU's top back a year ago. Berry is smaller, but he's quick as lightning, and is averaging 6.3 yards per carry on his 32 carries in a relief role. He hasn't really played much the last three weeks, though. For the most part, this is the Dilin Jones show.
Their offensive line has been spotty at times this year, with Jones struggling to get good averaging rushing stats, and generally only getting 2 yards before contact. The pass protection has been decent enough, but Sam Leavitt does a lot of scrambling and quick passing to get around some of the protection issues they've had.
Notably, left tackle Jordan Seaton, one of the famously highest paid NILs ever, has struggled at times to live up to his lofty recruiting rankings and transfer portal status. He's got the upside, but to this point hasn't put things together consistently. Right tackle Weston Davis has been a problem for them as well, giving up 18 QB pressures and earning some pretty terrible run blocking grades (49.8 on PFF…. Oof). Guard Bo Bordelon also got benched after week 4 for Tennessee transfer William Satterwhite, who's helped stabilize things up the interior.
The LSU offense is formidable, and I think it would be unreasonable to expect that Alabama's defense can just dominate this game. The Tigers have rattled off points against everyone they've played, and they have played a solid schedule with Ole Miss, Kentucky, and Texas A&M.
The one good thing going for Alabama in this one is that LSU's passing attack has not had a whole lot of vertical element to it to this point, which is something the Tide has struggled with this year. If DC Kane Wommack can trust his DBs and get everyone triggering downhill on a lot of the underneath stuff (which, aside from the loss to Tennessee, is something that Wommack's defense has been excellent at the last 2.5 years), then I think Alabama has a slight schematic advantage there, even if LSU likely has the advantage neutralizer in Leavitt's scrambling and quick release.
I think something like 31 points for the Tigers seems reasonable. Maybe 28 on the low end, 35 on the high end. It won't be pretty, but hopefully the Tide defense can force a couple of turnovers and get some critical stops that allow the offense to win the game.
