Welcome everyone to the latest edition of #4Downs breaking down LSU’s tough road loss against Alabama.
1st Down: Offense Offline
LSU’s offense seemed stuck in its ways offensively on Saturday with quite a bit of runs with little success outside of a 54-yard run from Darrel Williams. It seems expected when any team faces off against Alabama, but it showed some weaknesses in what seemed to be a brick wall of a run defense.
That being said, the passing game couldn’t get going and that wound up making LSU’s offense largely one-dimensional. The biggest difference in the game was simply Jalen Hurts was the superior quarterback. He controlled the game perfectly and even when he got sacked, he was able to overcome the roadblocks with some great passes.
If there’s one thing to take away from the loss, it’s that the Tigers need to find a quarterback that can keep up with the talented Hurts.
2nd Down: Defense Keeps it Competitive
The silver lining in the Tigers loss was their defense. Look at what Alabama has done this season against the rest of the SEC. Heading into Saturday, the only other team in the conference to hold the Tide below 30 points was Texas A&M.
While the Tigers allowed two touchdowns early on in the ballgame, there was still a lot to be proud of. The Crimson Tide wound up being forced to go three and out on six of their 13 drives. Not many teams can hold down a high-powered offense like Alabama, but LSU was able to keep it to a two-possession ballgame.
3rd Down: Missed Opportunities
One thing that really rubbed me the wrong way was the fact that LSU didn’t try to get a quick touchdown at the end of the first half. Momentum is the most important thing in sports and ending the first half with five run plays was kind of waving the white flag in terms of momentum.
At this point, the Tigers were only down 14-3 and were getting the ball back to start the second half. While they were deep in their own territory with 2:52 left in the first half, LSU had two timeouts and kept them in their pocket. It was extremely frustrating to see the Tigers not try and create some momentum and get some points on the board.
4th Down: Stayed Energetic Throughout
While it looked like the Tigers had surrendered at the half, there was still a lot of energy that you could see on the TV broadcast. Even down 21-10 after three quarters, LSU didn’t feel like they were entirely out of it.
One of the biggest issues for LSU in the past was going into the tank after the Alabama game. What we saw during the ballgame was proof that LSU isn’t going to let this loss phase them.
-Clint Domingue