2023 Alabama Football Early Opponent Preview | Game 9: LSU

The Tigers have been living high off their overtime win against the Crimson Tide last year. How will this next matchup go?

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

The Brian Kelly era got off to a hot start in Baton Rouge last season with LSU upsetting Alabama on the way to the SEC West crown. 

In his first season with the Tigers, Kelly helped LSU snap its five-game home losing streak to Alabama that dated back to 2010. After beating Alabama and Arkansas, the regular season ended on a bit of a sour note with a loss to flailing Texas A&M before losing to Georgia in the SEC Championship game. But the Tigers finished strong with a blowout victory over Purdue in the Citrus Bowl. 

Can LSU keep building in Year 2? Will the Tigers beat Alabama again on the way to another SEC West title? The case could certainly be made. Let's dive into what the 2023 LSU Tigers look like on both sides of the ball. 

Offense

Several top teams around the SEC are coming into the 2023 season with uncertainty at the quarterback position; however, that is certainly not the case for LSU. 

The Tigers bring back Arizona State transfer Jayden Daniels. Last season, Daniels threw for over 2,900 yards and added 885 on the ground with 29 total touchdowns. It's why the LSU quarterback is one of the favorites to win the Heisman trophy this season. 

Daniels has a slew of talented playmakers to get the ball to, including last season's leading pass catcher and 1,000-yard receiver Malik Nabers alongside tight end Mason Taylor. 

The quarterback was the Tigers' leading rusher last season, but LSU does bring back running back Josh Williams (532 yards, five touchdowns) and also Notre Dame transfer Logan Diggs (820 yards, four touchdowns.)

As an added boost, Daniels will be protected by an offensive line that returns all five starters from a season ago.

One interesting thing to note on offense in this season's matchup is what role former Alabama wide receiver Aaron Anderson will play in the game. Anderson was a highly-rated recruit coming into Alabama, but missed most of the season with a knee injury and didn't record any stats. He entered the transfer portal before the season ended and committed to his home-state Tigers a week later. 

Defense

Outside of Kelly, the person who may have made the strongest first impression in Year 1 last season was freshman linebacker Harold Perkins Jr., who is back for his sophomore season. 

Perkins finished third on the team with 72 total tackles, but really came on strong in some of LSU's most important games. He had eight tackles and a sack in the Alabama win and eight tackles with three sacks against Arkansas. 

Overall, Kelly loaded up from the transfer portal on defense this offseason adding key pieces defensive linemen Jordan Jefferson ( fromWest Virginia),  linebacker Omar Speights (from Oregon State), highly-rated defensive back Denver Harris (from Texas A&M) and defensive back Duce Chestnut (from Syracuse) alongside several other depth pieces. 

LSU will be anchored up front by junior Mekhi Wingo (43 tackles, three sacks in 2023) and redshirt sophomore Maason Smith. He got injured in the first quarter of LSU's season opener in 2022, but had four sacks and was Freshman All-SEC in 2021. 

Statistically, LSU was above average, but not exceptional on defense last season finishing 41st in overall defense, 69th in rushing defense and 32nd in passing defense. It was enough to win the West, but the Tigers will need to improve if they want to be truly an elite team in 2023.

Schedule

Like has been the case for the majority of the last 15 years, Alabama and LSU will meet this season with both teams coming off of a bye. It gives the players an extra week of rest and recuperation in the middle of a grinding SEC schedule and the coaches an extra week of preparation and film study. 

It will be LSU's fifth and final road game of the regular season, while Alabama still has to leave the friendly confides of Bryant-Denny Stadium twice. Both teams will be battle-tested heading into this matchup with key conference tests early on (LSU at Florida State and Alabama hosting Texas) along with the usual tough slate in the SEC West. 

Outlook

Nick Saban has had a lot of success against his former team while at Alabama, winning 12 of the 17 matchups and 10 of the last 12; however, those two losses have come in the last four years. 

Only two coaches (Les Miles at LSU and Hugh Freeze at Ole Miss) have beaten a Saban-coached Alabama team in back-to-back seasons, and I don't think Kelly will become the third. 

There is a strong possibility this game will determine the SEC West, and I think the revenge factor is too strong for Saban and the Crimson Tide with the home field advantage as well on Nov. 4. 

LSU at Alabama

The Game

Date: Nov. 4

Time: TBD

TV: TBD

Location: Bryant-Denny Stadium

Series: Alabama leads 55-27-5

Last meeting:

Quarterback Jayden Daniels ran for 25-yard touchdown in overtime and then found Mason Taylor for a do-or-die 2-point conversion as No. 15th LSU stunned No. 6 with a 32-31 victory. Fans stormed the field after the emotional win that featured six second-half lead changes and a game-tying field goal by Alabama in the final 30 seconds. Quarterback Bryce Young was 25-for-51 for 328 yards, with one touchdown and one interception. 

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

The Team

The Coach: Brian Kelly, second year, 10-4 (20th overall as head coach, 176-66)

Offensive Coordinator: Mike Denbrock

Defensive Coordinator: Matt House

2022 Record: 10-4

2022 Rankings: Total offense No. 28; Total defense No. 41

Returning Starters: 15, eight on offense, seven on defense

Players to Watch: QB Jayden Daniels, WR Malik Nabers, OT Will Campbell, DT Mekhi Wingo, LB Harold Perkins, TE Mason Taylor, DE Ovie Oghoufu, OT Emery Jones, DT Mason Smith, LB Omar Speights, S Greg Brooks, LS Slade Roy,

Top Newcomer: Quarterback Jayden Daniels, who transferred from Arizona State, could key the whole season. Last season he was 197-for-301 for 2,381 yards with 10 touchdowns and 10 interceptions (after having three in 17 games over his first two seasons). Daniels also ran for 710 yards and six touchdowns.

Biggest Questions: Last year we said that LSU had the "potential to be the most improved team over the course of the season," and it pretty much was. This season the Tigers will have a much higher expectation level, as a preseason No. 10 team and legitimate national title contender. So how LSU handles the increased pressure is one big question. Another is the secondary, where only one starter returns and the coaches brought in five transfers including cornerback Deuce Chestnut from Syracuse. 

Stephen Lew-USA TODAY Sports

The School

Location: Baton Rouge, La.

Founded: 1860

Enrollment: Approximately 37,000

Nickname: Tigers

Colors: Purple and gold

Mascot: Mike the Tiger

The Program

Coaching Changes During Saban Era: Two

Last Time Beat Alabama: Last year, and head coach Brian Kelly has been milking it for everything he can. Can you blame him? While Alabama was essentially knocked out of the national title picture (the selection committee had it at No. 5 in the final CFP rankings), it re-energized the LSU fan base even though the Tigers finished the regular season with a loss to Texas A&M and got thumped in the SEC Championship Game before crushing an overwhelmed Purdue team in the Citrus Bowl.

Last Time Won Division: 2022

Last Time Won SEC Championship: 2019

National Championships (4): 1958, 2003, 2007, and 2019

Playoff Appearances (1): 2019

SEC Championships (12): 1935, 1936, 1958, 1961, 1970, 1986, 1988, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2019

Bowl Appearances: 30-24-1

Last Time Didn’t Play in a Bowl: 2020

Heisman Trophies (2): Billy Cannon (1959), Joe Burrow (2019).

Consensus All-Americans During Saban Era: 14, most recently QB Joe Burrow, WR Ja’Marr Chase, S Grant Delpit, CB Derek Stingley Jr. in 2019.

First-Round NFL Picks During Saban Era: 19, including CB Derek Stingley Jr., the third-overall selection in the 2022 NFL Draft.

2023 NFL Draft: Led by linebacker BJ Ojulari in the second round, the Tigers had six players selected.

Last Four Recruiting Class Rankings: LSU finished No. 6 in the Class of 2023. It was previously No. 12 with the Class of 2022, No. 3 in 2021, and No. 4 in 2020.

The Schedule

Sept. 3: vs. Florida State at Orlando
Sept. 9: Grambling
Sept. 16: at Mississippi State
Sept. 23: Arkansas
Sept. 30: at Ole Miss
Oct. 7: at Missouri
Oct. 14: Auburn
Oct. 21: Army
Nov. 4: at Alabama
Nov. 11: Florida
Nov. 18: Georgia State
Nov. 25: Texas A&M

Did You Know?

For a while the annual Alabama vs. LSU game was known as the Saban Bowl, due to him having coached at both schools. But this is the 20th anniversary of his national title with the Tigers, and next year will be the 20th anniversary of his last season in Baton Rouge (2000-2004). Even with last year's overtime win, LSU is still 5-12 vs. Saban at Alabama, and he obviously won the biggest matchup, the 21-0 shutout in New Orleans, in the BCS Championship Game at the end of the 2011 season.

This is the ninth story in a series previewing Alabama's 2023 opponents:

Middle Tennessee

Texas

South Florida

Ole Miss

Mississippi State

Texas A&M

Arkansas

Tennessee