Nick Saban Set to Return to LSU for ESPN's College GameDay in Week 11

Saban and the College GameDay crew heading to Baton Rouge, all eyes on LSU versus Alabama.

Former Alabama Football Coach and current ESPN analyst Nick Saban on the set of ESPN's College Game Day, at the University of Texas on the South Mall, ahead of the Longhorns' game against the Georgia Bulldogs in Austin, Oct. 19, 2024. / Sara Diggins/American-Statesman / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

No. 16 LSU (6-2, 3-1) will return to Tiger Stadium on Saturday night for a prime time Southeastern Conference clash against Jalen Milroe and the Alabama Crimson Tide.

All eyes with be on the pair of programs looking to remain in the College Football Playoff hunt with kickoff slated for 6:30 p.m. CT in Baton Rouge.

ESPN's College GameDay has revealed the Week 11 location with the crew heading to town for the LSU versus Alabama matchup.

A day that will have Nick Saban make a return to Baton Rouge without being on the sidelines, he'll prepare to be surrounded by a pair of programs he was at the helm of during his coaching career.

Now, the stage is set. Saban and Co. will amplify the pivotal Week 11 matchup with the GameDay crew slated to be in Baton Rouge.

A look into the game information, Brian Kelly's thoughts on Saban and what the elite-level head coach had to say of Garrett Nussmeier prior to the 2024 season:

The Game Information: LSU Tigers vs. Alabama Crimson Tide

• Time: 7:30 PM ET
• Date: Saturday, Nov. 9
• Venue: Tiger Stadium
• TV Channel: ABC Network

Nov. 9 SEC Football Schedule

11 a.m. CT – Florida at Texas, ABC
2:30 p.m. CT – Georgia at Ole Miss, ABC
3:15 p.m. CT – South Carolina at Vanderbilt, SEC Network
* 6 or 6:45 p.m. CT – Oklahoma at Missouri, ESPN or SEC Network
* 6 or 6:45 p.m. CT – Mississippi State at Tennessee, ESPN or SEC Network
6:30 p.m. CT – Alabama at LSU, ABC

The Week 11 Location: Baton Rouge

Saban will make a return to Baton Rouge next weekend with the GameDay squad hopping on a flight to make their way to Louisiana.

For Kelly, he was asked earlier in the week about the "old Alabama" coming back to form after taking down Missouri 34-0 in Week 9.

“What’s that old self look like? What, is Nick Saban back? Nick’s on the sideline? He’s everywhere. GameDay, he’s at GameDay too. Did you know that? Oh, my God,” Kelly said on Tuesday. “I’m not sure what the old Alabama (is). They’ve got great personnel. They’re well coached. You know, we certainly know that it’s going to be a great challenge, but that’s the SEC every week. It’s going to be the same. I don’t know that there is a sense that our team can’t, if they’re playing to their best when their best is needed, that they can’t compete and play with anybody.”

WE'RE HEADING TO DEATH VALLEY NEXT WEEK FOR ALABAMA-LSU 🔥 pic.twitter.com/jP8EyAbPYL

— College GameDay (@CollegeGameDay) November 2, 2024

LSU was idle in Week 10 after a loss to Texas A&M with the program placing a focus on a complete performance with complementary football.

“We certainly have to play four quarters,” Kelly said. “And I know that they’re anxious and excited about the opportunity to play at Tiger Stadium and look, and I think I said this in the presser after, you know, you have a 24 hour rule. But it’s easier to have that after a win.

“The 24 hours after a loss, (it) sticks around a lot longer, and these guys are going to want to play and they can’t wait to play Alabama.”

Nick Saban's Preseason Thoughts on Garrett Nussmeier:

Prior to the 2024 season, Nick Saban commented on LSU signal-caller Garrett Nussmeier and the belief he has in the first-year starter.

"I think Garrett Nussmeier is going to be one of the all-time sleepers in college football this year," Saban said on Saturday's College GameDay.

Along with commenting on Nussmeier, he also predicted the Tigers to make the College Football Playoff this season.

"LSU always has skill guys. They're talking about all the receivers they lost -- you could shake a tree in Louisiana and them guys would fall out," Saban said.

In Nussmeier's first start of his career against Wisconsin in the ReliaQuest Bowl, he finished the game 31-for-45 with three touchdown passes and only one interception.

Now, it's his team as he continues working through the 2024 season as one of the top quarterbacks in the SEC. LSU currently sits at 5-1 (2-0) with a date against the Arkansas Razorbacks inching closer in Week 8.

“It wasn’t his car, he was driving that thing fast, and he didn’t care if he dented it. It’s his car now. And he’s really careful that he doesn’t, you know, mess it up," Kelly said of Nussmeier during Fall Camp. “He understands that he can’t put the ball in the other team’s hands. So, I just think it’s, you know, being a starter, understanding how important it is, and recognizing that taking care of the football is absolutely crucial to our success.”

No. 16 LSU will return to game action on Nov. 9 against the Alabama Crimson Tide with kickoff slated for 6:30 p.m. CT in Tiger Stadium.

More LSU News:

Instant Takeaways: No. 8 LSU Falls to No. 14 Texas A&M in College Station

LSU Dishes Out Offer to No. 1 Quarterback in America

Nick Saban Calls LSU Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier a "Sleeper" Ahead of 2024 Season

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