It’s finally that time of year.
No explanation necessary. Any Alabama football fan – indeed, any fan of college football at all – knows this is LSU week, the one week circled for Nick Saban and Les Miles since the beginning of the season.
So far this season, Alabama has completely manhandled its opponents, teams that thought they stacked up to Alabama, but eventually, inevitably, fell by the wayside. This game, however, will mark the first – and perhaps only – time all season Alabama will face a team of similar caliber.
Of course, this isn’t the only year Alabama has had a tough opponent in the Bayou Bengals. Ever since Saban’s return to college football by way of Tuscaloosa in 2007, the annual Alabama-LSU rivalry has been one of the nation’s best.
Take a look at these statistics. Since 2007, LSU’s average rank when Alabama played it was 7th in the nation – no time has LSU ever been ranked lower than 15th. This year, they rank 5th. The series split between these two teams since 2007? Tied, at 3-3. How about the average margin of victory? Outside the national championship rematch in 2011, it’s just under six points. With the rematch, a little over eight.
Let’s not forget about where the game is taking place, either. Baton Rouge, La., is a tough place to play by anyone’s standards. And when you play there at night, it’s downright intimidating. Miles made a comment earlier this season about Death Valley as “truly a place where opponents’ dreams go to die.”
Aside from the theatrics, that’s not a bad way to sum up LSU’s home advantage. Since Miles’ arrival at LSU in 2005, the Tigers have gone 48-6 at home and 36-1 at home night games. Since ’07, Saban and Alabama have made the trip to Baton Rouge twice and have come away 1-1.
This rivalry is so much more than just a well-fought series between two SEC West schools, however. This is a game with national title implications, year in and year out, and this year offers the same intrigue. These two teams have simply been that good.
This series has featured “The Game of the Century,” “The Game of the Century Part II” and was a catalyst for the removal of the BCS system. It’s not enough to say that this is simply a heated rivalry – this is a game that demands the attention of the college football world and has been instrumental in the change of its landscape in recent years.
Of course, none of this matters to either Saban or Miles. It’s been said over and over again. The only game that matters for either team is the one being played at the moment. While that’s all fine and good, fans have been clamoring to know what each team thinks of the other, some of the difficulties they expect and the advantages they could come away with beforehand. Basically, anything and everything about the other team who’s been such a thorn in their own team’s side.
Well fans, the wait is over. There’s nothing left to say. It’s finally that time of year.
