The college football season as we know it has essentially been boiled down to this weekend: Alabama vs. LSU. “The Super Bowl of College Football” is what’s being thrown around as the unofficial, but fairly received, name for this matchup of perennial powerhouses.

The winner will claim the top spot in the rankings and be on track towards a national title. But it won’t be decided until Saturday night, after an endless amount of CBS forced TV timeouts.

If it hasn’t already been evident from the season thus far, both Alabama and LSU are unbelievably good football teams. So good, in fact, that it is a shame both of them can’t come out of this game alive.

Obviously, this can’t happen. One team (Alabama) must win. So, I think the best course of action in approaching Saturday’s game would be to take an unbiased look at how the two teams compare.

First come the coaches. Nick Saban is a no-nonsense perfectionist whose face only shows two emotions during a game – determination or anger. Les Miles eats grass when the game is on the line and has to rely on trickery to pull out the close game.

Just the fact that Miles walks the sideline in a big purple windbreaker gives the advantage to Saban.

Now onto the next key matchup.

In the players department, Alabama once again has the edge. While it’s almost impossible to point out a specific player on either side of the ball who could be considered the best on the team, one player does shine somewhat above the rest: Heisman Trophy candidate Trent Richardson, who by my numbers has only been tackled enough times to count on one hand.

Richardson had half of Ole Miss’s defense looking for where they left their ankles and is one of the main reasons for the Tide’s success this season. LSU’s defense and their “Honey Badger” defensive back will even have a tough time stopping Trent.

The last aspect of this matchup is the fans. While Alabama has the obvious advantage, with the game being at Bryant Denny, that is still not going to stop the LSU faithful from coming in the packs for which they are so well-known.

LSU fans always travel well, even when they’re not going to their own game. In fact, I think there might have been more LSU fans than Vanderbilt fans at homecoming. Even those who can’t fork over the big money for a ticket into the game will still make sure they’re in T-Town to yell “Geaux Tigers.” (For the proper pronunciation, watch “Swamp People.”)

But when it comes down to it, the seemingly endless sea of crimson that is going to engulf Tuscaloosa on Saturday will make even the most avid of Tiger fans overwhelmed.

So with everything considered, Alabama should win the game. Though I will admit that my analysis of each team might be a tad biased, the combination of all these elements makes our team just too deadly to lose.

Don’t get me wrong; I know LSU is a great team. I’m not saying we’re not going to have to earn our victory, but I am sure Saban is not letting his birthday get in the way of preparing his team to go out and get the win.

In the end, we can all be sure of a few things on Saturday – both teams will be out on the field, working their hardest to pull out the win; “Thunderstruck” will be played in Bryant-Denny; and Gallettes will have a cover charge comparable to the prices tickets are being sold for on the corners of University Boulevard.

Roll tide, y’all.

Brad Tipper is a sophomore majoring in political science and economics. His column runs biweekly on Wednesdays.