Alabama pulled off an overtime victory against LSU in Death Valley to keep their SEC and national championship hopes alive.
LSU’s late mistakes gave Alabama (8-1) a chance to get back in the game and the Tide capitalized on them.
Late in the fourth quarter tied at 10-10, LSU (7-3) had the chance to go up by seven after a TJ Yeldon fumble inside the Alabama 5 yard-line, but an unsportsmanlike conduct on LSU’s Vadal Alexander pushed the Tiger’s back and they settled for a field goal.
On the ensuing kickoff and with less than a minute left in the game, LSU attempted a squib kick that would hopefully take some time off the clock. The kick ended up out of bounds, took no time off the clock and gave Alabama the ball at their 35 yard-line.
Blake Sims had looked a little rattled all night until his last drive in regulation. Sims was able to throw the ball on one of the best secondaries in the country and set his team up for a game-tying field goal. LSU missed the presence of suspended cornerback Rashard Robinson whose size would’ve helped covering Amari Cooper who finished the night with eight receptions for 83 yards and a touchdown.
Alabama got the ball first in overtime and Deandrew White scored on a pick-pass, putting the pressure on LSU to score or lose. LSU failed to complete a first down on four straight passes and lost 20-13.
The poor performance passing from LSU’s Anthony Jennings was a game changer. LSU has talented receivers that are being used a blockers. They have a great running game but eventually passes have to be made and Jennings has not shown he can do that. He went 8 for 26 with 76 yards and a QBR rating of 12.7. Jennings showed the ability to escape the pocket and run for a first down but LSU does not need a fifth running back, they need one quarterback. Jennings will be the likely starter for the rest of the season but it will be an interesting off-season with backup Brandon Harris ready to take the starting spot.
ESPN’s College Gameday will be headed to Tuscaloosa as Alabama will go right back into battle this week against No. 1 Mississippi State. The winner will likely go on to play in the SEC Championship game.
LSU travels to Arkansas and will hope to extend Arkansas’ SEC losing streak. LSU tends to play down to Arkansas so it could be a better game than expected.
*Section Photo credit to Kevin C. Cox, Getty Images; Featured Photo (above) credit to Marvin Gentry, USA Today Sports
