Alabama Football: LSU appeared closer than they were

Alabama football looked to be in a close game against the LSU Tigers, last night. However, the injuries and score were deceiving.

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Ever read the label on mirrors for the car? It says that objects may be closer than they appear. For Alabama football, LSU looked closer to challenging the Crimson Tide’s undefeated 2017 season than they actually were.

Alabama only scored one touchdown for each of the first three quarters, and only managed a field goal in the fourth. A 14-3 score at halftime may have put many Alabama fans in a state of worry. A 21-10 score at the end of the third quarter may have even sent some fans into a state of panic. That’s the problem with the current state of Crimson Tide fans: if it’s not a blowout, many fans blow up with anger and frustration.

The smoke and mirrors that LSU tried doing on offense, motioning their personnel from one side of the field to the other, was merely making the Alabama defense uncomfortable. If it wasn’t for the fact that Minkah Fitzpatrick injured his hamstring early in the first quarter, the motioning would have been considered a simple attempt at distraction. Nothing more.

LSU starting quarterback Danny Etling only completed 12 of 26 pass attempts, earning a minuscule 137 yards through the air. He was even intercepted once in his own end by Ronnie Harrison, which seemed to turn the momentum back to the Tide after the Fitzpatrick injury.

Etling and the LSU offense had some success immediately following Fitzpatrick pulling up lame, after running deep to cover one of many long bombs that were not completed. Etling kept going to Fitzpatrick’s side when he was still in the ball game. However, once Alabama pulled Fitzpatrick out, the Crimson Tide were able to account for the shifts across the field.

Other than the Darrel Williams run for 54 yards to the Alabama two yard line, off of a broken assignment on defense, LSU had no other big plays that threatened Alabama’s supremacy. Williams’ play led to the only LSU touchdown of the game.

The Jet Sweep that LSU kept using gave the CBS commentators many chances to say Derrius Guice‘s name on national television, but after 19 carries Guice only had 71 yards, averaging 3.7 yards per carry. It’s not a terrible number for the young running back; however, when that was the only play that consistently worked for LSU to move the ball, it made for a very slow progression. No way was LSU going to score quickly with that game plan, so they needed to make the game closer on defense in order to give their team a chance.

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That didn’t happen. As much as Alabama’s offense stalled as well, quarterback Jalen Hurts came up big when the Crimson Tide needed to extend drives. From spinning out of two LSU defenders’ grasps for a big, first-down run to firing a pass between four LSU defensive backs into the hands of his receiver for another first down, both plays leading to touchdowns instead of punts, Hurts put the hurt on the Tigers when it mattered most.

Etling didn’t come close to that. Instead, when he was sacked by Da’Ron Payne and Dylan Moses for a loss of 12 yards near the end of the fourth quarter, Etling laid on the ground. When LSU got the ball back with 4:31 left in the game, freshman Myles Brennan replaced Etling. LSU ended up giving up the ball on downs, sealing the victory for Alabama.

LSU played Alabama tough. Injuries to Fitzpatrick, Shaun Dion Hamilton (knee), and Mack Wilson (foot) hurt the team both morally and on the field, but they may have worried the fans more than anything else. As the Associated Press reported, “Alabama’s defense sucked all the drama out of the ending with stop after stop, even as injuries took their toll.” Head coach Nick Saban’s words about the injuries to Hamilton and Wilson indicated that “they’re potentially long-term injuries,” but Alabama football was too tough to be knocked down by LSU, last night.

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Yes, Alabama fans are used to winning big, and the score didn’t seem big enough. Las Vegas had Alabama with a 21-point spread, and LSU didn’t allow that to happen. However, to say that LSU almost took Alabama down is like saying magician David Copperfield could take down Brock Lesnar in a fight. Once the illusions were done, LSU had one play and a whole lot of missed opportunities. It entertained Alabama for a little while, until the Crimson Tide’s defense didn’t find it amusing any more.

Alabama football fans should be more worried about the players’ health than how the game went, last night. Playtime is over, but the real fight is coming soon.

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