Alabama vs. LSU: Position by position matchups
Published: Friday, November 04, 2011, 8:00 AM
Center William Vlachos anchors a veteran offensive line for Alabama. (The Birmingham News/Mark Almond)Here's how Alabama and LSU match up, position by position.
OFFENSE
QUARTERBACK -- You get the impression AJ McCarron has been following orders not to mess up a good thing. Don't turn the ball over, use your go-to runner Trent Richardson, mix in some low-risk passes and the defense will take it from there. So far, so good, since Alabama leads in almost all the key SEC offensive categories. For LSU seniors Jarrett Lee and Jordan Jefferson, they take a few more risks with their experience and playmakers on the outside. Lee is having a career year with his decisions and production. He's gone from 16 interceptions his freshman year, including seven returned for TDs, to one this season.
Edge -- LSU
RUNNING BACK -- If there is a better runner in the country than Alabama's Trent Richardson, he's in the NFL. The 5-11, 224-pound junior is having a Heisman-type year with his SEC-leading 989 yards rushing and 18 total touchdowns -- including one receiving -- that tie for second nationally. Backup Eddie Lacy isn't bad, either, with his 474 yards rushing and 8.0 average per carry. LSU attacks with Spencer Ware, who leads the team in rushing with 512 yards, and a committee that includes Michael Ford, Alfred Blue and Kenny Hilliard.
Edge -- Alabama
WIDE RECEIVERS -- If the Crimson Tide has a legitimate go-to guy not named Richardson it's wideout Marquis Maze. He's third in the SEC in receptions (39) and yardage (482). But one TD catch? Between LSU's Rueben Randle, Odell Beckham and Russell Shepard, they have 11. That's one more than all eight Tide players who have caught a TD this year. Randle and Beckham, they're NFL-caliber, with Randle's seven TD catches tied for the SEC lead and his 19.3-yard average per catch off the charts.
Edge -- LSU
TIGHT END -- With 6-4, 235-pound senior Deangelo Peterson, LSU has an experienced big target with good hands who gets overlooked in the game plan. Just 12 catches for 137 yards and one TD. Alabama's 6-6, 265-pound Michael Williams should know how that feels with 10 catches, 152 yards, two TDs.
Edge -- Even
UP FRONT -- When you top the SEC in scoring offense, total offense, rushing offense and wearing down defenses, what's not to like about Alabama's veteran unit of center William Vlachos, guards Chance Warmack and Anthony Steen and tackles Barrett Jones and D.J. Fluker? Fifth-year man Alfred McCullough, who would be a starter at most SEC schools, could be in the mix in Steen's place after a big game against Tennessee. LSU might not trump Alabama's 106 combined starts among four returners, but it has one of the school's best and deepest units in years with center P.J. Lonergan, guards T-Bob Hebert and Will Blackwell and tackles Chris Faulk and Alex Hurst.
Edge -- Alabama
DEFENSE
UP FRONT -- Except for LSU preferring a four-man front to Alabama's three-man base, which is often used as a means to throw multiple looks at the opponent, they're almost a mirror image: On the young side but with a lot of big-play talent. Alabama uses nose guard Josh Chapman and ends Jesse Williams and Damion Square to funnel the run to its linebackers. LSU uses Sam Montgomery, Kendrick Adams and Barkevious Mingo at end the way Nick Saban unleashes Courtney Upshaw on quarterbacks. Mingo and Montgomery have eight sacks between them. Tackles Michael Brockers, Bennie Logan and reserve Anthony Johnson, the nation's top defensive line recruit last season, are as fast as any group in college football.
Edge -- LSU
LINEBACKERS -- Are there two linebackers on one team more marquee than Dont'a Hightower and Courtney Upshaw? Add in Jerrell Harris, Nico Johnson and C.J. Mosley and Alabama has its most talented group since Nick Saban's arrival in 2007. For LSU, seniors Ryan Baker, Karnell Hatcher and Stefoin Francois are underrated yet have defensive back speed.
Edge -- Alabama
SECONDARY -- The Tigers have two lock-down cornerbacks in Thorpe semifinalist Morris Claiborne and glaring Thorpe omission Tyrann Mathieu, the defense's biggest playmaker. While they command the spotlight, safeties Brandon Taylor and Eric Reid lead the defense in tackles. The Tide has its own shutdown corner in Dre Kirkpatrick, and Mark Barron and Robert Lester are about as good as it gets at safety. On most teams, the Tide's other corners, starter DeQuan Menzie and reserve Demarcus Milliner, who comes in on nickel packages, would be stars.
Edge -- LSU
KICKING GAME -- There is no Javier Arenas or Patrick Peterson to lose sleep over, but Marquis Maze for Alabama and Rueben Randle of LSU must be taken seriously when the ball is kicked. In a defensive game, punter Brad Wing is a weapon few teams have. He leads the SEC in punting, averaging 44.4 yards per kick, while Alabama's Cody Mandell is last at 39.0. Field goal kickers Jeremy Shelley (11-of-13) of Alabama and Drew Alleman (10-of-12) of LSU have had a no-sweat year. Where LSU has thrived on special teams and Alabama hasn't is kick coverage, with the Tigers giving up just seven yards all season on punt returns.
Edge -- LSU
COACHING -- OK, Les Miles will eat some grass now and then and the cap seems out of place. But LSU's seventh-year coach has handled some challenges this year, mostly from within, including offensive coordinator Steve Kragthorpe's Parkinson's diagnosis in preseason and player issues involving wideout Russell Shepard, quarterback Jordan Jefferson, leading rushing Spencer Ware and star cornerback Tyrann Mathieu. Yet here the Tigers are ranked No. 1. Nick Saban. He's won a couple of national titles, three SEC championships and four SEC West titles. This year's team has become quite the force on both sides of the ball. An offense minus a big-time receiver and with a first-year starter at quarterback leads the SEC in scoring (39.4), rushing (229.2) and total offense (457.6).
