Tiger Stadium has been said to be a place where opponents' dreams are dashed, but historically, the home of the LSU Tigers has been a place of great success for Alabama football.
Alabama hadn't lost at Tiger Stadium in more than a decade before Brian Kelly upended that narrative in his first season as LSU's head coach in 2022. The Crimson Tide got revenge last season with a 42-28 win over the Tigers at home, but this season will mark their first return to Baton Rouge since an overtime loss two years ago.
For the past 20 years, this matchup has played a key role in determining the SEC West champion, and while there are no more conference divisions this season, the Alabama-LSU game will have major implications for both the SEC and College Football Playoff races.
Louisiana State had the nation's top offensive offense last season thanks to Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels, who had 3,812 passing yards, 1,134 rushing yards and 50 total touchdowns, but Daniels, along with Louisiana State's top two wide receivers (Malik Neighbors and Brian Thomas Jr.), will be drafted in the first round to the NFL.
Kelly and the Tigers turned to redshirt junior Garrett Nussmeyer at quarterback, who had played valuable backup roles the past three seasons. With Daniels opting out of the bowl game to prepare for the NFL, Nussmeyer started and led LSU to a 35-31 win over Wisconsin, throwing for 395 yards and three touchdowns.
LSU is replacing a lot of its talent at receiver and running back, but Nussmeyer has the benefit of being protected by one of the best offensive lines in the country: LSU was one of three Joe Moore Award finalists last season, and two experienced tackles from that group, Will Campbell and Emery Jones Jr., return, as do guards Miles Frazier and Garrett Dellinger.
The top target for the returning offense is fifth-year receiver Kylen Lacy, who was third on the team with 558 receiving yards and seven touchdowns last season. Junior tight end Mason Taylor was fourth on the team in receiving yards behind a talented trio of receivers. LSU also added CJ Daniels, who transferred to Liberty through the portal. With top running back Logan Diggs transferring to Ole Miss, the Tigers will rely on graduate transfer Josh Williams for the majority of the carries.
Last season, the Tigers had the best offense in the country led by Daniels, but their defense was awful, allowing over 416 yards and 28 points per game. Kelly changed defensive coordinators this offseason, hiring Blake Baker from Missouri. Longtime Alabama assistant Beau Davis also joined the staff, now as the defensive line coach at Louisiana State.
Coach Baker will be tasked with rebuilding the defense, starting with junior linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. Perkins had a dynamic rookie season as an outside linebacker last season, recording 7.5 sacks before being moved to inside backer.
LSU returns three of last year's top four tacklers — Perkins, safety Major Barnes and linebacker Greg Penn III. Senior defensive end Saivion Jones is the most experienced forward returning, having started 13 games last season and recording 32 tackles and 2.5 sacks.
As has been the case for most of the past 20 years, Alabama and LSU will meet in early November with both teams coming off bye weeks, and for LSU, the home game against the Crimson Tide will be sandwiched between three road games at Arkansas and Texas A&M in the weeks prior and three road games at Florida the following week.
But LSU will finish the season playing three of four games at home in the familiar surroundings of Tiger Stadium during the month of November, and regardless of where and when these two teams meet, this game will be circled on both teams' schedules.
Since it's the second half of the season, injury availability can be a factor, but the bye week beforehand also gives players time to rest and recover before the big games.
Despite losing their top players to the NFL, LSU should remain a dynamic offense in 2024. But with Jalen Milroe returning as the Crimson Tide quarterback and a new system in place under head coach Cullen DeBoer, Alabama should also have a potent offense.
It will likely come down to who has the better defense. In 2023, this game came down to who could get the most stops and force a timely turnover or two. Alabama was able to get back-to-back stops in the second half, with Terrion Arnold getting a key interception.
Playing at Tiger Stadium is always a challenge, and while ESPN has it listed as a “flex” game, it will likely be played at night. This November matchup will give DeBoer a real taste of SEC life if he hasn't had it by this point. Kelly won his first try in the rivalry, and DeBoer will have a chance to do the same.
date: November 9
time: to be decided
tv set: to be decided
position: Tiger Stadium
Series History: Alabama leads 56-27-5
Last meeting: Alabama beat LSU 42-28 in Tuscaloosa last season, a game that saw Jalen Milro emerge as a Heisman Trophy candidate and win a quarterback duel with eventual Heisman winner Jayden Daniels. Milro threw for 219 yards and added 155 yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
coach: Brian Kelly, Year 3, 20-7
Offensive Coordinator: Joe Sloan
Defensive Coordinator: Blake Baker
2023 Record: 10-3 (6-2 SEC)
2023 Rankings: Total Offense (1st), Total Defense (108th)
Returning starter
13 (6 offense, 6 defense, kicker)
Featured Players
QB Garrett Nussmeyer, WR CJ Daniels, WR Kylen Lacy, TE Mason Taylor, RB Josh Williams, LB Harold Perkins, LB Greg Penn III, S Major Barnes
Top Newcomers:
CJ Daniels transferred from Liberty. The Tigers obviously lost some top talent at wide receiver and are hoping Daniels can fill some of that gap. He had over 1,000 yards receiving and 10 touchdowns last year at Liberty.
The biggest question
Can LSU's defense improve enough to turn the Tigers into serious championship contenders?
position: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Founded: 1860
Registration: 39,419
nickname: Tigers
color: Purple and Gold
mascot: Mike the Tiger
Last time they beat Alabama: 2022
Last SEC Winner: 2019
Defending SEC West champions: 2022
National Championships: 4 (1958, 2003, 2007, 2019)
Playoff appearances: 1 (2019)
Conference Championship: 12 (1935, 1936, 1958, 1961, 1970, 1986, 1988, 2001, 2003, 2007, 2011, 2019)
Bowl Record: 30-24-1
Players who didn't make a bowl appearance last season: 2020
Heisman Trophy: 3 (Billy Cannon, Joe Burrow, Jayden Daniels)
2024 NFL Draft:
Ranking the last four recruiting classes: No. 7 (2024), No. 6 (2023), No. 12 (2022), No. 3 (2021)
September 1: USC (Las Vegas)
September 7: Nichols
September 14: South Carolina
September 21: UCLA
September 28: South Alabama
October 12: Ole Miss
October 19: Arkansas
October 26: Texas A&M University
November 9: Alabama
November 16: Florida
November 23: Vanderbilt
November 30: Oklahoma
