By admin 
No. No. 14 LSU (6-2, 3-1) welcomes the Alabama Crimson Tide to Tiger Stadium on Saturday night, with both programs looking to keep their College Football Playoff hopes alive.
It will be a Top 15 matchup in Baton Rouge with significant postseason implications.
“The loser of this game bids farewell, adios to the season,” SEC Network’s Paul Finebaum told ‘SportsCenter.’ “Not in the literal sense, but in terms of the CFP (College Football Playoff).”
“The loser will suffer three losses. There’s no way to get back in. There will be an SEC Championship Game. There really won’t be any hope left. There are too many schools competing for at-large bids.”
What are the latest predictions? Can the Tigers handle the unrest at home?
The current buzz on the Top 15 Southeastern Conference clash in Death Valley:
*(All odds according to DraftKings Sportsbook)*
Spread:
– LSU: (+3)
-Alabama: (-3)
Moneyline:
– LSU: (+120)
-Alabama: (-142)
Top/Bottom: 58
The Alabama Crimson Tide are currently three-point favorites heading into the Week 11 matchup. A line that hovered around 1.5 points a week ago, Vegas continues to lean toward the Tide as the favorite on Saturday night.
LSU has received 55% of bets to either earn an outright win in an upset on Saturday night against the Crimson Tide or to cover the spread on a loss by a field goal or less.
The remaining 45% of bets made this week have Alabama covering the three-point spread and winning by a field goal or more.
Looking at the betting spread Vegas has predicted, it believes the Crimson Tide will beat the Bayou Bengals by a projected score of 31 to 28 in Baton Rouge on Saturday night.
ESPN’s Football Power Index predicts the outcome of every game on the College Football slate each week, with the latest results recorded for Week 11.
As this weekend’s schedule approaches, the FPI has made an expert prediction for Saturday night in Death Valley.
The model is heavily tilted toward the Alabama Crimson Tide, giving Kalen DeBoer’s club a 69.8% chance to win the Southeastern Conference game.
This gives the Tigers a 30.2% chance of overcoming the upset at home in a prime time game.
“Overall, the Crimson Tide came out on top in 13,960 of the indexes calculations of the match, while the Tigers defeated Bama in the other 6,040 predictions. That is expected to be Alabama 7.6 points better than LSU on the same field in the current composition of both teams, according to the model’s latest prediction.”
It’s important to note that Brian Kelly has yet to lose a night game in Baton Rouge, but ESPN’s Football Power Index continues to lean heavily on the Crimson Tide to spoil his hot streak.
The CBS Analysts’ Pick: LSU Tigers vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
Aaron Taylor: Alabama
“I like Alabama a little bit more in this game,” Taylor said. “They are coming off their rushing game of the season,” Taylor said.
Part of his lack of confidence in the Bayou Bengals is largely due to LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier’s inefficiency against Texas A&M in the second half.
“It’s hard for me to get Nussmeier’s play in that last game (against Texas A&M) out of my mind.”
Rick Neuheisel: Alabama
Neuheisel agreed with Taylor’s thoughts on Nussmeier’s inefficient play; coupled with LSU’s lack of rushing attack through eight games of the 2024 season.
“When you factor in that LSU can’t run the football, they are last in the SEC in running the football, and that puts extra pressure on Garrett Nussmeier.”
Randy Cross and Brian Jones: LSU
The pair of CBS analysts have laid down predictions that the LSU Tigers will enter Death Valley as underdogs and pick up a win over the Crimson Tide.
LSU head coach Brian Kelly is 13-0 in night games at Tiger Stadium. Now he will put his undefeated streak to the test against Jalen Milroe and the Tide.
Fox Sports analyst Joel Klatt has laid out his prediction for Saturday night in Baton Rouge.
Alabama remains a 2.5-point favorite, according to DraftKings Sportsbook, with Klatt also favoring the Crimson Tide.
“Remember, ‘Bama got the win over Georgia. And in this case I’d have them win at LSU at night. So they join in. They’re definitely in the game,” Klatt said of Alabama’s College Football Playoff chances.
The Crimson Tide, like LSU, will be inactive in Week 10 before next Saturday’s clash, but will certainly have all the momentum heading into November 9.
After a 34-0 win in their last game against Missouri, Alabama is clicking on all cylinders heading into next weekend.
“That was a big win for Alabama on Saturday, even though it was against a Missouri team that has been overrated since the start of the season. Alabama’s defense played incredibly well after a few weeks of disappointing play,” Klatt said.
“I’m not sure how much we should get out of that game because I don’t think Missouri is particularly good. But when you win 34-0 against an SEC opponent, that should mean something.”
No. No. 14 LSU and No. 11 Alabama kick off at 6:30 PM CT on ABC in a battle to stay alive in the College Football Playoff race.
ESPN College GameDay Guest Picker Predictions: LSU Tigers vs. Alabama Crimson Tide
LSU makes offer to No. 1 quarterback in America
Nick Saban Calls LSU Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier a “Sleeper” Ahead of 2024 Season
Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and LSU Tigers at SI: @LSUTigersSI for all coverage of the LSU program.