1. DEFENSIVE LINE: Glenn Dorsey, Marlon Favorite and Al Woods plugged the middle for the Tigers more than any game this season in the SEC. Alabama couldn't run the ball very effectively and, with a 10-point lead, it meant John Parker Wilson had to pass to stay competitive (7 sacks, including one big one at the end). Tyson Jackson and Kirston Pittman on the ends both ate the lunches of their counterparts on the other end of the ball.
2. RECEIVERS: Early Doucet and the LSU receiving corps is back, which is what they haven't been since the 2nd game of the season (Virginia Tech). There has always been talent all over the unit, but it struggled without Doucet, and the emergence of Demetrius Byrd, who caught a go-route for a touchdown in the 3rd quarter, made Alabama pay dearly. Alabama's D.J. Hall, who leads the SEC and is 16th nationally with 95.5 yards receiving a game, had a relatively quiet night after a school-record 13 receptions for 185 yards and two touchdowns in the win over Tennessee two weeks ago. Tide senior Matt Caddell also had a big game, but frequently disappointing Ray Brown had the game of his life with 2 TD catches against the Tigers. But Alabama got increasingly one dimensional as the game wore on.
3. INSTANT REPLAY: Never has a team dominated the replay booth like LSU did, going 3-1 on crucial calls in the game. None were bigger than a 3rd down reception for more than 30 yards on 3rd down that Wilson through in the fourth quarter. LSU also got a very fortunate, and close call when a fumble was overturned late in the 3rd quarter. If any of those plays would have went the other way, LSU would have most likely lost the game, especially being down by 10 points at the time. "We should have won, and I'm really angry right now," Alabama linebacker Darren Mustin said. "I feel like we had that game won, but we just let them take it away from us."
4. 'BAMA COULDN'T RUN: Tide tailback Terry Grant, who led Alabama 667 yards for the season before the game, had 10 yards on 10 carries with under 10 minutes left in the 3rd quarter. Grant had been running behind a thin and young offensive line for most of the season, and it did him in as Nick Saban tried to slow the LSU pass rush by running it. LSU was not really effective on the ground as well as Jacob Hester turned in a demure performance outside of his two touchdowns, which were huge. But in the end LSU's defensive line was simply too much for Alabama's O-line.
5. NICK SABAN WAS OUTCOACHED: Les has got Balls of steel. And can we coach better than Saban? Well, he beat him. Why? Because Saban played a straight game. Saban saw in the first half that his team was not physical enough for the Tigers, not mano-o-mano, but he didn't go into his bag of tricks. "We don't play with enough discipline," he said. "It drives me nuts. My hands are bruised from smacking them together when we made mistakes, when we did the wrong things." Les, on the other hand, reached down into his bag and had quarterback Matt Flynn catch a nifty pass from the receiver Doucet. Even late in the game, knowing he didn't have a running game, he did no counters, no misdirections. It cost him. Big time. He got outcoached. "We kept hanging in there, kept fighting," Miles said. "We found a way to win. I've never seen that many mistakes in a game. We'll never play that poorly again."
2 comments:
Les Miles out-coached Saban? 130 yards of penalties? Are you serious? Alabama could have ran twenty-five trick plays and LSU's speed would have murdered each and every one of them.
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