The ESPN Gameday crew will be in Baton Rouge this weekend and a 7:00 CBS game will mark another huge battle of what is becoming  one of the largest rivalries in the country.  LSU vs Alabama will likely decide the SEC western division again this year and maybe even the SEC.  The winner also has a very good shot at finding their way into Miami for the BCS national championship game.

The crimson tide does not have the top 10 wins that LSU has but has looked far more dominant in their victories and are undefeated at 8-0.  Alabama will be heavily favored but you simply can not deny the fact that Saturday night in Tiger Stadiuim brings with it some tiger magic.

Jeremy Hill has been the most recent workhorse for the tiger offense.  He will need to have a huge game if LSU is to defeat #1 Alabama.  Zach Mettenberger will need to have his coming out party if the tigers are going to force the tide defense to guard the entire field which will allow the tiger running backs to have success.

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Welcome to the SEC.  The message here is when your team is playing on the road especially in a hostile place like Kyle Field ” Just Win Baby”.  The tigers did not look pretty in winning on the road at Kyle field in College Station but the message was clear that this LSU team who had to overcome a 12-0 deficit early finds a way to win a gritty, physical, and hard fought game that has every LSU fan on the edge of their seat and second guessing every decision that comes out of Les Miles cap.  The tigers forced 5 turnovers and scored 24 straight points to move to 7-1, 3-1 SEC.

Tiger freshman running back Jeremy Hill who also celebrated his birthday Saturday ran for over 100 yards in the second half and the key fourth quarter touchdown run of 47 yards with only 3:12 left to help LSU have it’s largest comeback at an opponent’s stadium since 2004 (at Florida, 24-21).  Michael Ford had 78 yards rushing on 11 tries including a 20 yard scoring run that got LSU on the scoreboard and was a big momentum builder.  Zach Mettenberger connected with Kadrone Boone for a 29 yard touchdown pass  with only 11 seconds left in the half.

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A big question this weekend is what tiger team shows up at 11:00 a.m. at Kyle Field on Saturday.  LSU’s two prior SEC road performances don’t seem to give much feeling of road success.  However, the offensive line and offensive success last week does.  The defense on the other hand has been dominant throughout the entire season but have not seen a team with the offensive capability of Texas A&M especially a quarterback as dominant as Johnny Manziel.  LSU did face a similiar quarterback last week in Connor Shaw.  The aggies may have more speed at wide receiver than the gamecocks at the wide receiver position but do not have a running back near the quality of Marcus Lattimore.

I look for continued success this week with the play of Zach Mettenberger, his receivers, and the offensive line especially since the aggies are certainly not a highly rated defensive team.  Look for running back Michael Ford to play more this week since LSU may be looking for someone with speed who can get around the corners to take advantage of the aggie linebackers.  The Texas A&M offense will score but the difference could come with the offenses ability to stay out of 3 and outs and the defenses ability to force the aggies to kick field goals instead of score touchdowns.

LSU 26

Texas A&M 24

Fresh off a revitalizing victory in tiger stadium over the South Carolina gamecocks the LSU football team will hit the road again.  This time LSU will again enter hostile territory as College Station presents a dangerous road test for the visiting tigers.  The aggies will not present the dangers that a South Carolina, Florida, or Alabama will  bring but the aggies “12th Man” at Kyle Field is known as one of the more wild environments facing visitors in the past.

The aggies are led by a remarkable freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel who has 1,680 all purpose yards, 14 touchdowns, and thrown only 3 interceptions.  He is especially dangerous because of his ability to use his feet and has 676 yards and 10 touchdowns rushing.  Another rushing threat is junior running back Ben Malena who has rushed for 380 yards and 3 touchdowns so far this season. Freshman wide receiver Mike Evans leads the aggies in receiving with 36 receptions for 549 yards and 2 touchdowns.  Another threat at wide receiver is senior Ryan Swope who has 20 receptions for 299 yards and 3 touchdowns.

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