LSU vs. Alabama: Second Time Will Be the Charm for Crimson Tide

The LSU Tigers will be sorry they have to face the Alabama Crimson Tide for the second time, as this time around the second-best team in the country will come out on top in the BCS National Championship Game.

The Tigers and Crimson Tide are familiar with one another, as the two SEC powerhouses faced off back in November. In that game, both teams were held to season lows in points scored, as the final score of the epic battle was 9-6. The Tigers came out on top of that game, and it was essentially the deciding moment in who would end up as No. 1 in the country at season's end.

That is surely how things turned out, and the Crimson Tide were right there on their coattails standing at No. 2 in the country, awaiting a rematch with the team that handed them their only loss on the year—which was at home.

Both teams are clearly above the rest of the field—especially in terms of defense. The Crimson Tide held their opponents to an FBS-best 8.8 points per game, while the Tigers only allowed 10.5.

Their offenses are also highly effective, but the Tigers outscore their opponents by 2.5 more points a game than the Tide with 38.5 points per game.

While the Tigers did get the best of the Tide in their first game, both teams proved that nobody really has an advantage. Neither team was really effective on offense, as the game was a field goal affair. While it remains to be seen if this will be how the title game will be, there is no doubt this game will be close, whether it be a shootout or a battle of the kickers.

The Tide are going to have to hope that they can hold up to their signature defense, while being able to squeeze past the Tigers, who are almost equally as strong.

Both teams are coming off equally impressive wins, which included an impressive SEC title win for the Tigers over the Georgia Bulldogs.

The most comparable games for both teams would be that both faced off against the Auburn Tigers. Unfortunately for those who want to find comparisons, both teams handled the Tigers pretty much as evenly as they handled one another in their own game.

The Tide, though, have the advantage in this game, as they appear to be the only team that can lock down the Les Miles offense. While both teams have been impressive on both sides of the ball this season, Alabama's ability to hold down the Tigers' offense can take it a long way in this game.

The Tide will have their hands full in trying to stop the dual threat of both of their opponent's quarterbacks, as Jarrett Lee and Jordan Jefferson can really surprise their opposition. Still, the Tide were the only defense that could contain the dual threat.

Despite an interception in their first matchup, Tide quarterback A.J. McCarron had perhaps one of his best games against the Tigers. He threw for 199 yards and proved he could throw against what is arguably the second-best defense in college football.

He is also coming off back-to-back three-touchdown games, so he looks to be feeling it right now. While it remains to be seen how the near five-week break will affect his groove, it appears McCarron is playing his best at the right time.

Running back Trent Richardson also had an effective season and provides the Tide with another threat after McCarron. The Tigers do have many threats that can come out of the backfield, including Michael Ford and Spencer Ware, but neither of those guys has put up anything close to the numbers Richardson has.

On the season, he ran for 1,583 yards while punching in 20 touchdowns on the ground. He played one less game than his opponents, so he likely could have put up some nice numbers if he were given another time to shine.

The overall strength in 'Bama's offense will be just enough to get it past LSU this time around. There is no denying the Tigers have a strong offense, but the Tide just may have the slightest advantage on the defensive side of the ball to make a difference.

You couldn't ask for a more even matchup. Both teams put up a nice fight in their previous battle, but this time the other team will shine.