LSU vs. Alabama Rematch: 5 Mistakes the Tigers Must Avoid If They Want to Win

With the rematch taking place tonight, the LSU Tigers must play sound football if they want to beat Nick Saban’s Crimson Tide again.

In a game that features two mere equals, one turnover or blown assignment could be the difference-maker. The first game featured a 9-6 slobber-knocker, and while more points are expected to be scored in the rematch, this game should be much of the same.

If Les Miles and the Tigers want to beat Nick Saban twice in one year, these are the five mistakes they must avoid.

Cover Trent Richardson Out of the Backfield!

For the love of God, somebody pick up Trent Richardson out of the backfield.

Richardson busted two long pass plays after running a simple route and AJ McCarron hit the wide-open target.

As a result, he finished the game with 80 yards receiving.

Richardson is the best player on the field, so the Tigers have to keep a lock on him at all times, and that goes for passing plays as well as rushing plays.

LSU did a better job of covering Richardson as the game went on and in overtime, Ryan Baker covered him pretty well. It would have taken a perfect throw from McCarron to hit Richardson for the touchdown score, and McCarron misfired.

Look for LSU to have Baker (among other players) locked onto Richardson throughout the game.

You just can’t let their best player beat you. Lock down Richardson and make McCarron beat you with precision passing.

Turnovers

This is more than obvious, but that doesn’t mean we should take it for granted.

In the first game, Jarrett Lee threw two interceptions, but because of how dominant LSU’s defense is, they didn’t allow those interceptions to turn into touchdown scores for Alabama.

However, I’m not so sure the Tigers will be that lucky in the rematch.

If you give a great team a gift such as a turnover, they will make you pay for it.

LSU fans ought to know this better than most. The key to LSU’s success this season lies within the turnover margin. The Tigers have only turned the ball over eight times and recorded 30 turnovers all season.

That’s pretty remarkable when you think about it, and if the Tigers want to win the national championship, they need to win the turnover battle in the season finale.

Getting Overly Conservative on Offense

The Tigers need to get at the Crimson Tide defense with an array of attacks and not get overly conservative.

For those that don’t understand that statement, just look at the Denver Broncos last night.

For the first quarter, they tried to protect Tim Tebow and run high-percentage plays to ensure they take care of the ball. That got them eight yards.

In the second quarter, they turned Tebow loose and he finished the game with 316 passing yards against one of the best defenses in the NFL. The same game plan applies to LSU in this game.

LSU must get their run game going, but they need to let Jordan Jefferson take shots down the field, too.

Look at the first half against the Georgia Bulldogs in the SEC Championship, and you’ll notice that the conservative play-calling got the Tigers zero first downs.

The Tigers can’t get caught up in trying not to lose the game, rather than attacking Alabama aggressively and going for the win.

Kenny Bell/Marquis Maze Big Play

Don’t give up the big play.

I’ll go as far as saying that LSU’s secondary is better than Alabama’s, and the defense not allowing big plays all season proves it.

The Tigers have held their opposing offenses' passing average to 5.4 yards per attempt this season.

In other words, they don’t give up big plays, so don’t let Marquis Maze or Kenny Bell get a long touchdown reception in this one.

As we all know, scoring is going to be limited between these two dominant defenses, and a long touchdown pass could be all she wrote for either team.

Dropped Touchdown Passes (RR)

Rueben Randle is a stud, but he can’t afford to drop any touchdown passes in this one.

Randle has emerged into the most dangerous deep threat in the SEC, but he has to do a better job of catching the football in the end zone.

Randle dropped an easy touchdown grab in the first game against Alabama, and he’s dropped a few in other games this season.

Randle is known for his speed and route-running ability, but he needs to come up with the big catch in this game should the opportunity present itself.

The Tigers can’t afford to drop any touchdown catches, and if I were a betting man, I’d bet Randle holds onto everything thrown his way in this one.