Alabama Football: Who Has the Better Defense Between the Tide and LSU Tigers?

If you were to attempt drawing a conclusion on who has the better defense between Alabama and LSU, the top two teams in the country, it would be likened to trying to decide if you like a Lamborghini or Ferrari when looking at the two defensive units this season.

If you’re looking at this from a simple stats and rankings point of view, the second-ranked Crimson Tide (5-0) would have the defensive edge over the top-ranked Tigers (5-0). The Alabama defense is ranked third in the nation, while LSU is six spots behind their division rival at ninth in the country.

In the ground game category, Alabama has the closest of edges over LSU as the Crimson Tide is the number one team in nation against the run with only 39 yards a game while LSU is third in the nation, with the Tigers giving up just about 20 more yards on the ground.

Alabama also has the edge through the air as their pass defense is the third best in the country—giving up an average of 152 yards passing so far this season. Meanwhile, LSU is ranked 38^th in the country, allowing 202 yards a game through the air as this category was likely pushed up after the record-setting passing day of Geno Smith—who completed 38 of 65 passes for 463 yards in defeat—and West Virginia on September 24 in Morgantown.

LSU, however, finally has the defensive statistic edge over Alabama in the sack category, where the Tigers get around two sacks a game while the Crimson Tide only get about a sack and half a game in 2011.

So, although Alabama has the edge on paper in the biggest categories over LSU, the only real way to determine who has the better defense is to have them play it out on the field. Which the two programs will do when they take the field in about a month (November 5) in Tuscaloosa.

Who do you believe has the better defense of these SEC West rivals? Does Alabama get the edge? Does LSU get the edge?

Bleacher Report is your home for college football for the 2011 season. From scores, news, analysis, live blogs and updates on your favorite teams and the big national games every week, keep it on Bleacher Report for the very latest in college football news.