Published On: 11.04.21 | 

By: Solomon Crenshaw Jr.

Football preview: Alabama welcomes LSU, Auburn travels to Texas A&M, UAB hosts La. Tech

Alabama running back Brian Robinson Jr. scores a touchdown in the Crimson Tide's victory over Tennessee. Alabama is No. 2 in the first College Football Playoff ranking of the season. (CrimsonTidePhotos)

The Southeastern Conference has seven teams in the initial College Football Playoff ranking, including the top two.

“Right away, Georgia was a clear No. 1 and (there’s been) a fair amount of conversation about where Alabama has come from and where they’ve been and who they’ve played and beaten … and how well they’re playing,” said Gary Barta, chairman of the CFP Selection Committee. “There was a lot of consensus for Alabama to be No. 2.”

The resume of the Crimson Tide (7-1 overall, 4-1 SEC) includes wins over CFP No. 16 Mississippi and No. 17 Mississippi State. Next up is a visit from LSU (4-4, 2-3) at 6 p.m. Saturday on ESPN. And while the program that won the 2019 national championship is unranked, coach Nick Saban said the Tigers have had their moments.

“When they played well, they played extremely well,” he said. “They’ve shown an ability against certain opponents to be pretty dominating. I think it’s very important that our players do a great job in preparation, have the proper respect for a team I know – regardless of how they’ve played in the past – they’ll play really well against us.”

The game will be the 86th meeting in the series dating back to 1895. Alabama owns the advantage, 54-26-5, including a 24-17-2 mark at home. Most recently, Alabama thumped the Tigers 55-17 on Dec. 5, 2020, in Baton Rouge.

Bo Nix rushes for a touchdown during the game between Auburn and Ole Miss at Jordan-Hare Stadium. Coach Bryan Harsin said Nix’s playing is just one factor in the Tigers’ improvement. (Todd Van Emst/AU Athletics)

Auburn has come a long way since its two losses and an embarrassing near defeat at the hand of FCS Georgia State. So, too, has quarterback Bo Nix, who was benched in the second half of the Georgia State game in favor of T.J. Finley.

Many are citing Nix’s improvement as the reason Auburn is 6-2 overall, 3-1 in the SEC and No. 13 in the CFP ranking. But, taking nothing away from the junior signal-caller, coach Bryan Harsin said Nix has gotten help from others on the team.

“At the quarterback position, it’s not just you. It’s the guys around you,” Harsin said. “You have to have protection. You’ve got to have a decent run game that will help you. You’ve gotta have wideouts that are going to make plays and catch the ball.

“I don’t know if it’s so much just one guy as it is multiple players just improving their game and being more consistent weekly,” he said. “Bo is going to be a recipient of that, being (in) the quarterback position. There’s plenty of things for him, too. He’s still got his deals every week that we work on and focus on, just like everybody else. But I think the consistency of his preparation, his practice habits, the guys around him, those have all gotten better.”

The Tigers will need continued improvement as they travel to College Station for a 2:30 p.m. Saturday meeting with CFP No. 14 Texas A&M (6-2, 3-2) on CBS.

Coming off its only bye week of the season, UAB football returns to Protective Stadium at 11 a.m. Saturday to host Louisiana Tech.

UAB (5-3, 3-1 C-USA) controls its destiny when it comes to a fourth Conference USA West Division title. If the Blazers win out, they will be division champions again and play for the overall league crown.

“What we can’t do is look ahead,” coach Bill Clark said. “Every game is a new game. Every team is based on who’s in and who’s hurt. But we are excited to have that opportunity. I told them … that a lot of people would love to be where we are with this opportunity.”

Louisiana Tech (2-6, 1-3 C-USA) is coming off a 23-20 loss at Old Dominion. The Bulldogs own a 6-3 series advantage over UAB and won last year’s contest 37-34 in double overtime.

In other action:

Trinity (Texas) at Birmingham-Southern: The Panthers have been riding high throughout the season, rising from No. 22 to No. 19 in the latest D3Football.com Top 25 after knocking off Berry College 21-3. At noon Saturday in General Krulak Stadium, BSC (8-0 overall, 5-0 Southern Athletic Association) hosts the No. 18 team (7-0, 4-0 SAA) in those same national rankings.

West Florida at West Alabama: After defeating North Greenville for the first time in Tigerville, South Carolina, the Tigers stayed undefeated on the road and returned to the Top 25, ranking 23rd on the AFCA Coaches Poll. UWA (7-2, 4-2 Gulf South Conference) climbed in the D2Football.com poll, rising to No. 21 from No. 24. The Tigers host the No. 4 Argonauts (7-1, 4-1) at 1 p.m. Saturday in Tiger Stadium.

Saturday’s game with Tuskegee could determine whether the Miles Golden Bears return to the SIAC title game this season. (Miles Athletics)

Tuskegee at Miles: Try to keep up. The Golden Tigers (3-6, 2-3 SIAC) cannot earn a berth in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference title game when they face the Golden Bears at 1 p.m. Saturday. Their goal will be to ruin the season for their in-state rival, but they’ll need help. The simplest path to the championship game for Miles (5-4, 3-2) is to win. That would settle it. If Miles loses and Kentucky State (5-4, 3-2) beats Central State, KSU goes to the title game. If Miles and Kentucky State both lose and Lane (6-3, 3-2) wins, Lane is in. If all three lose, Miles, the defending champ from the 2019 season, is in because the Golden Bears beat the other two.

Mississippi Valley State at Alabama A&M: Coming off its second Magic City Classic victory in a calendar year – this one by a 42-28 margin – the Bulldogs (4-3, 2-3 Southwestern Athletic Conference) host the Delta Devils (2-6, 1-4) at 1 p.m. Saturday at Louis Crews Stadium in Huntsville.

Alabama State at Prairie View A&M: Following their fourth straight loss to in-state rival Alabama A&M, the Hornets parted ways with head coach Donald Hill-Eley, making his interim replacement defensive coordinator Travis Pearson. His first mission is to lead ASU (3-4, 2-3) to Prairie View, Texas, for a 2 p.m. Saturday meeting with the Panthers (6-1, 5-0).

Monmouth at North Alabama: The Lions (2-6, 1-2 Big South) began the season with six losses but have won two in a row. They aim for win No. 3 at noon Central on Saturday in West Long Branch, New Jersey. Monmouth is 5-3, 4-0.

The Citadel at Samford: It’s homecoming on the campus in Homewood as the Bulldogs (3-5, 2-4 SoCon) welcome the Bulldogs (2-6, 1-4) at 2 p.m. Saturday. This is the 15th meeting between the schools and the series is tied 7-7.

South Alabama at Troy: These Sun Belt Conference rivals renew their Battle For The Belt series at 2:30 p.m. Saturday in Veterans Memorial Stadium. The Trojans (4-4, 2-2) are 6-3 in the series, having won the past three in a row. South Alabama is 5-3 overall and 2-3 in the league.

Maryville (Tennessee) at Huntingdon: The Hawks (6-2, 6-0 USA South Athletic Conference) continued their undefeated streak last week in conference play with a 30-7 win over N.C. Wesleyan. The Scots (3-5, 3-3) come calling at 1 p.m. Saturday in Montgomery.

Abilene Christian at Jacksonville State: JSU is coming off a disappointing 38-14 loss to Central Arkansas last week. “We are putting it behind us and trying to win this last home game,” coach John Grass said. “If you watch these guys prepare every week, you would be proud of them as well. Our training staff is overworked because the injury bug has continued to bite us. We have some guys playing banged up and I appreciate what they do for this team. It is about getting back to work this week.” The Gamecocks (3-5, 1-2 AQ7) and Wildcats (4-4, 1-1) kick off at 1 p.m. Saturday.

HIGH SCHOOL

Class 7A: Prattville (7-3) is No. 9 in the final regular season rankings of the Alabama Sports Writers Association. The Lions begin the state playoffs on the road, visiting No. 7. Theodore (9-1) on Friday.

Class 6A: No. 8 Helena (9-1) hosts Baldwin County (7-3) on Friday.

Class 5A: Faith Academy (5-4) travels to Shelby County (5-5) on Friday.

Class 4A: No. 2. American Christian Academy (9-1) plays at Jacksonville (6-3) on Friday.

Class 3A: No. 6 T.R. Miller (8-2) hosts Hale County (5-5) on Friday.

Class 2A: Midfield (8-1) greets North Sand Mountain (4-6) on Friday.

Class 1A: R.A. Hubbard (6-4) plays host to Meek (7-3) on Friday.

AISA: No. 10 Glenwood School (5-4) plays at Morgan Academy (5-5).

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