LSU went 0-for-4 on fourth downs — the most attempts without a conversion in coach Lane Kiffin’s career — and lost 31-13 to No. 5 Alabama at home Saturday night, dropping to 6-3 on the season.
The Tigers outgained Alabama by 172 yards and piled up 457 total yards, but four red zone trips produced only one touchdown and one field goal. Alabama, meanwhile, outscored LSU 21-0 over the final stretch after the Tigers took a late third-quarter lead.
Production Couldn’t Translate Into Points
Quarterback Sam Leavitt threw for 380 yards, Jackson Harris caught 11 passes for 166 yards, and Trey’Dez Green added 10 receptions for 85 yards. Kiffin said the numbers didn’t add up to 13 points.
“I was looking at a sheet and it said Sam [Leavitt] had 380 yards passing and Jackson Harris had 11 [receptions] for 166 [yards] and Trey’Dez [Green] had 10 [receptions] for 85 [yards]. I wouldn’t think that would equal 13 points,” Kiffin said. “But you got to score touchdowns in the red zone.”
Kiffin said he went for it on fourth down so often because he expected field goals wouldn’t be enough to win. Asked what’s keeping his team from making winning plays, he said: “I don’t know. We had a chance.”
Special Teams and Russell Decide the Game
After LSU made a stop and took the lead late in the third quarter, Alabama answered immediately: Ryan Coleman-Williams returned a punt 32 yards, and on the next play Keelon Russell hit Cederian Morgan for a 25-yard touchdown.
Russell finished with 206 passing yards and three touchdowns, and he rushed eight times for 37 yards. Kiffin said Russell “played really well right from the beginning,” noting his defense had coverage but couldn’t get him on the ground, and he “outran us a number of times for first downs.”
Special teams were a problem throughout. Beyond the punt return, LSU missed a 56-yard field goal and dropped a punt late. “Yeah, not a really good special team today,” Kiffin said.
Playoff Chances Fall as Texas Comes to Town
The loss dropped LSU’s playoff chances from 51% to 25%, according to the Allstate Playoff Predictor. The Tigers, a preseason favorite to compete for the national championship, now have three losses and may be out of the playoff race.
Kiffin said he didn’t expect to be 6-3 at this point. “No, I did not think that, but it is where we are, and we can’t change that. So, we got to go back to work. Don’t have time to sit around and feel bad. Got a top-10 team coming in here in Texas,” he said.
“It’s one thing, probably the one good thing about playing these types of teams in a row like this, ‘Hey, you got a chance to play another national game and get back on track,'” Kiffin said.
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