The third time was the charm for Kalen DeBoer, who picked up his first SEC road win as the Alabama Crimson Tide dismantled the LSU Tigers 42-13. QB Jalen Milroe stole the show with four rushing touchdowns and 185 yards as the two-loss Crimson Tide kept their Playoff hopes alive with three weeks remaining.
The primetime game in Baton Rouge was certainly the Tide’s toughest remaining task, but a road trip to Oklahoma and the Iron Bowl certainly aren’t guaranteed wins. According to ESPN’s Playoff Predictor, Alabama’s chances at making the Playoffs rose from 56% a week ago to 76% following the LSU win.
As for the SEC Championship, the race is wide open with three teams having one-loss in conference play, and five having two-losses. Texas at Texas A&M in the final weekend of the year will likely be one of the participants, outside of that, it’s anyones guess. Heck, even LSU still has a path to Atlanta.
The Crimson Tide should have a bit of a breather this weekend with Mercer coming to town in a buy-game. But, the Bears are 9-1 on the year and ranked No. 7 in the FCS so they are much better than people realize. I know people want to complain about Alabama playing Mercer in November, but when you have more ranked wins than the top five combined, I think you can justify it.
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