Special Teams: A+
The first scoring drive of the game was set up by a fake punt executed to perfection by Avery Atkins and Jack Mashburn. The jump pass to the backup tight end was the perfect call and it allowed LSU to believe they could stay in this game against the No. 2 team in the CFP rankings after being a 28.5 point underdog for this one.
The Fake to Perfection 💯@AveryAtkins32 🤝 @jacksmashburn pic.twitter.com/6wNtBXxhr4
— LSU Football (@LSUfootball) November 6, 2021
Head Coach Ed Orgeron: C-
Saturday night showed that this team was playing like they had nothing to lose because they really didn’t. More often than not the head coach was ready to roll the dice against the Crimson Tide. His decision to go for it on the opening drive paid dividends as they scored on that drive.
However, you can put just as much of this loss on Orgeron as the quarterback. The decision to go for it on fourth down from the Alabama seven-yard line prevented the opportunity to tie the game on the final drive. Easy to play the hindsight game but that decision was huge. On the final drive of the game, LSU had the ball at the Alabama 30-yard line. That is definitely in Cade York’s range.