Paul Finebaum predicts the outcome of the LSU football vs. Alabama Crimson Tide game

Brian Kelly and the No. 14 LSU Tigers will host the Alabama Crimson Tide in Death Valley on Saturday night, with the two programs facing off in a high-stakes matchup.

It will be a battle between two Southeastern Conference opponents hoping to keep their College Football Playoff chances alive in Baton Rouge.

LSU, which already lost an SEC showdown at Texas A&M, will try to avoid a second loss during the conference, while the Crimson Tide will try to stay alive after the season.

Alabama lost to the Texas Longhorns on September 9 and the Tennessee Volunteers on October 19, with the program trying to avoid another conference loss.

As game time approaches, analysts have begun logging their predictions for what they think will happen between LSU and Alabama.

SEC Network’s Paul Finebaum weighed in with a key message in the crucial conference clash: “The loser is leaving town.”

It will be a College Football Playoff elimination game in Death Valley with all eyes on two of the sport’s most recognizable brands.

“The loser of this game says goodbye to the season,” Finebaum told SportsCenter. “Not in the literal sense, but in the sense of the CFP [College Football Playoff].”

“The loser will have three defeats. There’s no way to get back in. There will be an SEC championship game. There really will be no hope left. There are too many schools competing for these overall offerings.”

On Friday at an appearance on Stand up, Finebaum repeated the same statement:

“This is the biggest game of the year in college footballnot because these are the two best teams, but because this is the first playoff elimination,” the SEC Network host said. “The loser has almost no way back. The winner has the chance to find out.

Finebaum made his picks for Saturday night in Baton Rouge: The Alabama Crimson Tide.

“It’s a battle of quarterbacks and I like Jalen Milroe,” Finebaum said. “He’s a dual threat. Nussmeier is an excellent passer…but I like to see LSU go down at home.”

It is a must for both programs.

After being idle in Week 10, LSU and Alabama will be rested due to an open schedule, but the Crimson Tide will certainly have the momentum.

Kalen DeBoer’s team is fresh off a 34-0 win over the Missouri Tigers, while LSU lost its last game in College Station 38-23 to Texas A&M.

“It’s hard to believe that Alabama is eliminated so early,” Finebaum said of a possible loss. “It doesn’t happen often, but this game has a lot at stake, the loser leaves town.”

The SEC Network analyst has already called the Southeastern Conference contest a “playoff eliminator.”

What Finebaum said last week:

“What (Alabama) took away from the (Missouri) game more than anything is just some confidence heading into the bye week as they prepare for another playoff exit,” Finebaum said on The Matt Barrie Show.

“We saw one [Saturday] with Missouri and the LSU-Alabama game… it may not be the showpiece game of the next two weeks because there’s another game that’s more important drama-wise, but it’s the first playoff eliminator game we’ve had. “

Finebaum raved about how high he was before the matchup against the LSU Tigers, but after a catastrophic collapse in College Station, his prediction is shifting toward the Crimson Tide.

“I was so high on them against Alabama, but now I feel the wind just turning back to Alabama,” he said.

Now all eyes will be on the two SEC programs looking to stay in the College Football Playoff race Saturday night at Tiger Stadium. Kickoff is scheduled for 6:30 p.m. CT.

1. Georgia Bulldogs (7-1, 5-1)
2. Texas A&M Aggies (7-2, 5-1)
3. Tennessee Volunteers (7-1, 4-1)
4. Texas Longhorns (7-1, 3-1)
5. LSU Tigers (6-2, 3-1)
6. Vanderbilt Commodores (6-3, 3-2)
7. Ole Miss Rebels (7-2, 3-2)
8. Alabama Crimson Tide (6-2, 3-2)
9. Arkansas Razorbacks (5-4, 3-3)
10. South Carolina Gamecocks (5-3, 3-3)
11. Missouri Tigers (6-2, 2-2)
12. Florida Gators (4-4, 2-3)
13. Oklahoma Sooners (5-4, 1-4)
14. Auburn Tigers (3-6, 1-5)
15. Kentucky Wildcats (3-6, 1-6)
16. Mississippi State Bulldogs (2-7, 0-5)

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