1 Red-zone possession that did not end with points this season for Alabama. The Crimson Tide has scored on 34 of its 35 possessions inside its opponents' 20-yard line this season, a 97.1 percent rate that is the best in the nation. Alabama has 26 TDs and eight field goals from the red zone. On the other end of the field, Alabama also leads the nation in red-zone defense, having allowed its opponents to score on eight of their 15 possessions inside the Crimson Tide 20, a rate of 53.3 percent (six TDs and two field goals).
1 LSU offensive interior lineman who has started every game this season -- LG La'el Collins. The Tigers have used five combinations of starting fives on their offensive interior this season.
2 Plays that have gained at least 30 yards against LSU's defense this season. The Tigers have given up the fewest plays of 30 or more yards in the nation.
2 Victories in 12 games against the No. 1 team in The Associated Press poll for LSU with Alabama administering two of the losses (although in nail-biters: The Tide beat LSU 3-0 in 1979 and 27-21 in overtime in 2008). Both those Alabama wins came in Baton Rouge. LSU's victories over the No. 1 team are a 28-21 win over Florida in 1997 and a 38-24 win over Ohio State in the 2007 BCS championship game. LSU also tied No. 1 Nebraska 6-6 in 1976.
2 Teams in the nation that have not thrown an interception this season -- Alabama and Louisiana Tech.
3 Previous games in Tiger Stadium that matched teams ranked in the top five of the AP poll. The No. 1 team won all of them. In 1959, No. 1 LSU defeated No. 3 Ole Miss 7-3. In 2009, No. 1 Florida defeated No. 4 LSU 13-3. Last season, No. 1 LSU defeated No. 3 Arkansas 41-17.
4 Teams ranked No. 1 in the third BCS standings of the season that went on to win the BCS national championship game. Alabama is the No.
1 team in the third BCS rankings of the 2012 season, which were released earlier this week. Of the 14 previous BCS seasons, the first three teams that were No. 1 in the third rankings went on to win the championship -- Tennessee in 1998, Florida State in 1999 and Oklahoma in 2000. Since then, only one team that was No. 1 in the third BCS rankings went on to win the title game -- Southern Cal in 2004. Seven teams that were No. 1 in the third BCS ratings lost in the title game, and three didn't make it that far -- Oklahoma in 2002, Alabama in 2008 and Florida in 2009.
4 Consecutive ranked opponents faced by LSU, with Alabama completing the run that included Florida, South Carolina and Texas A&M. This will be only the second time that the Tigers have played four ranked opponents in a row during the regular season.
5 Victories for LSU coach Les Miles in eight games against Alabama. He has more wins against the Crimson Tide than any other coach in the Tigers' history. Three of the games with Alabama have gone into overtime, with LSU winning twice.
5 LSU players on the 2012 team who started in both of the Tigers' games against Alabama last season -- DT Bennie Logan, LB Kevin Minter, S Eric Reid, G Josh Williford and WR James Wright.
6 Previous regular-season games played by Alabama and six previous regular-season games played by LSU in which both teams were ranked in top five of the AP poll, including two against each other -- both of which LSU won in overtime. In 2005, No. 5 LSU defeated No. 4 Alabama 16-13. Last year, the No. 1 Tigers beat the No. 2 Crimson Tide 9-6. Alabama's other regular-season top-five games include losses to Georgia and Georgia Tech in 1942, a victory over Auburn in 1971 and a win over Penn State in 1982. LSU's other regular-season top-five games include a victory over Ole Miss in 1959, a loss to Florida in 2009 and wins over Oregon and Arkansas in 2011. Including the postseason, Alabama has been involved in 17 top-five games with an 8-9 record. The Tide is 2-4 in those games when it is the higher-ranked team. LSU has been in 12 top-five games overall, including four last season, and has an 8-4 record. LSU is 3-2 as the lower-seeded team. The most recent top-five matchup for each team is Alabama's 21-0 victory over LSU in last season's BCS championship game.
8 Previous games for LSU against former coaches. Alabama coach Nick Saban guided LSU from 2000 through 2004, and the Tigers have a 3-3 record against their former coach since he joined the Crimson Tide. (LSU has a 4-3 record against Saban overall, but the first of those victories came while he was at Michigan State and before he joined the Tigers.) LSU also owns a couple of victories over Paul Dietzel while he was coaching South Carolina. Dietzel coached the Tigers from 1954 through 1960.
9 Consecutive AP polls that have had Alabama as the No. 1 team, the school record for most weeks in a row in the top spot. Seven straight, accomplished in 1979 and 1980 and over the 2009 and 2010 seasons, had been the Crimson Tide's top mark.
12 Consecutive victories for Alabama, the nation's longest winning streak. The Crimson Tide hasn't lost since a 9-6 overtime setback against LSU last season. The next-longest current winning streak in the SEC is two games.
15 Consecutive regular-season losses for LSU that have been televised by CBS, which will televise Saturday's game. The Tigers' most recent regular-season loss that was not on CBS is a 30-27 defeat by Tennessee on Sept. 26, 2005.
36 Victories and seven losses for Alabama when playing as the No. 1 team in the AP poll.
52 Plays that have gained at least 10 yards against Alabama this season, the fewest in the nation. LSU has allowed the second-fewest with 68.
55 AP polls with Alabama as the No. 1 team, including this week's rankings. The Crimson Tide has been No. 1 in more polls than any other SEC team and ranks eighth nationally.
65 Points given up by Alabama this season, the fewest in the nation. The Crimson Tide is holding its opponents to an average of 8.1 points per game.
65 Points scored by LSU in SEC games this season, the fewest in the conference. The Tigers' average of 16.3 points per game in league play is not the lowest, however. Kentucky has scored 72 points in six games, an average of 12 per outing.
75 Consecutive AP polls in which Alabama has been ranked, the longest streak in the nation. LSU is second with 58.
98 First downs given up by Alabama this season, the fewest in the nation. The Crimson Tide has yielded 35 first downs on runs (the national low), 54 on passes and nine through penalties.
150 Consecutive games in which Alabama has scored, the longest streak in school history. The Crimson Tide hasn't been shut out since losing 9-0 to Auburn in the final game of the 2000 season.
182.41 Passer rating for Alabama QB AJ McCarron, the highest in the nation. The passer rating is based on completion percentage, yards gained per pass, touchdown percentage and interception percentage. McCarron has completed 122 of 177 passes for a 68.9 percent rate, thrown for 18 TDs without an interception and averaged 9.5 yards per pass.
262 Consecutive passes without an interception for QB AJ McCarron. McCarron's streak is the second-longest in SEC history. Kentucky QB Andre Woodson set the record of 325 during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. McCarron, a former St. Paul's standout, has had five of his 553 career passes intercepted, giving him a ratio of one interception every 110.6 passes. That's the best rate in SEC history for any player with at least 400 passes. Tim Tebow is next on the list with one interception every 62.2 passes. The NCAA FBS record heading into the 2012 season was one interception every 77.8 passes, set by Fresno State's Billy Volek from 1997 through 1999 (12 interceptions in 934 passes). The NCAA minimum for career-record consideration is 600 passes.
1,625 Yards yielded by the Alabama defense this season, the fewest in the nation. The Crimson Tide also has given up national lows of 458 total rushing yards, 1.93 yards per rush, 57.25 rushing yards per game and 203.1 yards per game. Alabama is the only team in the nation yielding fewer than 227 yards per game.
1 LSU offensive interior lineman who has started every game this season -- LG La'el Collins. The Tigers have used five combinations of starting fives on their offensive interior this season.
2 Plays that have gained at least 30 yards against LSU's defense this season. The Tigers have given up the fewest plays of 30 or more yards in the nation.
2 Victories in 12 games against the No. 1 team in The Associated Press poll for LSU with Alabama administering two of the losses (although in nail-biters: The Tide beat LSU 3-0 in 1979 and 27-21 in overtime in 2008). Both those Alabama wins came in Baton Rouge. LSU's victories over the No. 1 team are a 28-21 win over Florida in 1997 and a 38-24 win over Ohio State in the 2007 BCS championship game. LSU also tied No. 1 Nebraska 6-6 in 1976.
2 Teams in the nation that have not thrown an interception this season -- Alabama and Louisiana Tech.
3 Previous games in Tiger Stadium that matched teams ranked in the top five of the AP poll. The No. 1 team won all of them. In 1959, No. 1 LSU defeated No. 3 Ole Miss 7-3. In 2009, No. 1 Florida defeated No. 4 LSU 13-3. Last season, No. 1 LSU defeated No. 3 Arkansas 41-17.
4 Teams ranked No. 1 in the third BCS standings of the season that went on to win the BCS national championship game. Alabama is the No.
1 team in the third BCS rankings of the 2012 season, which were released earlier this week. Of the 14 previous BCS seasons, the first three teams that were No. 1 in the third rankings went on to win the championship -- Tennessee in 1998, Florida State in 1999 and Oklahoma in 2000. Since then, only one team that was No. 1 in the third BCS rankings went on to win the title game -- Southern Cal in 2004. Seven teams that were No. 1 in the third BCS ratings lost in the title game, and three didn't make it that far -- Oklahoma in 2002, Alabama in 2008 and Florida in 2009.
4 Consecutive ranked opponents faced by LSU, with Alabama completing the run that included Florida, South Carolina and Texas A&M. This will be only the second time that the Tigers have played four ranked opponents in a row during the regular season.
5 Victories for LSU coach Les Miles in eight games against Alabama. He has more wins against the Crimson Tide than any other coach in the Tigers' history. Three of the games with Alabama have gone into overtime, with LSU winning twice.
5 LSU players on the 2012 team who started in both of the Tigers' games against Alabama last season -- DT Bennie Logan, LB Kevin Minter, S Eric Reid, G Josh Williford and WR James Wright.
6 Previous regular-season games played by Alabama and six previous regular-season games played by LSU in which both teams were ranked in top five of the AP poll, including two against each other -- both of which LSU won in overtime. In 2005, No. 5 LSU defeated No. 4 Alabama 16-13. Last year, the No. 1 Tigers beat the No. 2 Crimson Tide 9-6. Alabama's other regular-season top-five games include losses to Georgia and Georgia Tech in 1942, a victory over Auburn in 1971 and a win over Penn State in 1982. LSU's other regular-season top-five games include a victory over Ole Miss in 1959, a loss to Florida in 2009 and wins over Oregon and Arkansas in 2011. Including the postseason, Alabama has been involved in 17 top-five games with an 8-9 record. The Tide is 2-4 in those games when it is the higher-ranked team. LSU has been in 12 top-five games overall, including four last season, and has an 8-4 record. LSU is 3-2 as the lower-seeded team. The most recent top-five matchup for each team is Alabama's 21-0 victory over LSU in last season's BCS championship game.
8 Previous games for LSU against former coaches. Alabama coach Nick Saban guided LSU from 2000 through 2004, and the Tigers have a 3-3 record against their former coach since he joined the Crimson Tide. (LSU has a 4-3 record against Saban overall, but the first of those victories came while he was at Michigan State and before he joined the Tigers.) LSU also owns a couple of victories over Paul Dietzel while he was coaching South Carolina. Dietzel coached the Tigers from 1954 through 1960.
9 Consecutive AP polls that have had Alabama as the No. 1 team, the school record for most weeks in a row in the top spot. Seven straight, accomplished in 1979 and 1980 and over the 2009 and 2010 seasons, had been the Crimson Tide's top mark.
12 Consecutive victories for Alabama, the nation's longest winning streak. The Crimson Tide hasn't lost since a 9-6 overtime setback against LSU last season. The next-longest current winning streak in the SEC is two games.
15 Consecutive regular-season losses for LSU that have been televised by CBS, which will televise Saturday's game. The Tigers' most recent regular-season loss that was not on CBS is a 30-27 defeat by Tennessee on Sept. 26, 2005.
36 Victories and seven losses for Alabama when playing as the No. 1 team in the AP poll.
52 Plays that have gained at least 10 yards against Alabama this season, the fewest in the nation. LSU has allowed the second-fewest with 68.
55 AP polls with Alabama as the No. 1 team, including this week's rankings. The Crimson Tide has been No. 1 in more polls than any other SEC team and ranks eighth nationally.
65 Points given up by Alabama this season, the fewest in the nation. The Crimson Tide is holding its opponents to an average of 8.1 points per game.
65 Points scored by LSU in SEC games this season, the fewest in the conference. The Tigers' average of 16.3 points per game in league play is not the lowest, however. Kentucky has scored 72 points in six games, an average of 12 per outing.
75 Consecutive AP polls in which Alabama has been ranked, the longest streak in the nation. LSU is second with 58.
98 First downs given up by Alabama this season, the fewest in the nation. The Crimson Tide has yielded 35 first downs on runs (the national low), 54 on passes and nine through penalties.
150 Consecutive games in which Alabama has scored, the longest streak in school history. The Crimson Tide hasn't been shut out since losing 9-0 to Auburn in the final game of the 2000 season.
182.41 Passer rating for Alabama QB AJ McCarron, the highest in the nation. The passer rating is based on completion percentage, yards gained per pass, touchdown percentage and interception percentage. McCarron has completed 122 of 177 passes for a 68.9 percent rate, thrown for 18 TDs without an interception and averaged 9.5 yards per pass.
262 Consecutive passes without an interception for QB AJ McCarron. McCarron's streak is the second-longest in SEC history. Kentucky QB Andre Woodson set the record of 325 during the 2006 and 2007 seasons. McCarron, a former St. Paul's standout, has had five of his 553 career passes intercepted, giving him a ratio of one interception every 110.6 passes. That's the best rate in SEC history for any player with at least 400 passes. Tim Tebow is next on the list with one interception every 62.2 passes. The NCAA FBS record heading into the 2012 season was one interception every 77.8 passes, set by Fresno State's Billy Volek from 1997 through 1999 (12 interceptions in 934 passes). The NCAA minimum for career-record consideration is 600 passes.
1,625 Yards yielded by the Alabama defense this season, the fewest in the nation. The Crimson Tide also has given up national lows of 458 total rushing yards, 1.93 yards per rush, 57.25 rushing yards per game and 203.1 yards per game. Alabama is the only team in the nation yielding fewer than 227 yards per game.
