Boxing: Deontay Wilder wins with third-round knockout. 9C
Sports
S U N D A Y , N O V E M B E R 6 , 2011
ALABAMA vs.
AUBURN
DAYS TO KICKOFF SECTION C
WWW.TUSCALOOSANEWS.COM
KICK TO THE GUT 9
6
INSIDE
PHOTO | JASON HARLESS
Alabama notebook CBS decision to move game to prime time a no-brainer | 4C
Quarter glance Breakdown of each quarter and complete game statistics | 4C
STAFF PHOTO | ROBERT SUTTON
Big stops Defense did its part to hold back LSU’s powerful offense | 5C
Opportunity lost Tide fails to capitalize when it counts | 5C
PHOTO | JASON HARLESS
University of Alabama running back Trent Richardson (3) is tackled by LSU linebacker Ryan Baker (22) and safety Eric Reid (1) during the first quarter of Saturday’s game at Bryant-Denny Stadium. Richardson rushed for 89 yards.
Bama makes too many mistakes Crimson Tide offense played with a in stinging loss to No. 1 LSU ‘not to lose’ attitude By Cecil Hurt Sports Editor
STAFF PHOTO | ROBERT SUTTON
Bad timing LSU interception at the goal line deflates Tide offense | 6C
Kick up their heels LSU punter, kicker make their prescense felt in big way | 6C
Big effort falls short Richardson tallies 169 yards, but rest of UA’s offense sputters | 6C
For video and a photo gallery of Saturday’s game go to www.tidesports.com
TUSCALOOSA | The two teams might keep playing until Tuesday without a touchdown being scored, but LSU didn’t need one. The No. 1-ranked Tigers came up with three field goals, including the decisive one in the only overtime period, to defeat the No. 2 University of Alabama 9-6 and gain the inside track on a Southeastern Conference West Division title and a possible berth in the BCS championship game. Missed opportunities, including three missed field goals in the fi rst half and another in overtime, gave LSU the opening needed, and the Tigers, more precise in special teams over the course of the game, capitalized on the rare chances they got. LSU kicker Drew Alleman hit all three of his field-goal attempts, none longer than 30 yards, and nailed a 25-yard chip shot for the win in overtime. Alabama had the fi rst possession of overtime, but made a mess of it, throwing two incomplete passes, committing a substitution-infraction penalty and, on third down, giving up a sack of quarterback AJ McCarron. That gave full advantage to LSU. A 15-yard run by Michael Ford made the field goal easier, and A lleman split the uprights for the vicPHOTO | JASON HARLESS tory. “It was a great game, but our team has a lot of Alabama coach Nick Saban reacts after a character,” LSU coach Les Miles said. penalty was called on the Crimson Tide in SEE M ISTAKES | 5C the first quarter.
TUSCALOOSA gainst any other team in college football, the University of Alabama’s defense would keep it from losing. It very nearly did so against No. 1 LSU on Saturday night. But there comes a time when a team has to step across the line, must move from “not losing” — a perfectly desirable result — to “winning.” It has to make that handful of plays that spells the difference. Alabama didn’t do that Saturday night and LSU — playing in much the same way as Alabama played, perhaps even more conservatively on offense — did do just enough to win a 9-6 decision, The Tigers made their field goals, when they had makeable opportunities. CECIL The Tigers wrestled the ball out of the HURT grasp of the Alabama tight end at the 1. Meanwhile, for Alabama, someone committed a block in the back on an interception return, and someone didn’t field a punt in the fourth quarter when field position was at a premium, to name just two things out of a dozen. And despite all that, it still came down to an overtime, arguably to the fl ip of a coin at the start of an overtime. But Alabama botched its overtime series, and LSU didn’t and thus are championship dreams made, or shattered. One could almost sense gloom as the overtime began. Bryant-Denny Stadium, which had been punishingly loud all night, didn’t fall silent, but the energy did seem to drop palpably, by a couple of levels, as if the crowd knew that playing an overtime with a struggling quarterback and SEE HURT | 6C
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