After being torn on Alabama's College Football Playoff outlook entering the Crimson Tide's Week 9 bye, two ESPN college football analysts both see Kalen DeBoer's team reaching the 12-team field ahead of its high-stakes showdown against LSU.
ESPN's Kyle Bonagura sees Keelon Russell leading the Crimson Tide to the playoff as the No. 10 seed. In his projection, Alabama visits Bloomington for a first-round matchup against the Indiana Hoosiers on Dec. 18 or 19.
Schlabach, who a week ago had Alabama visiting Nashville for a matchup against the Wisconsin Badgers in the Music City Bowl, now sees the Tide as the No. 9 seed in his latest playoff projection. The veteran college football scribe has Alabama taking on the Texas Longhorns in an SEC vs. SEC showdown
in Austin.
Both projections came ahead of Tuesday's College Football Playoff rankings reveal, which saw Alabama (6-2, 4-2 SEC) at No. 5.
The Crimson Tide are No. 9 in the US LBM Coaches Poll and the AP Top 25. LSU is No. 15 in the polls and No. 14 in the CFP rankings.
Kickoff for Alabama-LSU is 2:30 p.m. CT Saturday at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. The game can be seen on ABC.
3 storylines for Alabama vs. LSU in massive Week 10 showdown
— Roll Tide Wire (@RollTideWire) November 4, 2026
📸 Stephen Lew, USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con https://t.co/01lxyMi8iX pic.twitter.com/AxIirnLRXy
Alabama football schedule 2026
All times Central.
- Sept. 5: vs. East Carolina Pirates (W, 48-10)
- Sept. 12: at Kentucky Wildcats (W, 45-17)
- Sept. 19: vs. Florida State Seminoles (W, 50-36)
- Sept. 26: vs. South Carolina Gamecocks (W, 49-18)
- Oct. 3: at Mississippi State Bulldogs (W, 56-23)
- Oct. 10: vs. Georgia Bulldogs (L, 20-17)
- Oct. 17: at Tennessee Volunteers (L, 26-10)
- Oct. 24: vs. Texas A&M Aggies (W, 31-20)
- Nov. 7: at LSU Tigers, 2:30 p.m., ABC
- Nov. 14: at Vanderbilt Commodores, 11:45 a.m., SEC Network
- Nov. 21: vs. Chattanooga Mocs, 1 p.m., SEC Network+
- Nov. 28: vs. Auburn Tigers, TBA
Record: 6-2 overall, 4-2 SEC.
ESPN predicts the winner of Alabama football vs. LSU at Tiger Stadium
— Roll Tide Wire (@RollTideWire) November 4, 2026
📸 John David Mercer, USA TODAY Sports via Reuters Con https://t.co/em80P8Omi4 pic.twitter.com/Gyhph2ai9Z
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: ESPN analysts predict Alabama football's CFP fate entering LSU clash
