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By Rowan Fisher-Shotton
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LSU and Alabama both picked up important wins on Saturday, setting up a potentially season-defining SEC clash on Nov. 7 in Death Valley. The Tigers improved to 6-2 with a convincing 38-17 win at Auburn, bouncing back after their overtime loss at Kentucky two weeks ago. The Crimson Tide, meanwhile, moved to 6-2 after a commanding 31-20 win over Texas A&M, rebounding from two brutal losses against Georgia and Tennessee.
Now, both teams head into a bye week before meeting in Baton Rouge, where the loser could miss out on the College Football Playoff entirely, according to CBS Sports' Brad Crawford.
"Right now, LSU does not have a resume. It lost to Ole Miss. It beat Mississippi State, who is no longer ranked. It lost to Kentucky. LSU does not have a ranked win right now if we're looking at the current AP poll," Crawford said. "They do host Alabama coming up on November 7. I think the loser of that game between the Tigers and Crimson Tide finishes 9-3 and does not make the CFP bracket."
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After Alabama, LSU will host No. 11 Texas before traveling to No. 16 Tennessee and wrapping up its regular season at Arkansas. The Longhorns currently sit at 5-2 after a dramatic win over Ole Miss on Saturday night, the same Rebels team LSU lost to earlier in the year, while Tennessee sits at 6-2 after a surprising upset loss at South Carolina. The Volunteers just beat Alabama 26-10 last weekend, while Texas has a win over Tennessee in Knoxville earlier in the season.
Alabama, meanwhile, sits at 6-2, with road games against the Tigers and Vanderbilt still ahead, followed by Chattanooga and Auburn at home. The Tide's schedule is much more manageable than LSU's, making that Nov. 7 matchup particularly important for the Tigers. A win for Alabama would give them a good chance of finishing 10-2, likely putting them ahead of LSU and Texas, but their head-to-head loss against Tennessee could still put them in a tough spot depending on how the Vols finish.
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There's been shocking upsets every weekend, and the SEC still feels wide open with November approaching. Both LSU and Alabama still control their own path, but there's little margin for error if either team wants to make the CFP.
Lane Kiffin is in his first season at LSU after leaving Ole Miss, but expectations are still championship or bust. Missing the CFP would be a major disappointment and bring even more criticism on the most polarizing figure in college football. Kalen DeBoer also faces enormous expectations as Nick Saban's successor, and a playoff miss could put his job in serious danger.
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