SEC head coach says Alabama is ‘most physical team’ he coached against

LSU’s head football coach Brian Kelly feels Alabama football remains one of the most physical teams in college football.

The Crimson Tide dominated the Tigers in 2024 in Baton Rouge. Alabama defeated LSU 42-13 with a dominant showing on the ground on offense and with a stifling performance on defense.

Kelly feels the Tide has kept its physical identity intact through the transition from the Nick Saban era to the Kalen DeBoer era.

“I’ve played him (Saban) five times because I played him twice at Notre Dame and the one characteristic is physicality in the trenches,” Kelly said at SEC Media Days when comparing Alabama under Saban to Alabama under DeBoer. “Alabama has been the most physical team that I’ve gone against as a head coach. They showed that and displayed that against us last year. That’s why it was so important for us to upgrade there, especially on the defensive line. We felt like we got pushed around a little bit. So. I would say there’s some great similarities to coach Saban’s teams and coach DeBoer’s in that they recognize that this game is still won up front, and Alabama recognizes that. Now, do they have terrific skilled players? Absolutely right. We could talk about them all day, but I think it starts with the trenches and I think it starts with the ability to maintain a standard that has been set at Alabama, and I think Kalen’s done that as well.”

Kelly will have an opportunity to pick up a second win against Alabama as the head coach of the Tigers in November when LSU travels to Tuscaloosa to take on the Tide.