They don’t call it Death Valley for no reason.

The Alabama Crimson Tide stomped the LSU Tigers 31-13 in Baton Rouge, effectively putting an end to LSU's College Football Playoff hopes.

The first half was a grind. Ultimately, the Tide walked out of the first half with just a 10-3 lead, and then it opened up in the second half.

Once LSU took a 13-10 lead in the third quarter, Alabama answered by posting 21 unanswered points and ran away with the game.

There was a lot to take in from Saturday night, but there were four aspects of the game that stood out the most.

A big reason why we’re here is because of Alabama’s defense. 

Defensive coordinator Kane Wommack was visibly fired up throughout the game, celebrating several key defensive stops along the way.

So let’s get the good part out of the way.

In typical Lane Kiffin fashion, he opted to go for it on fourth down instead of kicking a field goal, probably more than he should’ve. But every time the Tigers went for it on fourth down, the Tide stopped them.

In a way, Kiffin was his own enemy. Alabama’s defense was able to read what LSU was able to do any time the ball was at stake. 

It was almost as if the defense was baiting LSU into going for it.

Why do I say that?

Going down the field for the Tigers was hardly an issue. LSU quarterback Sam Leavitt had his way for most of the game, being able to complete 10-20 yard passes as he led the Tigers down the field. 

However, when it came down to getting into the end zone, Alabama held LSU to just one touchdown. LSU was in the red zone a total of four times, and it ended up with just nine total points.

Whether it be Alabama running blitzes, or switching to man-to-man coverage in the red zone, Leavitt had no answer.

The problem is, this team has a tackling problem.

If you rewatch the game, Alabama missed a lot of tackles. As of this writing, there’s no confirmed stat on how many tackles it missed, however, it was impossible to ignore.

There were times where the defense had a difficult time wrapping their arms around their man, or were getting juked out by the offense. And this game could’ve been even more of a certainty had Alabama completed its tackles.

But it didn’t.

Wommack acknowledged that the defense missed more tackles than he had hoped for, so at the very least, it hasn’t gone unnoticed. But for a team that has championship aspirations, the defense needs to complete their tackles.

And that’s non-negotiable.

The word “comfortable” is used loosely here, because you can argue that the offensive line didn’t do a great job at protecting Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell.

But everything comes with experience, and they don’t call him the best scrambler in the country for no reason.

Russell has been under pressure for a good chunk of the season, and it seems like he’s gotten used to that.

Russell was able to navigate through LSU’s pressure all night, and turn that pressure into net positives. Whether it was escaping pressure and finding tight end Kaleb Edwards for a 25-yard completion or using his legs to move the chains, Russell looked poised.

That composure was on display when he made the prettiest pass of the game for a dagger touchdown to Cederian Morgan in the third quarter.

In his first season as a starter, Russell has had his moments when he looked inexperienced. But this season, the positives have significantly outweighed the negatives.

The majority of this game was won because of the defense.

This team will only go as far as its defense takes it. And every week we continue to see new stars rise to the occasion.

But tonight, linebacker Luke Metz and cornerback Chuck McDonald made their presence known to the SEC.

Metz has already been one of the best defenders for the Crimson Tide, but his ability to not just read coverage, but to read the opposing quarterback has made him an invaluable piece to this defense.

He already has a pick-six from Week 2, but Metz was able to stifle LSU’s momentum at the end of the first half, by picking off Leavitt with 29 seconds left in the game.

McDonald, on the other hand, is earning himself a permanent spot in the rotation. We’re seeing a lot of comparisons to how Devon Witherspoon is used on the Seattle Seahawks, mainly as a blitzer or a dynamic nickel corner who plays with intense physicality.

In the second quarter, with just over three minutes left, LSU went for it on 4th and 4, and as soon as the Tigers snapped the ball, McDonald rushed through the line like a bat out of hell to deflect Leavitt’s pass, which stopped the Tigers from tying up the game.