No. 1 Alabama pulls away from No. 14 LSU in defensive battle

(Photo: John David Mercer, USA TODAY Sports)BATON ROUGE — Breaking down No. 1 Alabama’s 10-0 victory over No. 14 LSU at Tiger Stadium.

THE BIG PICTURE: In a defensive masterpiece harkening back to the best years of this rivalry, Alabama faced its biggest test to date and showed the kind of ruthless dynamism it now possesses with the speed of freshman quarterback Jalen Hurts. There wasn’t much of an opening all night against LSU’s defense, but Hurts finally found it early in the fourth quarter of a 0-0 game. And when he did, scrambling for a 21-yard touchdown on third-and-long for all the points Alabama would need, it showed once again why Nick Saban’s team is such a big favorite to win yet…