The Alabama Crimson Tide very nearly fell, and Death Valley very nearly claimed another. LSU dominated the No. 1 team in the country, more than doubling the yardage Bama's been giving up per game, forcing a pair of turnovers, holding the Tide to one-of-nine on third downs and limiting the country's most efficient passer, A.J. McCarron, to 10 completions and 93 yards on 22 attempts until the final drive.
But three big completions put Bama in field goal range, a big T.J. Yeldon run on a screen pass gave the Tide the 21-17 lead, and the king stayed the king.
Blame will be heaped on Les Miles, as LSU should've had the game locked up with minutes to go. Three strange fourth-down calls by Les Miles left at least three points, maybe many more, on the board.
Box score hero: Offensively? Yeldon and Eddie Lacy combined for 206 yards and two touchdowns, and other than that final drive, were about all the Tide had going on offense.
Rankings ramifications: Utter mayhem would've befallen us all had LSU hung on. But as it is, Bama will tighten its grip on No. 1, while LSU will leave the Top 5 again.
Next week: No rest for the Tide, which gets Johnny Manziel and the Aggies, while LSU draws Mississippi State.
This story was originally published on SB Nation.com.