No.10 LSU overcomes No.6 Alabama 32-31 in overtime.

LSU Tigers #5 Jayden Daniels (QB) rushed 18 times for 95-yards and one touchdown against the Alabama Crimson Tide. Photo by Kevin Magee/TGSportstv1.

 BATON ROUGE - After Jayden Daniels connected with freshman tight end, Mason Taylor for the go-ahead two-point conversion, the No. 10 Tigers defeated No. 6 Alabama 32-31 in overtime.

A quick touchdown run by Roydell Williams gave Alabama the early lead in overtime. Daniels ran for a touchdown from 25 yards for LSU's second score in the overtime period. LSU took a timeout to figure up its best two-point play, and when they came out, Daniels rolled to his right and found Taylor just inside the pylon.

With fewer than two minutes left in regulation, Taylor, the son of Pro Football Hall of Famer Jason Taylor, caught a touchdown throw from Daniels to put the Tigers ahead 24-21. Will Richard's 46-yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining knotted the game, prompting Alabama to drive down the field to get into field goal range.

Saturday night, LSU's defense performed admirably, particularly in the first half when it limited Alabama to two field goals. When Williams scored on a 2-yard run with 12:37 remaining in the contest, it was the Crimson Tide's first touchdown of the game.

Alabama Crimson Tide #9 Bryce Young (QB) throwing a 44-yard touchdown pass to Ja’Corey Brooks. Photo by Kevin Magee/TGSPortstv1.

The Crimson Tide seized a 21-17 lead with 4:44 left in the fourth when reigning Heisman winner Bryce Young produced an almost Houdini-like escape from a blitz and hit Ja'Corey Brooks for a 44-yard touchdown, giving Alabama its first lead of the game at 15-14.

However, LSU answered each of those Alabama touchdowns. Daniels had a significant role in this. In addition to rushing 18 times for 95 yards and a score, the Arizona State transfer completed 22 of 32 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns. Daniels has thrown 10 touchdown passes and 10 interceptions so far this season, compared to his 14 touchdown passes to one interception total from a season ago with the Sun Devils.

The chances of Alabama making the playoffs are essentially over.

With Alabama's defeat, the odds of the SEC having three teams in the playoffs have decreased from slim to almost nonexistent. The Tigers and Crimson Tide are now both 7-2 overall. No team with two losses has ever advanced to the College Football Playoff.

In addition, there are still many unbeaten and one-loss teams in college football, making it difficult to imagine a two-loss team competing in the College Football Playoff in 2022.

LSU, meanwhile, is probably playing in the SEC championship game for the first time since 2019 after victories against Texas A&M and Arkansas. If Alabama defeats Ole Miss the next week, LSU will only need one victory because it has the advantage in the tiebreaker against both the Rebels and the Crimson Tide.

If the Crimson Tide fails to qualify for the postseason, it will just be the third time in nine seasons that the playoff has been held.

After a string of special teams miscues, including a blocked extra point that would have knotted the game, LSU's Kelly era got off to a shaky start with a defeat to Florida State in the first week. When calling for the game-winning two-point convert, Kelly may have had the extra point in the back of his mind.

Even if the improvement hasn't been steady thus far, things immediately got better in Baton Rouge. LSU defeated Mississippi State by 15 in the third week before holding on to defeat Auburn by 4. Following a humiliating home loss to Tennessee, LSU went on the road and defeated Florida before dominating Ole Miss last week in a 45-20 victory.

The four-game winning streak for LSU is largely due to Daniels' development. In nine games, he has scored 24 touchdowns overall, leads the club in running, and completes 70% of his throws. In the last three weeks, 14 of the 24 TDs have been scored. In the victory against Florida, Daniels scored all six touchdowns for the Tigers, including five against Ole Miss.

In a hypothetical SEC title game versus Georgia, LSU may not be as overmatched as you think if Daniels keeps playing this well.