It has been an incredible season for LSU Wide Receiver Aaron Anderson as he's burst onto the scene. It took a Kyle Parker injury against USC in the season opener for Aaron Anderson to work his way into the starting lineup. Thus far, Aaron Anderson has been one of LSU's biggest weapons with the ability to turn any play into a score.
It wasn't always that way for Aaron Anderson, out of High School Anderson committed to Alabama. In his one season at Alabama, Anderson didn't end up in the box score of any games. After his one season in Tuscaloosa, Anderson transfered back home picking the LSU Tigers.
Last season Anderson found himself behind superstar wide receivers in Malik Nabers, Brian Thomas Jr, and Kyren Lacy among others. Anderson caught just 12 passes on the season for 59 yards due to the receivers in front of him. Despite a lack of playing time, Aaron Anderson still had the eye of Nick Saban who joked after last year's meeting that Anderson would've played a ton at Alabama.
"You'd be playing more here than you are there."
— SportsCenter (@SportsCenter) November 5, 2023
Saban to his former player Aaron Anderson 😳 pic.twitter.com/elLmKV03Ov
This year, Aaron Anderson has the chance to be the player that wins the game for LSU. In every big game this season, Anderson has delivered a massive performance with 64 yards and a touchdown against USC, 96 yards against South Carolina, 81 yards and the touchdown that sent the game to overtime against Ole Miss, and 126 yards with a touchdown against Texas A&M.
Kyren Lacy draws a ton of attention from opposing defenses every week and shutting him down will be a key for Alabama. Given all of the attention Kyren Lacy will garner and the attention Alabama has to put on Chris Hilton when he's on the field, Aaron Anderson should receive a ton of 1 on 1 matchups.
This Alabama secondary is a younger group starting a pair of freshmen cornerbacks and a freshman safety at times while Sophomore safety Bray Hubbard has filled in for the injured Keon Sabb.
When Aaron Anderson gets a man to man matchup he needs to win giving Garrett Nussmeier a reliable target. We saw the best of his ability last game with his 76 yard touchdown against Texas A&M and he'll need to be that productive after the catch against Alabama.
All season long the run game has been an issue for LSU and if the Tigers can't run the ball this weekend they'll need to get it done once more through the air. The biggest key is creating separation giving Garrett Nussmeier open windows so he doesn't force passes where he can turn the ball over.