By: TJ Hartnett

TheSouthernSportsEdition.com news services

The SEC is Alabama’s conference, at least lately.

The SEC West is even more specifically Alabama’s division in Alabama’s conference. For residents of Tuscaloosa and its many supporters, that’s terrific; but for everyone else, it’s less than ideal. It’s a drag on most college football programs but maybe most of all it’s a burden to bear for Louisiana State University.

The main reason for that burden is the man at the top of Alabama’s successful run; former LSU head coach Nick Saban.

Ed Orgeron had big enough shoes to fill when he took over the Tigers’ program from Les Miles but really, he’s trying to fill the shoes of Miles who was trying to fill the shoes of Saban – and Saban’s success has loomed large ever since he left.

Miles brought a national title to LSU, but the Tigers haven’t beaten the Tide in the regular season since 2011.

When the university removed Miles from the top spot in 2016, Orgeron was tasked with two things: bringing the program back to the top, which also meant shaking off Saban and his team’s dominance as well.

Pretty much only Dabo Swinney can claim to have truly matched Saban’s level of success – against Saban, crucially.

Orgeron hasn’t yet come close. He has made great strides getting LSU back to being a fearsome program. The Tigers notched double-digit wins last year and finished in the top 10 for the first time since 2011.

Dave Aranda led a typically stellar defense out of Baton Rouge in 2018, and QB Joe Burrow found another gear late in the season and brought the best out of the team’s offense (which would have finished the season on a much higher note if not for the bagillion overtimes in their loss to Texas A&M).

Promisingly, much of Orgeron’s 2018 talent is returning for 2019 and coupled with the third best recruiting class in the nation, LSU’s prospects and looking very good.

Burrow is returning alongside most of his favorite targets from last year and the offensive line tasked with protecting him is stocked with veteran players.

Offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger has plenty to play with, especially if he wants to try out improving LSU’s underutilized running game with recruits John Emery or Tyrion Davis-Price.

Aranda has got a likewise deep defensive squad for 2019, even with the loss of first-round picks Greedy Williams at cornerback and Devin White at linebacker. White’s shoes could be filled with the likes of K’Lavon Chaisson or Micah Baskerville, and Kristian Fulton showed off his upside when he was on the field last season. That’s the one thing these potential replacements aren’t guaranteed, health.

That recruiting class is a natural consequence of a big season for LSU and Orgeron has rewarded the university’s faith in him since 2016.  Wins lead to recruits, which in turn lead to more wins, which in turn lead to more recruits and so on and so on.

However, even with the double-digit wins and top 3 recruiting class, there is still the black spot: Alabama.

The Tigers have a very good shot at winning 11 games in 2019. They’re the favorites in nearly every game. Nearly, because the Crimson Tide waits on the schedule, salivating at the opportunity to hang another 29-0 loss on the Tigers like they did last season.

The Tigers will be good this season. They’re good already. But the shadow of Nick Saban darkens the hope and excitement of the 2019 season for the Tigers.

Is having 10 or 11 wins and being victorious in bowl games enough to satisfy LSU when Alabama is annually wiping the floor with them and contending for national championships?