The degree to which the Alabama Crimson Tide and the LSU Tigers are rivals has been hotly debated over the years, especially with regards to SEC future scheduling and comparing it to games like the Iron Bowl and Third Saturday in October.
When the game comes along every year though, there’s no question it has a big game feel, and Saturday night at Bryant-Denny Stadium was no exception. If you ever needed any evidence as to just how big of a game this is, look no further than all of the names who were on the sidelines to watch.
Here are just a few of them.
Dave Roberts, Los Angeles Dodgers manager
Fresh off his second consecutive World Series title with the Dodgers, the head of the best team in baseball made a trip all the way across the country just to see the Crimson Tide play in person. Interestingly, Kalen DeBoer has told media that he and Roberts have become close friends over the years, and the unlikely duo got to have a reunion in Tuscaloosa just a week after Roberts was standing on the pinnacle of the sporting world.
Jeff Landry, Governor of Louisiana
Landry made some major headlines when he spoke about the LSU coaching search publicly and hilariously declared he would let President Trump make the next hire before the now fired former AD Scott Woodward. Since then, it has been pretty quiet on that front as carousel season begins, but Landry was not going to miss a chance to watch his precious Tigers, even if things did not go the way he had hoped.
But on Saturday, Landry recorded a video message declaring that while he was in the Yellowhammer State, he was campaigning for Katherine Robertson for Attorney General in 2026.
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Kaitlan Collins, Lead CNN Anchor
Collins has always spoken openly about how much she loves her alma mater and cheering on the Crimson Tide, frequently being seen in Tuscaloosa and if she can’t make it, rooting on the Tide from coich and social media.
Clearly, the LSU game was big enough that she had to make it a point to be there, and the Prattville native got the chance to see a victory for Alabama.
U.S. Rep. Robert Aderholt
Representing Alabama’s 4th District, which now includes parts of Tuscaloosa County, Aderholt was already in town Friday for a West Alabama Chamber briefing as the shutdown saga played out in Washington.
The longtime appropriator has also been a vocal backer of rural broadband expansions touching West and Central Alabama, making the LSU weekend a natural stop in Tide country.
David Bossie, Citizens United
Bossie has been with Citizens United and Citizens United Foundation for decades and has served in very prominent roles with the RNC. A Deputy Campaign Manager for Donald Trump in 2016, the Massachusetts native has contributed to Fox News as well as being the former Chief Investigator for the United States House of Representatives Committee.
CJ Pearson, RNC Youth Advisory Council
Pearson, a former University of Alabama student and co-chair of the RNC Youth Advisory Council, has been highly visible in Tuscaloosa this fall, hosting the “We Are All Charlie Kirk” memorial rally on the Strip at Two Dimes Bama that drew a big student crowd in September. His campus ties run deep, so LSU weekend was right in his wheelhouse.
Kieghan Nangle, Executive Assistant to WH Press Sec.
A University of Alabama alum now serving as Executive Assistant to White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt, Nangle cut her teeth in UA student leadership and conservative groups before joining the Trump-Vance 2024 campaign and then the West Wing, making a return to Tuscaloosa feel like coming home.
Michael Brauner is a Senior Sports Analyst and Contributing Writer for Yellowhammer News. You can follow him on Twitter @MBraunerWNSP and hear him every weekday morning from 6 to 9 a.m. on “The Opening Kickoff” on WNSP-FM 105.5, available free online.
