When Ed Orgeron was asked about the Alabama losing streak at SEC Media Days in Atlanta this summer, his answer was telling.

He started by saying that in his first year while he was the interim coach, it was a hard-fought, 0-0 game in the fourth quarter until Jalen Hurts made some plays.

Orgeron’s description of LSU’s 24-10 loss to the Tide in 2017 was even more revealing:

“I think if you look at last year’s game at Alabama, it was a physical contest. We felt that we could handle them physically and compete with them, and that was the first time I think our players felt that in a while. We missed some plays. We had DJ Chark open. We didn’t hit him. Their passing game gave us problems, and their quarterback made plays and we didn’t.”

LSU did have Chark open deep, and Danny Etling didn’t hit him. Several times. Four times in last year’s game, Etling targeted Chark on a pass that traveled 25-plus yards. Four times, Etling was off target. The most notable miss was a 50-yard attempt wherein Chark had a step on All-American safety Minkah Fitzpatrick, who came up limping at the end of the play. An on-target throw and it’s 7-0, LSU.

Instead, Etling couldn’t get it there. He was just 1-of-6 on deep passes for an LSU offense that was held under 20 points by Alabama for the eighth consecutive time.

Orgeron didn’t say it exactly in Atlanta, but I interpreted his answer as “I’m sick of our quarterback’s limitations holding us back from beating Alabama. That’s why I went out and got Joe Burrow.”

Or rather, “Jeaux Burreaux.”

Saturday night is why Burrow was brought to LSU. Not to under-throw speedy LSU receivers or to spend his night handing off. It’ll be his job to connect on home-run plays, and end the losing streak that’s been weighing down LSU hype for the past 6 years.

Burrow is indeed different from the likes of Etling, Brandon Harris, Anthony Jennings and even Zach Mettenberger, who actually has the best track record against Alabama. Since Mettenberger threw for 241 yards in 2013, LSU’s passing numbers against the Tide are nothing short of horrendous.

It’s bad. Like, really bad:

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Oh, and LSU quarterbacks completed 40 percent of their passes in that 4-year stretch. To recap, that’s 40 percent passing for an average of 4.5 yards per attempt, 113 yards per game and 0.5 touchdown passes.

Woof.

LSU fans know that inefficient, bang-your-head-against-the-wall passing trend all too well. So does Orgeron. He did witness two of those dud performances. He wouldn’t have gone out and got Burrow this summer if he thought he was just another guy.

Honestly, “just another guy” wouldn’t have gotten through the first 2 months with only 1 loss. Not with that schedule. Burrow has been the guy that Orgeron hoped he would be — clutch, mobile, tough, etc.

Credit: Derick E. Hingle-USA TODAY Sports

History won’t prevent Burrow from succeeding Saturday night. That’ll come down to execution and Steve Ensminger’s game-plan. One would assume that the LSU offensive coordinator will open things up a bit. He’s been reluctant to run Burrow and let him take deep shots downfield with backup Myles Brennan banged up in the first part of the season. That won’t be the case on Saturday. Expect the full bag of tricks.

Don’t worry, LSU fans. “Tricks” aren’t just pre-snap motions and jet sweeps.

I’ve got to think that Ensminger, who’s been at LSU for every one of those losses during the losing streak, is going to try and air things out with Burrow. After all, Burrow is different from the quarterbacks who came before him. He doesn’t have the limitations they did.

You don’t beat Alabama by having limitations. LSU fans know that. The past 3 quarterbacks who beat the Tide — Deshaun Watson, Jarrett Stidham and Chad Kelly — were mobile quarterbacks who could stretch the field. They played with a confidence that couldn’t be taught.

Burrow isn’t as skilled as them, but he’s certainly not lacking their confidence. That’s why he bet on himself by leaving home and coming to LSU in the first place. So far, it looks like a smart risk worth taking.

But he and everyone else knows that beating Alabama is how his time in Baton Rouge will be defined. Maybe he will light up an Alabama secondary that’s by no means Nick Saban’s best. Perhaps this is the game that the Tigers finally do hit on some home-run plays in the passing game and present Alabama with a little bit of adversity.

The bar for LSU quarterbacks against Alabama is especially low. Oddsmakers don’t really expect Burrow to be the guy to rise far above it, which is why the Tigers are 2-touchdown underdogs at home. Then again, the oddsmakers were the ones who said that LSU wouldn’t win 7 regular-season games, and here we are.

The odds still aren’t in Burrow’s favor to finally end the streak. Going blow for blow with Tua Tagovailoa seems far-fetched even if LSU does catch some fire in the passing game. It doesn’t seem like anyone has the offensive firepower to hang with Alabama for 60 minutes.

It’s safe to say that if Burrow can do the impossible, the “LSU is being held back by its quarterback” narrative will die a long overdue death on Saturday night in Baton Rouge.