Here’s a couple grades following Alabama’s 20-13 victory at LSU on Saturday:

OFFENSE: B

Sans T.J. Yeldon’s late fumble in the fourth quarter that led to LSU’s go-ahead field goal, Alabama was carried on offense by fifth-year senior quarterback Blake Sims. Calm under pressure, Sims executed several plays worthy of mention including a fourth-down conversion in the second quarter that led to Alabama’s only touchdown of regulation. Facing a 4th-and-4 from the LSU 32-yard line, Sims took the snap after Cooper came left to right in motion and fired a strike to his top wideout who turned around for a 9-yard gain and a first down. Facing an all-out blitz two plays later, Sims got the ball out quickly to Cooper underneath and the Heisman candidate did the rest, racing 32 yards to the end zone. Sims also led Alabama on a 55-yard drive at the end of regulation to knot the score at 13 before tossing a touchdown pass in the extra session to prove the difference.

DEFENSE: B+

One of the nation’s top units bent, but didn’t break under the lights against a team predicated on its power run approach. The Crimson Tide gave up a single first-quarter touchdown and limited LSU quarterback Anthony Jennings to a miserable 8-for-26 outing including a season-low adjusted QBR of 23.1. Jarran Reed and Reggie Ragland combined for an incredible 28 tackles as leaders of a front seven that kept the Tigers in check, notably Leonard Fournette who averaged just 3.8 yards per carry. Kirby Smart turned up the heat in overtime with a 7-point lead.

SPECIAL TEAMS: B

Adam Griffith’s recent kicking woes continued with a makeable try that went off the upright in the first half, but he did make his final two attempts including a 27-yarder that forced overtime with three seconds left. Headhunter Reuben Foster posted one of college football’s hardest hits this season during the final kickoff return of regulation, knocking Fournette off his feet as time expired.

COACHING: B

Nick Saban criticized his team’s play-calling at halftime, telling one of the CBS sideline analysts that the Crimson Tide took too many shots downfield. The pass-run discrepancy led to 25 incompletions from Sims and LSU’s nearly 17-minute advantage in time of possession, but neither mattered in the outcome. Lane Kiffin made several excellent calls on Alabama’s final 55-yard possession with no timeouts that put the favorites in range to force overtime.

OVERALL: B

Alabama went into Baton Rouge on a business trip and came out a winner to remain on the short list for legitimate College Football Playoff contenders. Since 1970, Alabama is an astounding 18-4-1 in Death Valley despite LSU’s impressive home winning percentage.