Joe Burrow says no extra motivation needed ahead of Alabama game
No. 1 vs. No. 2. SEC title and spot in the College Football Playoff on the line this weekend in Tuscaloosa.
ESPN’s College GameDay and SEC Nation bost hosting on campus. Even the President of the United State will be attendance for LSU-Alabama.
For LSU quarterback Joe Burrow, all of that means nothing when it comes to getting hyped for the game.
“If you need motivation, then you are in the wrong place,” he said.
It will be the second time that Burrow will play in the battle between SEC rivals, and while the Ohio State transfer couldn’t yet compare it to the annual game between the Buckeyes and, in his words, “the team up north,” he knows that it has a lot of importance.
Yet despite it being the biggest game of the season, Burrow wants to prepare as if the Tigers were facing any quality opponent.
“You try to approach it like every other game,” the quarterback said. “Obviously it’s not but you do the same routine you do every week. You watch film the same way. You practice the same way.”
Burrow has been the fuse behind the explosion of the Tigers’ offense in his second season in Baton Rouge, throwing for 2,805 yards, 30 touchdowns, and just four interceptions as he has quickly gone from a good player to Heisman Trophy favorite. He has already faced some fearsome defenses in the likes of Florida and Auburn, but says it is the coaches that the Crimson Tide have that make the ‘Bama defense so tough.
“They have really good coaching,” Burrow said. “They have good plans every week. They put their defenders in the best position to be successful and know their skill sets and can hide the weaknesses very well. We are going to get some looks that we haven’t seen from them. They’ve had two weeks to prepare.”
Despite the Tide owning an eight-game win streak heading into Saturday’s matchup in Tuscaloosa, Burrow is certain that factor won’t be in the mind of the Tigers when they take the field.
“I don’t think there is a mental hurdle,” he said. “We are really confident in ourselves and our coaching staff and our schemes. We know the kind of offense we are. We got to go out and face them, but they have to come out and face us too.”