LSU alum Alex Bregman is officially a World Series legend

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The legend of Alex Bregman continues

Former LSU shortstop and Houston Astros third baseman Alex Bregman went from a superstar on the rise to a household name in the wee hours of Monday morning.

Bregman singled in the winning run off Los Angeles Dodgers relief ace Kenley Jansen to give his Astros a walk-off 13-12 win in the 10th inning of a marathon World Series Game 5 Monday morning past midnight. Because of Bregman, the Astros are now one win away from winning the 2017 World Series.

WALKOFF! WHAT A GAME!

The @astros are 1 win away from a #WorldSeries title! https://t.co/ekdFP6jKK7

— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 30, 2017

At just 23 years old, Bregman is having a World Series any veteran would envy. He’s hitting .273 with 3 home runs, 5 RBI and 5 runs scored. His walkoff inspired praise from all corners of LSU nation, including former teammates Kramer Robertson and Jared Poché, as well as former LSU quarterback Matt Flynn and New Orleans Saints legend Steve Gleason.

As astute LSU fans will remember, this isn’t the first time Bregman has put on a laser show during the World Series. Bregman went 7-for-13 with 3 runs scored in the 2015 College World Series while he was wearing the purple and gold.

Whether the Astros or Dodgers win this World Series, that game will go down as one of the greatest in baseball history. And Bregman’s name will always be attached to it. Welcome to the history books, Alex Bregman. You’ve earned it. Can’t wait to see what’s in store for the next 10-to-15 years of your career.

As for LSU football…

Baseball aside, this is a pretty huge week for LSU football. The Tigers take on No. 1 Alabama Saturday night in Tuscaloosa, Ala., with a spot in the SEC Championship Game on the line. Win and the Tigers are in the driver’s seat. Lose and they’re all but eliminated from any SEC title chances and probably from New Year’s Six bowl contention.

If Alabama feels like an unbeatable opponent, that’s not a strange feeling. The Tide have trounced virtually every opponent this season, winning all but one of its games by 17 or more points. There’s a reason Alabama is favored by 21 points in a game against a ranked opponent. The Tide are really good.

But this game won’t be impossible. If 2016 taught us anything, it’s that stifling defense can contain Alabama’s offense for at least three quarters. All LSU has to do is put up some semblance of an offensive fight and this game can be close. Then you leave it up to chance in the last quarter. It’s the only way you can get to this team.

I’m not going out and predicting an LSU victory just yet. The Tigers might need to find some extra eligibility for Glenn Dorsey, Odell Beckham Jr., Dwayne Bowe and Patrick Peterson for me to make that claim on a Monday. But this game doesn’t have to be a blowout. LSU should be better than that.

Where are they ranked?

Sunday is poll day. Thanks to a wild weekend that saw two College Football Playoff contenders lose and a host of other ranked teams fall down, LSU moved up a couple of spots in most polls. Here are a few links to places where you can find that information:

• AP Top 25
• Coaches Poll
• SEC Country Power Poll

As a reminder, the first edition of the College Football Playoff rankings for 2017 come out Tuesday evening. Check back to the Bayou Bengal Briefing Wednesday where we’ll analyze those in depth.

NFLSU updates

Alex Bregman isn’t the only former LSU athlete who showed up huge on Sunday/Monday. In a day packed with NFL action, former Tigers balled out. As per usual. Here’s a breakdown of some of the best performances:

• Philadelphia Eagles cornerback Jalen Mills had a pick-6 for the ages, weaving through would-be tacklers like a shopper on a mission on Black Friday. Mills finished the Eagles’ win over the San Francisco 49ers with 3 tackles, 1 for loss, and a pass defended as well.
• New York Jets rookie safety Jamal Adams recovered a fumble and made 6 tackles in the Jets’ loss to the Atlanta Falcons. Former LSU linebacker Deion Jones led all Falcons tacklers in that game with 11, with 1 tackle for loss.
• Just a step behind Jones, Tampa Bay Buccaneers linebacker Kwon Alexander made 10 tackles Sunday, 2 for loss. Kendell Beckwith added 2 tackles in the Buccaneers’ loss to the Carolina Panthers.

In recruiting news

LSU earned a commitment from Class of 2019 defensive tackle Joseph Evans Sunday afternoon. Evans is LSU’s seventh commit for 2019, boosting LSU to the No. 4 class in the country.

SEC Country’s Sam Spiegelman wrote an interesting piece on the last 48 hours of Evans’ life leading to the commitment. You can give that a read here. And, as always, support Sam and his awesome work by following him on Twitter.

Elsewhere in the SEC

In case you were under a rock Sunday, the biggest news in the SEC came from Gainesville, Fla., where the Florida Gators relieved coach Jim McElwain of his duties. SEC Country’s squad of reporters covering the Gators were all over the news. If you’re interested in learning more about why it happened and what’s next for one of LSU’s most hated rivals, here are some stories to read:

• Florida is parting ways with Jim McElwain.
• Randy Shannon will be the interim coach.
• This is the type of candidate Florida should look for after Shannon.
• Here are 14 candidates to replace McElwain. 
• McElwain penned a goodbye letter. 
• Florida’s AD said this was about more than wins and losses.
• This is what he’s looking for in a head coach. 

Today in arbitrary anniversaries

On this day in 1974, Muhammad Ali and George Foreman went head-to-head in the “Rumble in the Jungle,” one of the most famous boxing matches ever staged.

Ali won the match, which was fought in what is now the Democratic Republic of the Congo at 4 a.m. local time, by knockout in the eighth round, regaining the world heavyweight title.

You can relive the magic. The full fight is on YouTube. Hope you didn’t have work to get done today.

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