Nothing is secret after eight games. Alabama football can watch all the tape it wants of its upcoming opponents, nearly everything is on film and there’s no guessing as to strengths and weaknesses.

For Alabama players, the presence of so much film can be helpful when preparing for games.

“You can go back and watch multiple games,” defensive lineman Jah-Marien Latham said Tuesday. “You can see how they play against different schemes. This part of the year, it’s helpful knowing what teams like to do and what we can do to stop them from doing what they like to do.”

Of course, that’s also true for teams like LSU, set to face the Crimson Tide on Saturday. UA coaches downplayed how the presence of so much film can impact game prep as the season gets later.

According to defensive backs coach Maurice Linguist, this is the time of year that presents more “copycat football.” If something hurt Alabama in the season opener against Western Kentucky, or its first Power 4 matchup at Wisconsin, it might show up again late in the season.

“You also have a story of yourself out there,” Linguist said Wednesday. “Really what comes alive in November, December and January football are the details. There’s a lot of identity of, like, you’re not gonna implement a new scheme necessarily this time of year. You’re trying to do what you do and do it better and apply what we do well to someone else’s scheme.”

The Crimson Tide can’t afford to lose another game this regular season. UA was ranked No. 11 in the first College Football Playoff top 25 of the 2024 campaign, and a third defeat would likely eliminate it from contending for the 12-team field.

According to defensive line coach Freddie Roach, the strategy for late-season games doesn’t change.

“You have more information, but the main thing is the main thing,” Roach said. “What can you do to put guys in the best position to have success? Again, you have six, seven, eight games at this point in time in the season and you see more things. Now, there’s stuff teams have done in the front end of the year they’re not doing so much now. That’s part of preparation and getting guys where they can play.”

Wide receivers coach JaMarcus Shephard said the staff will look back at every available piece of LSU film. He also pointed out, that strategy isn’t unique to games played late in the season.

There’s plenty of ways to scout a team, even early on.

“We’re always going to do that,” Shephard said. “I think with the invention of PFF (Pro Football Focus), you have a lot at your disposal to be able to really do a good job of finding the information that you really need, to make sure that you’re prepared on game day. So no, it hasn’t really changed much at all.”

Alabama and LSU are scheduled to kick off at 6:30 p.m. CT Saturday in Baton Rouge. The game will be aired on ABC.