The chaos of the Southeastern Conference bought two-loss LSU a mulligan in its hopes of a College Football Playoff berth in its first season under Lane Kiffin.

But the Tigers’ do-over likely was spent Saturday in a 31-13 loss to Alabama at Tiger Stadium.

LSU, No. 14 in the CFP rankings, moved the ball to the tune of 457 yards on the No. 5 Crimson Tide, who had just 285, but couldn’t make the most of those gains in a loss that has the Tigers very much on the brink in the coming weeks.

Maybe LSU can still make the 12-team playoff with a win next Saturday over No. 7 Texas and a victory at No. 13 Tennessee in back-to-back weeks. But the Tigers (6-3, 3-3 SEC) could very well lose one, or both, if they continue to fail to turn yardage into points.

LSU, which had 27 first downs compared to Alabama’s 13, progressed the ball almost everywhere other than beyond the goal line.

After the Crimson Tide (7-2, 5-2) opened with a field goal, the Tigers quickly drove 67 yards on 11 plays, setting up a first-and-goal at the Alabama 8.

But the visitors stymied a quarterback draw by Sam Leavitt. Then they hurried LSU’s signal caller on third down for a throwaway in the end zone.

A chip-shot field goal by Scott Starzyk would prove to be LSU’s only points in the half, because he wouldn’t have enough leg to convert a 56-yard attempt when Kiffin decided to let it fly on a fourth-and-9 at the Alabama 38 later in the half.

On the very next drive, Kiffin would elect to go for it on a fourth-and-4 at the Alabama 9 after Eugene Wilson dropped a reception on third down. But a turnover on downs was clinched when Leavitt’s pass was batted at the line of scrimmage.

A stuffed run by the LSU defense on third-and-1 afforded the Tigers one more chance in the second quarter, and the drive showed promise. Wilson broke a tackle on a short catch and took off 31 yards to get to midfield.

But after pushing the ball down to the Alabama 27, Leavitt would take a sack on first down, and he’d force a throw to a receiver who was well-bracketed for an interception. It was the first pick he’d thrown in nearly a month after interception-less games versus Mississippi State and Auburn.

Luckily for the Tigers, their defense was stingy, aside from an 11-play, 62-yard drive that finished with a Ryan Coleman-Williams end around from just a yard out that made it 10-3.

Through two quarters, Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell was limited to 89 yards passing. It required 16 carries for the Tide to gain 54 yards on the ground. It was pedestrian but still worth more points than LSU’s efforts.

LSU finally broke through in the third quarter. Not on the first drive, which was stalled for a 41-yard field goal to cut the lead to 10-6. The Tigers’ second possession was kicked off by 16- and 32-yard passes to Trey’Dez Green and Jackson Harris, respectively.

LSU lost right tackle Weston Davis to an injury on the drive, and the Tigers flipped left tackle Jordan Seaton to the other side on second-and-goal at the Alabama 5, tossing to Dilin Jones for a sweep to that side

Jones cruised into the end zone as LSU took a 13-10 lead.

The advantage didn’t last long, though. Alabama answered with a 75-yard drive that lasted just over two minutes, including a 57-yard pass to Rico Scott and a third-and-9 scramble by Russell for 10 yards that set up a 7-yard touchdown pass to tight end Josh Ford.

LSU had no answer. Another drive was bogged down just inside the Alabama 40, featuring a Jones rush for 0 yards on second-and-5 and a Leavitt run for just 2 yards on third-and-5. That set up another Leavitt pass on fourth down that was tipped at the line.

The very next drive, Kiffin opted to punt on fourth-and-1 from LSU’s 11, but the Tigers’ punt coverage team faltered. Coleman-Williams’ 32-yard return brought it all the way back to the LSU 25, a net gain of 14 yards on the boot.

Russell effortlessly flicked to Cederian Morgan for a 25-yard touchdown, which began an unraveling.

LSU wouldn’t punt on a fourth-and-10 from its own 25 with just over eight minutes left, and Leavitt was sacked. Alabama capitalized with another pair of productive passes from Russell, including a 4-yard touchdown to Kaleb Edwards.

Alabama finished with 285 yards of offense, which were nearly 100 yards fewer than Leavitt individually; he had 380 passing but didn’t throw for a score.