Alabama head coach Nick Saban is very impressed with the play of one of his freshman defensive backs. The legendary head coach is pointing out the play of Caleb Downs heading into a Saturday night matchup with the LSU Tigers.

“Well, you know, Caleb Downs is mature beyond his years,” Saban said on College GameDay, per on3 Sports. “You know, he’s a football junkie. He comes from a football family, his dad’s a coach, you know, he’s a student of the game. He understands offense, he understands adjustments. It’s very, very seldom do you get a freshman that’s that far along in terms of their knowledge in the game, and he can apply them to the game and he does not get frustrated.”

Downs is playing a large role for the Crimson Tide defense this season. The freshman has 63 total tackles, including 39 solo stops. He's also logged a forced fumble and two interceptions. Downs logged a career and game high 8 solo stops in Alabama's victory over Tennessee on October 25.

Alabama will continue to need Downs' talents. The Crimson Tide play a tough LSU team Saturday night. Alabama leads the SEC West standings with a 5-0 record, but LSU is right behind them with a 4-1 mark. If Alabama loses the game, the team will be tied with LSU atop the standings. Ole Miss can also have a share of the lead if they beat Texas A&M, and Alabama loses on Saturday.

Alabama and LSU battle at 7:45 Eastern on Saturday. Alabama enters the game with a 7-1 record; their only loss of the season is to Texas.