New Orleans Saints safety Roman Harper knew why the gaggle of media had surrounded his locker Thursday afternoon. So before he even said a word, he made his opening statement by slapping on an Alabama visor.

Harper, who has long been one of the most vocal supporters of his alma mater in the Saints’ locker room, is always happy to talk Alabama football. That has been especially true this week, now that the entire nation is talking about the No. 2 Crimson Tide’s showdown today against top-ranked LSU in Tuscaloosa.

Harper offered a thorough scouting report last week of why Alabama will win, saying this year’s squad reminds him of Alabama’s 2009 national championship team, and that he likes the poise he has seen from sophomore quarterback A.J. McCarron.

And he admitted he has placed some friendly wagers with teammates, including former LSU receiver Devery Henderson, though he wouldn’t reveal any details of how the game might affect their wallets or their wardrobe. Often teammates will be forced to dress up in the opponents’ gear the next week.

Henderson also stayed mum on specific wagers, though he admitted that he was glad to get some action for a change. He said LSU has been so dominant lately that he has had trouble finding teammates who want to bet against him most weeks.

Former Alabama tailback Mark Ingram also didn’t reveal any wagers he has made, though he admitted he has been talking up his team to anyone who will listen.

“Of course everyone around here is excited. There has been a lot of talking, messing around in the locker room,” said Ingram, who is an admitted trash-talker, in person and on Twitter, among other outlets.

One of his tweets boasted, “I got my crimson on in the middle of LSU country yelling ROLL TIDE!!”

“Yeah, I’ve been talking plenty,” Ingram said.

Most of the talk has been respectful, though, since Ingram, Harper and Henderson agree that the two SEC rivals are the two best teams in the nation this season.

The consensus from all of them is that the team that avoids turnovers and big mistakes tonight will come out on top.

“They’re the two best teams in the country. It’s like a pre-national championship,” said Ingram, who won the Heisman trophy while leading Alabama to the title two years ago. “It’s an even matchup, It’s going to come down to execution, turnovers. It’s going to be great to watch.”

Ingram said he plans to leave the Saints’ hotel after meetings tonight to watch the game at home with his mom and sisters. Henderson, who played at LSU from 2000 to 2003, and Harper don’t plan to watch the game together at the hotel, though.

“No, I go in the room by myself,” said Harper, who was at Alabama from 2001 to 2005. “I can’t be around the other guys. Too many haters on this team. I’ve got to be locked in. And usually the security guard will be checking on me or something because I’m screaming.”

The LSU-Alabama rivalry wasn’t this serious when Harper and Henderson played. That has developed recently, both because of the teams’ success and because Coach Nick Saban left LSU for the NFL and eventually wound up in Tuscaloosa.

Henderson played under Saban, but he said he has never been too upset about the way Saban wound up at Alabama, since he didn’t make the direct jump from one school to the other.

“You know, we can’t be mad at him for that, looking at the whole big picture and everything,” Henderson said. “But he’s a great guy, a great coach. And Les (Miles) is a great guy and great coach.”

Harper joked about the way Saban’s career path has affected the LSU fan base, in particular.

“The fans make the rivalry,” Harper said. “And now that we have Saban, all the LSU fans seem to be mad like we took him from them. Sounds like just a sad ex to me, and we got the new girlfriend.”

It’s not just the alums that are getting caught up in tonight’s high-profile showdown.

Safety Malcolm Jenkins, who played for Ohio State against rival Michigan in another classic 1 vs. 2 matchup in 2006, said he’s “excited to see it” though he’s “personally hating on both schools because my team is not doing what we want right now.”

“I think I’ll root more for Alabama, just because I’ve lost to LSU in the past, so I have more hate for them than Alabama,” said Jenkins, who Buckeyes lost the BCS championship game to LSU during the 2007 season.

Quarterback Drew Brees, who played at Purdue, said he’s also excited for the matchup, though he wasn’t ready to predict a winner.

“I don’t know, but LSU looks pretty darn good,” Brees said.

Mike Triplett can be reached at mtriplett@timespicayune.com or 504.826.3405.

Thanks for reading! .