Alabama makes adjustments to future football schedules after nine-game SEC schedule announcement

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. (WHNT) — The University of Alabama announced Tuesday that it made some changes and adjustments to its future football schedules, following the announcement of a nine-game SEC football schedule.

Alabama and West Virginia have mutually agreed to cancel their home-and-home series, which was set to begin in Morgantown, W.Va., in 2026, with West Virginia returning the trip to Tuscaloosa in 2027, the University announced.

The Crimson Tide’s future football slate now includes East Carolina. ECU will come to Tuscaloosa in 2026.

“We are proud of the number of high-quality home-and-home non-conference games we have scheduled for the next 10 years,” Alabama director of athletics Greg Byrne said. “That being said, we know that college athletics has been evolving and changing rapidly over the last few years, and it made sense for us to make these adjustments on our future schedules. We have a bit more flexibility as we transition to a nine-game format in the Southeastern Conference, and it gives us the opportunity to further evaluate how strength of schedule is evaluated for the College Football Playoff. Between other home-and-homes as well as conference games, we will continue to have a solid strength of schedule, which is good for our team, fans and college football.”

Alabama currently has 10 nonconference home-and-homes scheduled over the next 11 seasons. These include:

This announcement comes after the Southeastern Conference announced on August 21 that it will implement a nine-game football schedule beginning in 2026, reinforcing the SEC’s position as the nation’s leader in competitive excellence and fan excitement. The decision, approved by the SEC’s Presidents and Chancellors following a recommendation by the league’s Athletics Directors, was announced by Commissioner Greg Sankey.

“Adding a ninth SEC game underscores our universities’ commitment to delivering the most competitive football schedule in the nation,” SEC Commissioner Greg Sankey said. “This format protects rivalries, increases competitive balance, and paired with our requirement to play an additional Power opponent, ensures SEC teams are well prepared to compete and succeed in the College Football Playoff.”

Under the new format:

• The SEC will continue with a single-standings, non-divisional structure;
• Each school will play three annual opponents focused on maintaining many traditional rivalries;
• Each team’s remaining six games will rotate among the remaining conference schools; and
• Each team will face every other SEC program at least once every two years and every opponent home and away in four years.

SEC teams are required to schedule at least one additional high-quality non-conference game from the Atlantic Coast, Big Ten or Big 12 conferences or Notre Dame each season.

You can read more about the change on the SEC Sports website here.