Alabama’s Sept. 21 game against Southern Miss — its last non-conference game before November — will kick off at 11 a.m., televised on either ESPN or ESPN2. The exact network will be determined after Saturday’s games.
University of Alabama President Stuart R. Bell and Director of Athletics Greg Byrne released a joint statement on the subject.
“We are disappointed that our game against Southern Miss has been selected as a daytime kickoff at home. We realize we’ve played more non-conference day games at home in September than any other SEC team since 2014. There have been a number of conversations with our conference office, and they also recognize the challenges these kick times present for our student-athletes and fans.”
Updating the scoreboard since 2014:@alabamaftbl 12 non-conference September home games. Night games: 1
LSU: 12 non-conference September home games. Night games: 12.*
*LSU’s 2015 game vs. McNeese State (6:30 p.m. kickoff scheduled) was cancelled due to weather.
— Cecil Hurt (@CecilHurt) September 9, 2019
The decision comes after Byrne and UA made significant efforts to make a day game in the heat palatable for fans last weekend against New Mexico State. UA had water coolers around the stadium and encouraged fans to bring their own cups to refill with the free water; there were also sunscreen dispensaries around the stadium.
This will be UA’s first meeting with the Golden Eagles since 2014, a 52-12 win in Bryant-Denny Stadium. It will be just the second meeting between the two schools since 2005.
The schools used to be frequent opponents, playing each other every year between 1992 and 2005. The only Southern Miss win in that stretch was a 21-0 game in 2000 in Birmingham.
It will be the first of two consecutive home games, with UA hosting Ole Miss the following week.
