SEC football is shifting its schedule starting in 2026.
The SEC conference announced Thursday, Aug. 21, that it will implement a nine-game conference schedule starting in the 2026 season.
"Adding a ninth SEC game underscores our universities' commitment to delivering the most competitive football schedule in the nation," SEC commissioner Greg Sankey said in a statement. "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."
The SEC will continue with a single-standing, non-divisional structure. Each conference team will play three opponents annually to maintain traditional rivalries. The remaining six games in the conference schedule will rotate each season.
Each SEC team will face every other conference program at least once every two years and every opponent home and away every four years.
The SEC is also requiring teams to schedule at least one additional quality nonconference game against a team from the ACC, Big Ten or Big 12, or Notre Dame.
In the era of the College Football Playoff , the SEC's new nine-game conference schedule puts the conference on equal footing with conferences like the Big Ten and Big 12.
Strength of schedule is already an important aspect of the CFP's evaluation of teams, especially with the committee's new "record strength" approach which will reward teams for victories against quality opponents and lessen penalties for losses against quality opponents.
But it's a new reality that could disrupt a team like Alabama 's plans for nonconference play, something Alabama athletics director Greg Byrne previously hinted at to the Tuscaloosa News.
"I was pretty vocal last year, because I just kept hearing about two losses versus three," Byrne said. "So we're going to have keep evaluating and see if we end up at eight or nine (SEC) games. ... At nine games, that jeopardizes one of the two (each year)."
Starting in 2026, here's a look at the Crimson Tide's future nonconference schedule:
Note: Alabama football has already started home-and-homes with South Florida and Florida State .
2026
Sept. 5: Alabama at West Virginia
Sept. 12: Alabama vs. South Florida
Sepy. 19: Alabama vs. Florida State
2027
Sept. 4: Alabama vs. West Virginia
Sept. 18: Alabama at Ohio State
2028
Sept. 9: Alabama vs. Ohio State
Sept. 16: Alabama vs. UT Martin
Sept. 23: Alabama at Oklahoma State
2029
Sept. 1: Alabama at Notre Dame
Sept. 15: Alabama vs. Oklahoma State
2030
Aug. 31: Alabama at Georgia Tech
Sept. 14: Alabama vs. Notre Dame
2031
Aug. 30: Alabama vs. Georgia Tech
Sept. 13: Alabama at Boston College
2032
2033
Sept. 3: Alabama at Arizona
Sept. 17: Alabama vs. Minnesota
2034
Sept. 2: Alabama at Virginia Tech
Sept. 16: Alabama vs. Boston College
2035
Sept. 1: Alabama vs. Virginia Tech
Colin Gay covers Alabama football for The Tuscaloosa News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach him at cgay@gannett.com or follow him @_ColinGay on X, formerly known as Twitter.
This article originally appeared on The Tuscaloosa News: SEC moves to 9-game conference schedule. What it means for Alabama football
