East Carolina defensive back Derrion Horsley lit the fuse on a matchup that is still more than a year away, and Alabama players wasted no time firing back.
Horsley posted a now-deleted Instagram story aimed at the Crimson Tide’s script A logo, which was shown above every other ECU opponent. He pointed at the logo and added two middle fingers and three shushing emojis, a move that quickly made its way to Alabama’s locker room chatter online.
The response came fast. Alabama defensive back Red Morgan jumped into the comments with, "We tolerate no disrespect bruddah," and Horsley answered back with "see ya soon" and another shushing emoji. Freshman safety Jireh Edwards also weighed in with a strong arm emoji.
The back-and-forth didn’t stop there. Alabama tight end Marshall Pritchett replied with "Ight," while Danny Lewis Jr. used the heart eyes emoji. Former Crimson Tide guard Labaron Philon Jr. also got involved, writing "aiming at the wrong team mud" with a crying emoji, then adding another crying emoji in response to Morgan’s comment.
The timing matters because Alabama and East Carolina are set to open the 2026 season against each other on Sept. 5 at Saban Field at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa. It will be the first meeting between the programs since Oct. 16, 1998, when Alabama escaped with a 23-22 win in Tuscaloosa.
That game had plenty of drama of its own. The Crimson Tide won despite ECU outscoring them 22-2 in the second half, helped by Kecalf Bailey’s blocked PAT return for a touchdown. Alabama quarterback Andrew Zow finished 21 of 35 for two touchdowns, Shaun Alexander ran for 86 yards and a score on 22 carries, and Travis Carroll and Trevis Smith led the defense with a combined 22 tackles, including seven for loss.
For ECU, the trip to Tuscaloosa is part of a rough opener trend. The Pirates have only won twice in season openers since 2016, and this one comes with Alabama standing as their only Power 4 opponent on the schedule.
Their other games against winning teams from last season are Old Dominion on Sept. 19, Memphis on Oct.
22, South Florida on Nov. 6 and Army on Nov. 31.
Alabama’s 2026 slate includes three non-conference games, with Florida State on Sept. 19 and Chattanooga on Nov. 21 joining East Carolina. The 2026 season will also be the first under the SEC’s new nine-game conference schedule.
The Tide are still carrying the memory of last year’s opener, when they fell at Florida State in Week 1. That was Alabama’s first loss in a season opener since 2001.
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