The SEC’s Week 7 kickoff windows landed like a punch to the gut for Alabama fans.
Auburn and Georgia’s Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry is set for 3:30 p.m. ET/2:30 p.m.
CT on ABC, ESPN or the SEC Network, and it will go head-to-head with Alabama and Tennessee in the Third Saturday in October matchup. For fans in the state, that’s a brutal overlap right in the middle of two of the league’s biggest games.
The rest of the schedule didn’t do much to soften the blow. Arkansas-Vanderbilt and Kentucky-Oklahoma were handed the night slots, which means three of the SEC’s bottom-tier teams and a Kentucky group that was ranked before dropping out after a road win over South Carolina in Week 5 ended up filling prime time.
As Clint Lamb put it on X: "Putting AUB-UGA and UA-TENN at the same time is… dumb. Throwing those in with a top-25 matchup in MIZZ-OM is even dumber. It was a bad call when they revealed the time windows months ago."
That frustration points to the obvious question: is this all just a push to make people buy multiview or find a bar showing both games?
The cleaner answer is the one fans already know. Money drives these decisions, not convenience.
ABC will air Notre Dame-BYU on October 17 in the night slot, and that game bumped what many would have considered the more natural fit: Tennessee against Alabama on Rocky Top. Since the game is in Provo and not South Bend, ESPN controls the rights to the Big 12-hosted matchup and moved it to primetime. NBC only has Notre Dame’s home games.
When Notre Dame is available, the network apparently wants Notre Dame. The Irish’s opener against Wisconsin drew more than seven million viewers in Week 1, which helps explain the pull.
Still, it’s hard to ignore how little this seems to account for Alabama, one of the country’s most dependable college football markets. Birmingham, for instance, has been the No. 1 highest-rated college football market in the United States for 11 of the last 12 seasons.
And for fans in the Yellowhammer State, the timing annoyance doesn’t stop there. With the UFL having already ditched Protective Stadium, it’s another hit that makes it feel like the state can’t catch a break from the people calling the shots.
In Other News...
Indiana Faces One Extra Problem In Huge Nebraska Showdown
Saturdays showdown in Lincoln already has the feel of an early-season measuring stick, with Indiana and Nebraska both arriving unbeaten at 5-0 and carrying the kind of rsum that makes this one matter well beyond the Big Noon Kickoff stage. The Hoosiers also take the field with a slight edge in the all-time series, but none of that guarantees much once the ball is kicked off at noon ET on FOX.
The bigger wrinkle may come from the conditions themselves, with the forecast calling for heat near 88 degrees and steady winds in the 15-25 mph range. In a game that could hinge on field position and hidden yardage, those gusts have the potential to complicate kicking and punting, adding one more layer of pressure to a matchup between two of the nations 15 remaining undefeated teams. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Heads Into A Huge Road Test Nebraska Desperately Needs
Nebraskas matchup with No. 7 Indiana brings an attention-grabbing Big Ten backdrop, but it also carries a bit of history for the home side. This is Nebraskas first chance since 2016 to knock off an AP Top 25 opponent, which gives the game some extra weight beyond the usual conference stakes. Curt Cignetti has already signaled he is looking forward to the test, and Indiana enters knowing it is walking into a road environment that should tell plenty about where both teams stand.
A big part of the challenge comes from Nebraska quarterback Anthony Colandrea, who has grown into a dual-threat presence and gives Matt Rhules offense a different layer to solve. Rhule even drew a parallel to some former Nebraska greats while talking about Colandreas role, a sign of how central he has become to the game plan. Indiana, meanwhile, brings a defense and an offense that have earned respect, which is why this one feels like more than a ranked-vs.-unranked matchup and more like a real measuring stick for both programs. [Read more 🡒]
Indiana Just Showed How Dangerous This Team Can Really Be
Homecoming at SHI Stadium turned into a showcase for just how explosive Indiana can be when everything starts clicking. Josh Hoover was sharp and efficient, completing 20 of 27 passes for 251 yards and four touchdowns, while the Hoosiers kept Rutgers on its heels by mixing in a ground game that never let the Scarlet Knights settle in.
Turbo Richard and Lee Beebe Jr. were part of a rushing attack that piled up 329 yards, and the line play on both sides helped set the tone from the start. When Indiana is winning up front like this, the offense can stretch a game in a hurry, and the defense has the kind of support that can make the whole operation look a lot more dangerous. [Read more 🡒]