College football scheduling used to be a game of chess. But the Southeastern Conference’s move to a 9-game conference schedule starting in 2026 has sent ripples through college football. After years of talks and anticipation, the SEC officially decided to extend the number of conference games from eight to nine. And align it with the Big Ten and Big 12’s schedules. It was intended to create more high-stakes matchups inside the conference. But for Kalen DeBoer’s Alabama, which prides itself on historic rivalries and carefully crafted schedules, this change became a little expensive. And it also brought some unwelcome consequences.

Under the new format, SEC teams will face three permanent opponents and six rotating conference foes yearly. For Alabama, this meant a big rethink of its non-conference matchups. And the first notable outcome was the cancellation of the home-and-home series between Alabama and West Virginia for the 2026 and 2027 seasons. “First adjustment was just made,” sports reporter Michael Cassgrande writes on X. “Alabama-West Virginia series is nixed. East Carolina added to Alabama’s 2026 schedule instead of opening at WVU.” See, Alabama and WVU had scheduled a home-and-home series slated for 2026 and 2027. That is with Alabama kicking things off on West Virginia’s turf in Morgantown in 2026 and then hosting the Mountaineers in Tuscaloosa the following year. This was a promising matchup that many fans were looking forward to. And especially given the SEC’s ever-evolving landscape.

But it turns out Alabama is opening its season with a new opponent: East Carolina in Bryant-Denny Stadium on September 5, 2026. What’s more intriguing is that Alabama has to pay East Carolina a $1.5 million guarantee. That is just to get that game on the calendar, according to a contract copy obtained by FBSchedules. And this guarantee is a financial handshake. That makes sure that East Carolina gets compensated for agreeing to travel to and play at Alabama.

This switch came as part of Alabama’s broader nonconference reshuffling. That also includes South Florida and Florida State in the same month. This creates a tough slate of games right out of the gate. West Virginia, for its part, isn’t left empty-handed. Moving away from the Alabama series allows them to align better with scheduling approaches common among teams vying for College Football Playoff access. So, the Mountaineers replaced Alabama with Coastal Carolina in 2026 and added Southern Mississippi for 2027. These are games that balance competitive outlooks with financial stability.

And even Alabama’s athletics director, Greg Byrne, talked about these schedule changes as part of a bigger strategy.

Greg Byrne speaks on the major SEC move 

With Alabama and West Virginia officially calling off their home-and-home football series set for 2026 and 2027, Greg Byrne stepped up with a statement. And it perfectly captures the changing landscape of college football scheduling. “We are proud of the number of high-quality home-and-home non-conference games we have scheduled for the next 10 years. 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,” Byrne said in a press release.

“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 the 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.” Now, regarding Alabama’s updated slate, the 2026 season opener will have East Carolina as discussed.

Looking further ahead, Alabama still boasts ten highly competitive non-conference home-and-home matchups scheduled across the next 11 seasons. These future games feature notable opponents like Florida State, Wisconsin, Ohio State, Oklahoma State, Notre Dame, Georgia Tech, Boston College, Arizona, Minnesota, and Virginia Tech. Interestingly, some of these matchups are still subject to change as the nine-game conference schedule firmly takes hold.