As talks continue on in various circles about the College Football Playoff expanding to include more teams, over the past several years the scheduling announcements of future games seems to get more and more intriguing with name brand match ups across college football.
Today, two of college football’s elite programs announced a future home-and-home series, as Ohio State and Alabama have agreed to play each other in 2027 and 2028. The 2027 game will take place in Columbus and the 2028 game will travel to Tuscaloosa. For those curious, Nick Saban will officially be in his mid-70’s when these games take place.
This will mark the first time the two teams have met in the regular season since the 1986 Kickoff Classic at the Meadowlands, and of course their last meeting took place in the College Football Playoff back in the 2015 Sugar Bowl. That game saw the #4 Buckeyes knock off the top ranked Tide for the National Title.
Ohio State notes in their release on the game that over the last 100 games they have the best record in college football at 91-9, while Alabama is tied with Clemson at 90-10.
The Buckeyes and Crimson Tide are two programs that have seemed to lead the way with a focus on premier FBS opponents moving into the future. Take a look at some of the opponents each has lined up the next several years:
| 2022 | @ Texas |
| 2023 | vs. Texas |
| 2024 | @ Wisconsin |
| 2025 | @ Florida State; vs. Wisconsin |
| 2026 | @ West Virginia; @Florida State |
| 2027 | West Virginia; @ Ohio State |
| 2028 | @ Notre Dame; vs. Ohio State |
| 2029 | vs. Notre Dame |
| 2030 | at Georgia Tech |
| 2031 | vs. Georgia Tech |
| 2032 | vs. Arizona; @ Oklahoma |
| 2033 | @ Arizona; vs. Oklahoma |
| 2034 | @ Virginia Tech |
| 2035 | vs. Virginia Tech |
| 2020 | @ Oregon |
| 2021 | vs. Oregon |
| 2022 | vs. Notre Dame |
| 2023 | @ Notre Dame |
| 2024 | @ Washington |
| 2025 | @ Texas; vs. Washington |
| 2026 | vs. Texas |
| 2027 | vs. Alabama |
| 2028 | @ Alabama |
| 2030 | @ Georgia |
| 2031 | vs. Georgia |
Should the playoff expand, like so many believe it will, the Buckeyes and Tide will be in great shape. Will Nick Saban still be leading the Tide or will he be sipping on an adult beverage somewhere tropical enjoying retirement? Will Ryan Day still be leading the Buckeyes or will and NFL team lure him away from Columbus? Both intriguing questions.
Stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.
