“College GameDay” is heading to the heart of Texas for a matchup of future SEC opponents in top-ranked Alabama and host Texas.
Rece Davis, Kirk Herbstreit, Desmond Howard, David Pollack, Lee Corso and Co. will head to Austin, Texas and set up shop outside Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. There, they will preview a game with a litany of storylines, including arguably the biggest test yet of Steve Sarkisian’s tenure with the Longhorns.
Sarkisian is entering his second season at Texas after having served as Alabama’s offensive coordinator under Nick Saban in 2019 and 2020. Now he will become the latest Saban disciple to attempt to take him down.
MORE: Watch Alabama vs. Texas live with fuboTV (free trial)
This isn’t just a big test for Sarkisian, either. Quinn Ewers — whose recruitment and eventual transfer from Ohio State to Texas has been placed under a microscope — will take on an Alabama defense that includes pass-rushers Will Anderson Jr. and Dallas Turner, among others.
Alabama, meanwhile, will play only its third nonconference road game since Saban took over in 2007. The previous two such games were at Duke in 2010 (a 62-13 win) and at No. 23 Penn State in 2011 (a 27-11 win). A win on Saturday would move Saban to 3-0 all time at Alabama in such games.
Last but not least: This meeting will be the teams’ first meeting since the 2010 BCS championship game, in which the Crimson Tide launched its dynasty under Saban with his first national championship in Tuscaloosa. Texas, meanwhile, has never been the same since. The Longhorns have only one 10-win season since, and have finished ranked in the postseason only four times.
With that, The Sporting News takes a look at the two “GameDay” visits for Week 2:
Where is ‘College GameDay’ location for Week 2?
- Location: Austin, Texas
- Time: 9 a.m. ET
- Matchup: No. 1 Alabama at Texas
This will be Texas’ 19th appearance on “College GameDay,” and eighth time hosting.
The Longhorns are 10-8 in their 18 previous meetings, including 5-2 at home (and 4-2 at home against ranked opponents). The team’s last appearance at home on “GameDay” came in 2019, when No. 6 LSU beat No. 9 Texas 45-38.
This will be Alabama’s 53rd appearance on “GameDay,” good for second all time behind only Ohio State (54 all-time appearances). The Crimson Tide are 34-18 ahead of Saturday’s meeting, including 8-5 as the road team.
The teams’ only meeting as “GameDay” opponents came at the 2010 BCS national championship game — a 37-21 for top-ranked Alabama over No. 2 Texas that gave Nick Saban his first national title in Tuscaloosa.
MORE: Latest college football rankings
‘College GameDay’ schedule on ESPN
Saturday, Sept. 10
- Start time: 9 a.m. ET
- TV channel: ESPN
- Streaming: ESPN+, fuboTV
The “GameDay” crew will preview all the Week 2 action live from Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin, Texas. The Alabama-Texas game kicks off at noon ET on Fox.
The Week 3 game has not been announced, but an attractive game between No. XX Miami and No. X Texas A&M in College Station could be the play.
| Week | Matchup | Location | Guest Picker | Corso’s Headgear | Outcome |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | West Virginia at No. 17 Pitt (Thursday) | Pittsburgh | N/A | Panthers | Pitt 38, WVU 31 |
| 1 | No. 5 Notre Dame at No. 2 Ohio State | Columbus, Ohio | Jack Harlow | Buckeyes | Ohio State 21, Notre Dame 10 |
| 2 | No. 1 Alabama at Texas | Austin, Texas | TBD | TBD | TBD |
Who is the guest picker on ‘College GameDay’ for Week 2?
“GameDay” has yet to announce its Week 2 guest picker for Alabama-Texas.
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