MOBILE, Ala. — South Alabama will play two football games at Nebraska, athletic director Joel Erdmann announced Thursday in finalizing a two-game contract with the Big Ten program.
Both games will be played in Lincoln, Neb. The first is scheduled for Sept. 12, 2015, and the second will be the 2019 season opener on Aug. 31, 2019.
2015 and 2019 Schedules
The Sun Belt Conference plans to move to a nine-game conference schedule by 2015. South Alabama’s 2015 non-conference schedule already includes a home game against NC State and a trip to Navy in Annapolis, Md.
In 2019, the only other confirmed non-conference game is a Sept. 28 trip to New Orleans to play Tulane.
The 2012 Schedule
In the upcoming 2012 season, South Alabama will play non-conference road games at NC State, Mississippi State and Hawaii and will host UTSA and Nicholls State in Mobile. The Jaguars will play 13 games, as NCAA rules allow an extra game for teams that travel to Hawaii.
Future Opponents
South Alabama’s future schedules also include:
- LSU (2016)
- Tennessee (2013)
- Georgia (2014)
- Ole Miss (2017)
- Mississippi State (2012, 2014 in Mobile, 2016)
- Oklahoma State (2017 in Mobile, 2018, 2020)
- NC State (2012, 2015 in Mobile), after a 2011 game in Raleigh
- Southern Miss (2020, 2021 in Mobile)
- Navy (2013, 2014 in Mobile, 2015, 2016 in Mobile)
- Louisiana Tech (2017, 2018 in Mobile)
- Tulane (2013, 2019, 2020 in Mobile)
- Kent State (2013 in Mobile, 2014), after a 2011 game in Ohio
Jones on the Matchup
Head coach Joey Jones said the Nebraska games add to a growing list of major opponents. “We’ve got another team to add to the list of many that we’re playing, big-time schools,” Jones said. “This excites our players and everyone else in the football program. We know that every year we are going to play two or three big-time teams around the country.”
“I don’t think it’s so much the conference than just looking to play the top-20 type teams in the country,” Jones said. “We’d love to play USC or Oregon one day too, we want to play those caliber of teams, to get to that level, we have to face them. That’s why we’re doing it.”
Spring Practice
South Alabama completed its fourth practice of the spring Thursday morning and will hold its first Saturday practice this weekend. The spring game is scheduled for 2 p.m. Saturday, March 24.
