Alabama and Louisville will kick off the 2018 season in Orlando, reports ESPN.com’s Brett McMurphy.
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The contest against the Cardinals will mark the seventh straight season that Alabama will not have a true road game on its schedule.
Florida Citrus Sports officials have been working on securing regular season, neutral-site games during a four-year window starting in 2016.
Alabama has played neutral site games in six of Nick Saban’s eight seasons, including the past three years (2012 vs. Michigan in Arlington, Texas; 2013 vs. Virginia Tech in Atlanta and 2014 vs. West Virginia in Atlanta). “That’s going to be our philosophy to open with a big game most every year”, he said. The 2009 season opened in Atlanta against the Hokies as well. The Tide is also under a contract to negotiate another game in Arlington for 2019 or 2020.
Louisville is also getting used to this neutral site opener idea.
Louisville has future neutral site openers against Auburn on September 5 at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta and in 2017 against Purdue in Indianapolis. Of course, Louisville already satisfies its requirement by playing Kentucky. Alabama leads the overall series 2-1, having won 24-3 in 1976 and 55-6 in 1977 in Tuscaloosa.
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Alabama and Louisville have faced each other just three times before, with the most recent game taking place in the 1991 Fiesta Bowl.
