Alabama AD Greg Byrne explains why Tide doesn’t schedule a game against Oregon despite its Eugene origins

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Scheduling is always a topic that sports directors are asked about, as different fans have different ideas about entertaining early-season fixtures. On Monday, someone asked AlabamaGreg Byrne on the possible encounter with the Oregon Ducks in a home-and-away series. One year the Crimson Tide will head west, while another year the Ducks will head south.

Byrne, who grew up in Eugene and still has ties to the area, had to explain why the theoretical series wouldn’t work. The SEC’s future scheduling is currently uncertain, giving members concerns about future non-conference play.

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“Although I grew up in Eugene and have many friends there, we have no plans for it for the following reasons,” Byrne said of X. “1. We have dates with opponents from A4 (Wisconsin, FSU, Ohio State, Notre-Dame, WVUother).

“2. I don’t know if we will add another SEC conference game in the future (8 or 9?). We have paused adding new A4 non-conference games until future SEC schedules are finalized.”

Over the next two seasons, the SEC will have only eight conference games. Expanding to nine is certainly possible, but could result in some key out-of-conference games not being played, especially for those programs that already have in-state rivalries at the end of the season.

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Alabama in particular has some great home and away games lined up, with a trip to Madison to face Wisconsin on Sept. 21 in just a few weeks. Byrne mentioned some of the others, with them facing two A4 opponents (including Notre Dame) every season through 2035.

This is due to the years in which the seasons always started against big opponents, albeit on neutral ground. Nick Saban During his time as program leader, he rarely played against non-SEC Power Five teams outside of Bryant-Denny Stadium during the regular season.

For now, this particular fan (or Byrne) won’t be watching Alabama play Oregon, a matchup we’ve never seen in college football. Perhaps once the SEC provides more clarity on what conference scheduling will look like, Byrne can find a way to have a series between the two take place in his hometown.