The No. 7 Alabama Crimson Tide face the No. 16 Mississippi State Bulldogs on Saturday in Starkville, Miss.
As it turns out, Alabama has an unusual travel schedule, with head coach Kalen DeBoer saying the Crimson Tide team will leave Saturday morning.
Kalen DeBoer said Alabama will make the trip over to Starkville on Saturday morning for the 11 o'clock kickoff.
— Mike Rodak (@mikerodak) September 28, 2026
"It's gonna be a little different — different set up that way, too," DeBoer said.
It is an 85-mile drive from Tuscaloosa to Starkville, but it’s still an interesting decision by the program to leave the morning of the game.
“Other teams have been staying here in Tuscaloosa recently as they come through heading up that way,” DeBoer said regarding the decision. “Again, it’s been done before. Just as recently as three years ago. It worked then.”
DeBoer also said there is a lack of appropriate hotels in the Starkville area, and the time three years ago he was referring to was when Alabama won 40-17 with Nick Saban as the head coach.
As of July 2025, Starkville had a population of just over 25,000, so it isn’t a big city. Still, not getting a walkthrough on the field beforehand is an interesting move, although DeBoer is using the history to his benefit.
The game is scheduled for noon ET on Saturday, so Alabama might need to leave very early in the morning. Let’s see if the move pays off.
