PRIME-TIME, HIGH-PROFILE OPENERS
Aug. 30, 2014: Florida State defeats Oklahoma State 37-31 in Arlington, Texas.
Sept. 3, 2016: Florida State vs. Ole Miss in the Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando.
September 2017: Florida State vs. Alabama in Atlanta.
Florida State and Alabama are discussing playing a game in Atlanta to open the 2017 season, according to sources.
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Florida State has a similar season opener set for 2016 against another SEC team, Mississippi. That game will be in Orlando on Labor Day.
The Seminoles opened this year with a neutral-site game, playing Oklahoma State in Arlington, Texas, in prime time.
Alabama had approached Miami about the 2017 game, but the Hurricanes opted to open the 2018 season against LSU in Arlington and did not want to open successive seasons against Alabama and LSU.
Alabama reportedly has also had discussions with Penn State and USC about playing in 2017.
Florida State’s non-league schedule for 2015 has low-profile home games — against Texas State, South Florida and Chattanooga — and a road game against Florida.
The Seminoles are looking for one more game in 2016. Aside from opening the season against Ole Miss, they play at South Florida and against Florida in Tallahassee.
Florida State vs. Alabama might be one of two ACC-SEC matchups on the opening weekend of the 2017 season. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that Georgia Tech and Tennessee are nearing a deal to play in the 2017 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, also in Atlanta. This season, Atlanta was the site of two opening-week games with Boise State-Mississippi on Thursday, Aug. 28, and Alabama-West Virginia on Saturday, Aug. 30.
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Florida State and Alabama currently are two of the premier programs in the country. The Seminoles, No. 3 in the College Football Playoff rankings, are the defending national champions and have a 27-game winning streak.
Alabama is No. 1 in the CFP rankings and has won three of the last five titles.
The programs have met four times, most recently in 2007 in Jacksonville, a game FSU won 21-14 for its only victory in the series. The other three games were played in Tuscaloosa, with Alabama winning in 1965 and ‘74 and the teams tying in 1967.
Florida State coach Jimbo Fisher considers Alabama coach Nick Saban a mentor. Fisher coached under Saban for five seasons (2000-04) at LSU as the offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach.
