Alabama Football Schedules 2029 Matchup with Sun Belt Program

The Crimson Tide will host a team it hasn't faced since 1999.

Alabama Head Coach Kalen DeBoer watches a play unfold in the first half of the game against Eastern Illinois on November 22, 2025. | Sarah Munzenmaier/Alabama Crimson Tide on SI

Alabama football has scheduled a matchup with Louisiana Tech for the 2029 season, UA announced on Wednesday morning.

The game is set for Aug. 25 of that year and will be played at Bryant-Denny Stadium. This will be Alabama's season opener for 2029, and it's the earliest game in program history.

This will be the first time these two programs meet since 1999. It's one of two known games for the 2029 season, as the Crimson Tide will travel to Notre Dame on Sept. 1.

The Crimson Tide and the Bulldogs have faced off just five times, with Louisiana Tech leading 3-2. This includes a 1993 forfeited game, as Louisiana Tech holds a two-game winning streak. The first contest of the series occurred on Sept. 24, 1966 in Birmingham.

Louisiana Tech joined the Sun Belt Conference on July 1 after competing in Conference USA since 2013. The latest Independence Bowl winner finished last season with 8-5 record, its first year over .500 since 2019.

While this is something to keep on the 2029 calendar, Alabama is currently focused on the start of the 2026 season.

For the last couple of decades, Alabama has been The Standard of college football and a program that is considered the face of the sport. The Crimson Tide's prestigious status was led by head coach Nick Saban, but he announced his retirement after the 2023 season. Kalen DeBoer has filled Saban's role the last two years, and while Alabama made the College Football Playoff last season, it hasn't necessarily lived up to being the mecca.

Entering the 2026 season, Alabama is still being talked about, but not nearly as much as some other teams like Indiana, Ohio State, Texas, Georgia and more. UA was picked 13th in the Preseason AP Top 25 and 11th in the Preseason Coaches Poll, both the lowest placements since 2008.

The Tide is in an unfamiliar spot with its lack of being the face of the sport, and Saban approved Alabama's status as an under-the-radar team at SEC Media Days. DeBoer said at the time that he doesn't mind that at all and it's in the back of his players' minds.

So, should Alabama be concerned with its national expectations? Well, you could look at this bulletin board material in a couple of ways: One is that you play every game as if the entire country wants you to lose, which adds a ton of fuel to the fire. But at the same time, playing against the world could distract a team from the opponent in front of them.

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