25 Must-See Alabama High School Football Games in 2026

The road to Alabama's 2026 high school football state championships will feature plenty of heavyweight matchups along the way.

From No. 1 Thompson's season-opening showdown with Central to traditional rivalries and late-season games carrying major playoff implications, the schedule is loaded with contests worth circling.

High School On SI selected 25 Alabama high school football games to watch in 2026, including several matchups between teams featured in our preseason Alabama Top 25.

Early Season Matchups

Aug. 20: Thompson at Central: The season officially kicks off next Thursday, and Thompson at Central will be one of the top games to watch across the entire country as Alabama commit, Trent Seaborn, takes on Georgia State commit, Bj Coleman.

Aug. 20: Daphne at Spanish Fort: Daphne at Spanish Fort also kicks off on Thursday as these two rivals will duke it out to see who is the best team in the Alabama Gulf Coast region this year.

Aug. 22: St. Michael Catholic vs. Battle Ground Academy (TN): Led by senior quarterback, Gunner Rivers St. Michael's Catholic will take on Battle Ground Academy and quarterback Bo Bryan on ESPN2 at 12:30 p.m. Central Time. Bryan is the son of legendary country music singer, Luke Bryan, and he is currently listed a composite three-star quarterback on 247 Sports.

Aug. 27: Clay-Chalkville at Thompson: As we round out the end of our early season matchups, Thompson will take on Clay-Chalkville one week after their pivotal matchup with Central. The Warriors will be looking for payback this game as the Cougars defeated them 28-24 last season.

Aug. 20: Parker at Vestavia Hills

Aug. 21: Hewitt-Trussville at Auburn

Aug. 21: Opelika at Benjamin Russell

Aug. 21: Saraland at Mary G. Montgomery

Aug. 21: Muscle Shoals at Hoover

Aug. 21: Pike Road at Enterprise

Midseason Matchups

Sept. 11: Prattville at Hoover: On paper, Prattville has one of the most difficult two-game stretches in the state this season as they take on Hoover and Hewitt-Trussville both on the road.

Sept. 18: Auburn vs. Central: Both teams could find themselves ranked no. 1 and 2 when it's time for kickoff. This game will also have district title and playoff implications for each team.

Sept. 25: Vigor at Benjamin Russell: One of the more underrated matchups that we have focused our attention to this season is Vigor at Benjamin Russell on September 25. Vigor currently has five players that are nationally ranked on Rivals with two players, linebacker Isaac McNeil and edge rusher JaBarrius Garror, ranked inside the top 110 players in the country. Meanwhile, Benjamin Russell features one of the top quarterbacks in the country, Kingston Preyear, who is currently committed to Alabama.

Sept. 18: Prattville at Hewitt-Trussville

Sept. 18: Auburn at Central

Sept. 18: Oxford at Clay-Chalkville

Sept. 24: Parker at Carver

Oct. 9: Thompson at Hewitt-Trussville

Oct. 9: Enterprise at Carver

Rivalry Matchups and Late Season Clashes

As we look at the rest of the games to watch for in 2026, October features a number of rivalry and regional matchups that will determine playoff seeding.

A number of these games will take place in the Birmingham metropolitan area as Hoover, Spain Park, Vestavia Hills and Thompson will be jostling for position for the playoffs. Meanwhile, Auburn and Opelika will take on each other in what is one of the oldest high school football rivalries in the southeast.

Lastly, Central at Clay-Chalkville rounds out our list of games to watch, and this matchup will be an appetizer for what's to come in the 2026 Alabama high school football playoffs.

Sept. 18: Spain Park at Vestavia Hills

Oct. 2: Opelika at Auburn

Oct. 2: Thompson at Hoover

Oct. 2: Mary G. Montgomery at Baker

Oct. 8: Hoover at Vestavia Hills

Oct. 16: Spain Park at Hoover

Oct. 30: Central at Clay-Chalkville

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