Hurricane Isaias has strengthened to a Category 3. Will it affect Alabama-Georgia football?

SEC officials, Alabama and Georgia are proceeding as if Saturday’s football game between the Crimson Tide and Bulldogs will kick off as scheduled at 6:30 CT in Tuscaloosa, while monitoring developments with Hurricane Isaias in case any late changes need to be made. At this time, Georgia has not changed its travel plans and will be staying in Birmingham, Ala., Friday night. Advertisement The storm was upgraded to a Category 3 hurricane on Friday morning and is expected to make landfall along the Alabama-Florida Gulf Coast Friday night or early Saturday. Updated forecasts project the storm barreling through Tuscaloosa, 200 miles inland, by 1 p.m. ET on Saturday, and moving quickly through the area by Saturday evening. Plans could still change if the storm intensifies, changes track, or if too much emergency personnel is required elsewhere for storm damage. There is also the danger of power outages and downed trees and power lines in Tuscaloosa, even if the storm doesn’t directly impact the area around the stadium. The White House hasn’t made any announcements about President Donald Trump’s plans to attend the game, but Trump told reporters Wednesday that he would “let the hurricane determine” whether he attends. ESPN’s “College GameDay” said Thursday it would move its broadcast indoors to Coleman Coliseum, home of the Alabama basketball and gymnastics teams. What is the forecast? The storm itself still looks dangerous for the Gulf Coast. The forecast calls for rain to be out of Tuscaloosa by early afternoon, providing enough time for the field to dry. The track of the storm could always slow down and affect that, but for now, officials are optimistic. “While the weather looks like it’s going to improve in the evening Saturday, there will be quite a bit of rain, some power outages, and the potential for tornadoes,” Chad Merrill, a senior meteorologist at AccuWeather, said. The main remaining concern as far as Bryant-Denny Stadium itself would be power outages in the area. Why hasn't the game been moved yet? Moving the game to Saturday morning wouldn’t help, unless the models changed. Moving to Sunday afternoon was an option, and Georgia has done that before. Ten years ago, its game at South Carolina was moved from Saturday night to Sunday at 2:30 p.m. because of Hurricane Matthew. Officials made the decision on Thursday of game week after the storm strengthened to a Category 4 hurricane. And while Columbia, S.C., is about three hours inland, the need for state troopers to help with hurricane-related security and relief also factored into the decision. South Carolina had local police help with game traffic and stadium security. Advertisement Georgia won the game, 28-14, then had a shorter turnaround before a home game against Vanderbilt, which it lost. (South Carolina had a bye week.) Georgia hosts Auburn next week, while Alabama plays its rivalry game at Tennessee. So neither school would want to move the game to Sunday. The teams do not share a bye week: Georgia is off Week 8 (Oct. 24) and Alabama is off the following week. Are there other options? There is precedent for moving the game site: In 2015, with Hurricane Joaquin bearing down on the South Carolina coast, a South Carolina-LSU game was moved to Baton Rouge. A year later, LSU was involved in a much messier situation without a good resolution. The Tigers were scheduled to play at Florida when Hurricane Matthew hit. Officials postponed the game and the schools couldn’t agree on a make-up date. They didn’t have the same bye week, but both had nonconference games the same weekend. LSU was adamant about not giving up a home game. Florida ended up going to Baton Rouge, with both teams buying out their nonconference games, and the Gators won the game, 16-10. The mess left ill feelings on both sides, and the SEC changed its rules to have more control over such situations, which came in handy when the COVID-19 pandemic struck before the 2020 season. As for other potential sites: Atlanta’s Mercedes-Benz Stadium, site of the SEC championship, is hosting an MLS match Saturday. Could the game be moved to Athens? If it’s out of the storm path, that’s always an option. It would also mean Alabama would only have three home SEC games this year, and presuming the 2028 game could then be flipped to an Alabama home game, Georgia would only have three SEC home games that year. It’s not a deal-breaker, but it’s not ideal. The other considerations For this game, the football schedule may be the easy part. Advertisement There is Trump’s planned visit, which means added security for a game where 90,000 fans are expected in the stadium. It’s not the first rodeo for Alabama officials: Trump attended this same game in 2024. Still, it’s an added complication if the president still plans to go. It’s unclear whether the White House is being consulted. When asked Wednesday if the forecast had altered his plans, Trump said he hadn't heard about a hurricane but indicated it could keep him away from the game. "If there's an emergency or if there's a hurricane, I don't want to do anything to take the focus off all of the great people that work on those things," Trump said. "They have some tremendously great people. I don't want to take the focus off. So we'll have to see." Added Trump, "Certainly, I'm going to let hurricane determine ... I want people to be safe." Then there are the same staffing concerns that have impacted previous situations. Police and other emergency personnel may be needed elsewhere if the storm appears serious. Power outages near the stadium and in the Tuscaloosa area could cause issues. “It’s easy for a meteorologist to say, ‘Well just move the game to Sunday.’ Well there’s logistical hurdles we don’t even remotely understand,” said James Spann, longtime meteorologist with the Alabama Weather Network. “Even the coaches, I don’t think they know the full logistics. But I will say, the one time I was involved with discussion of moving a game for a hurricane, the coaches were not happy with that. They don’t want that. So we’ll just have to sit back and wait and see.”