Alabama Crimson Tide fans and others can expect college football games to look a bit different on TV this season.
As Front Office Sports' Ryan Glasspiegel first reported Wednesday, ESPN is getting rid of its BottomLine ticker on college football broadcasts in 2026. That will include games on all ESPN platforms, including ESPN2, ABC, SEC Network, ACC Network, ESPNU and ESPNews.
According to a statement released to Front Office Sports, an ESPN spokesperson said:
"We're always looking for ways to better serve sports fans. By removing the BottomLine during live action, we're creating a cleaner presentation that keeps the focus where it belongs -- on the field."
ESPN already broadcasts College Football Playoff games and events like the NBA Finals without
the BottomLine ticker.
All 12 of Alabama's regular-season games are set to broadcast or stream on an ESPN platform in 2026. The same is true for most other SEC programs. Only the Oklahoma Sooners, Missouri Tigers and Mississippi State Bulldogs are scheduled to play games televised on non-ESPN channels.
Oklahoma visits Michigan in Week 2, a marquee nonconference showdown in Ann Arbor that will air on Fox. Missouri will visit Kansas that same week in a separate Fox game airing in prime time, and Mississippi State will travel to Minnesota for a Week 2 game against the Gophers that will air on CBS at 2:30 p.m. CT.
ESPN became the SEC's exclusive media rights holder beginning in 2024 after a near 30-year broadcast partnership with CBS for first-choice football telecasts.
The last time Alabama played a game that wasn't televised on an Disney-owned channel was in Week 3 of the 2024 season when the Crimson Tide visited the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium. Alabama beat Wisconsin, 42-10, in a game was televised on Fox.
Last year, 10 of Alabama's 12 regular-season games were televised on ABC. The Tide's first three games in 2026 -- against East Carolina, Kentucky and Florida State -- will all be televised on ABC.
Front Office Sports added:
"There will still be score alerts during games at specific times during each quarter, one source said. There will also be updates in places like above the score bug or on the top right of the screen to help viewers navigate various schedule changes that occur, such as if the present game is running late and a new game is starting on a different channel or platform.
"The changes should provide a less cluttered viewing experience that better showcases the action on the field, and makes sense as a vast majority of fans can just check the scores of other games on their phones or tablets."
The news comes one day after ESPN announced that select college football games in 2026, including Alabama's SEC opener against the Kentucky Wildcats on Sept. 12 in Lexington, would also be available to stream on Disney+.
Nick Saban shares humorous story about a new post-retirement hobby
— Roll Tide Wire (@RollTideWire) August 26, 2026
📸 Gary Cosby Jr.-Tuscaloosa News, USA TODAY Network via Reuters Co https://t.co/1Ycqx8B4cz pic.twitter.com/6l5HKvMeYt
Alabama football schedule 2026: start times, TV channels
All times Central.
- Sept. 5: vs. East Carolina, 11 a.m., ABC
- Sept. 12: at Kentucky, 2:30 p.m., ABC
- Sept. 19: vs. Florida State, 2:30 p.m., ABC
- Sept. 26: vs. South Carolina, prime time
- Oct. 3: at Mississippi State, early window
- Oct. 10: vs. Georgia, prime time
- Oct. 17: at Tennessee, TBA
- Oct. 24: vs. Texas A&M, TBA
- Nov. 7: at LSU, TBA
- Nov. 14: at Vanderbilt, TBA
- Nov. 21: vs. Chattanooga, 1 p.m., SEC Network+
- Nov. 28: vs. Auburn, TBA
New streaming option announced for Alabama football game in 2026
— Roll Tide Wire (@RollTideWire) August 25, 2026
📸 Kevin C. Cox, Getty Images https://t.co/2yWQtttcGq pic.twitter.com/Hev62bFDFC
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This article originally appeared on Roll Tide Wire: ESPN making major change to Alabama broadcasts, college football games
