Alabama vs. Miami announced as 2021 Chick-Fil-A Kickoff Game
By John Buhler
After a successful Labor Day weekend, it has been announced that the Alabama Crimson Tide will play the Miami Hurricanes in the 2021 Chick-Fil-A Kickoff.
What a great weekend for college football it was in Week 1. Unless you root for Texas, Texas A&M or Georgia Tech, you probably thoroughly enjoyed your Labor Day weekend. College football has made it a point to dominate Labor Day weekend and no game is a bigger deal than the annual Chick-Fil-A Kickoff game in Atlanta.
This year saw the No. 1 Alabama Crimson Tide defeat the No. 3 Florida State Seminoles on Saturday night. Brand new Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta held another thriller on Labor Day night, as the No. 25 Tennessee Volunteers were able to overtake the hometown Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets in overtime.
On Tuesday afternoon, it was announced that the 2021 Chick-Fil-A Kickoff will feature another great matchup between ACC and SEC powers: the Crimson Tide and the Miami Hurricanes.
Alabama-Miami announced for the 2021 Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game.
— Stewart Mandel (@slmandel) September 5, 2017
Though the Crimson Tide and the Hurricanes rarely play, the two programs’ head coaches are well acquainted with one another. That’s because Nick Saban and Mark Richt used to duke it out all the time in the SEC when Richt was leading the Georgia Bulldogs.
It’s no surprise that these two blue-blood programs would want to clash in a game like this. Richt and Saban are two coaches that love playing in this particular game. Both hold winning in Atlanta in high regard. Saban routinely wins SEC Championships in the Georgia capital, while Richt dominates the Yellow Jackets down the road at Bobby Dodd Stadium.
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Saban may not be coaching all that much longer, but Richt looks to be in it for the long haul at his alma mater. Though these two programs could look totally different when they meet in 2021, it should be an incredible matchup Week 1 nonetheless.