The Alabama Crimson Tide and the Wisconsin Badgers will open the 2015 season at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas, both schools announced today.
The game will be played on Saturday, Sept. 5, 2015. Television and network coverage will be announced at a later date, but the game will likely by a national broadcast in prime time.
Wisconsin defeated Alabama 15-0 in the only meeting between the two schools way back in 1928. That game was played in Madison.
“As a league we decided that we needed to upgrade our non-conference schedule,” UW Director of Athletics Barry Alvarez said. “We understand that strength of schedule will be a factor in determining which teams earn the right to participate in the new four-team playoff system and we want to be in that mix. There’s no better way to do that than by playing the defending national champions. We are thrilled to have the opportunity to play a storied program like Alabama in a terrific venue like Cowboys Stadium. It will be a great experience for our program, our players and our fans.”
The Crimson Tide now have neutral site season-openers set for the next three seasons. Bama faces Virginia Tech on Aug. 31, 2013 in the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game in Atlanta, meets West Virginia on Aug. 30, 2014 again in Atlanta, and then Wisconsin in 2015.
Wisconsin is the first official non-conference opponent for Alabama for the 2015 season. The Crimson Tide could also host Colorado State, but 2017 is a possibility for that game as well.
The Badgers were previously slated to host Washington State on Sept. 5, 2015, so a new date for that game is to be determined.
Football Schedules