The things that make college football special are - one by one - coming to an end.
Next on the docket is likely to be the major marquee non-conference matchups. With the SEC expanding to nine conference games starting in 2026, there will be plenty of opportunities for resume-boosting wins in the College Football Playoff chase.
With nine difficult games on the schedule, why add another in the non-conference that can only be punishing?
That was USC's argument for not wanting to play Notre Dame later in the season, as the Irish preferred. And that storied rivalry has now been put on pause as a result.
For Alabama football, it could spell the end of several future marquee home-and-home matchups that Greg Byrne has on the docket. According to Mark Ingram, Alabama's home-and-home with Ohio State is in jeopardy.
Talking on the Triple Option Podcast, Ingram stated that the Crimson Tide's series with the Buckeyes is in jeopardy.
"Alabama has a home and away with Ohio State. Why would you even do that?" Ingram asked. "They're talking about trying to not do that anymore. I don't know if it's going to get done or it's not, but it's definitely on the radar to get that off the schedule. What benefit does it do you if you play that game close and they're going to hold it against you?"
Mark Ingram says the Alabama-Ohio State series might not happen after all
Alabama still made the College Football Playoff this season in spite of losing its "marquee" non-conference game on the road to Florida State. But if Alabama had replaced that game with the little sisters of the poor instead, the Crimson Tide would have been a shoo-in for the playoff after an 11-1 regular season and a berth in the SEC Championship Game. It never would have been in doubt.
Texas is no doubt thinking the same thing. The Longhorns went 9-3 in the regular season, with one of those three losses coming in Week 1 on the road to Ohio State. Had the Longhorns played the Bobcats of Ohio instead of the Buckeyes, then Steve Sarkisian likely would have led his team to the playoff, too.
Who loses if that series gets cancelled? As always in this era of college football, it's the fans.
Alabama and Ohio State are two of the most storied programs in college football. They've only met five times ever, with all coming at neutral sites: four in bowl games and one in a season-opener in New Jersey.
Getting the opportunity to travel to historic stadiums like The Horseshoe or Bryant-Denny is part of what makes college football fandom so special. And it appears to be just another casualty in a long line of them in this new era of the sport.