The Georgia-Oklahoma football game will kick off at 3:30pm ET on Saturday, Sept. 26 with a television designation of ABC or ESPN, the SEC announced. That time slot gives fans a mid-afternoon national window for a marquee non-conference meeting in Athens and sets expectations for travel and ticket planning.
Full details and the SEC’s Sept. 26 TV slate were summarized by SicEmDawgs.com, which also notes that resale tickets for the matchup currently start at roughly $350 each on secondary marketplaces. Exact network selection between ABC and ESPN remains subject to the league’s final assignment for the weekend.
Key Takeaways
- The Georgia-Oklahoma football game is scheduled for 3:30pm ET on Sept. 26 with a TV designation of ABC or ESPN.
- Resale tickets for the Athens game are currently listed starting around $350 apiece on ticket marketplaces.
- Georgia’s remaining 2026 home slate is largely labeled as flex games with kickoff windows that will be finalized 6–12 days before each contest.
Georgia-Oklahoma football game matchup in Athens
This meeting is a high-profile rematch in name and narrative, given the two programs’ only prior encounter came in the College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game on Jan. 1, 2018, a 54–48 Georgia win in double overtime. That game remains one of the most memorable postseason shootouts in recent memory and frames expectations for this regular-season showdown.
From a preparation standpoint, the 3:30pm slot on a national network pushes both teams into prime recruiting and national-viewing territory. The selection of ABC or ESPN for broadcast will determine whether the game carries ABC’s broader broadcast reach or ESPN’s cable-driven audience, but either choice assures a national footprint.
Georgia TV exposure and flex game schedule
Georgia’s broadcast map already shows appearances on SECN+ and the SEC Network earlier this season, and the Sept. 26 slot will be the program’s first outing on ESPN or second on ABC depending on the final weekend assignment. The league has designated seven remaining Georgia contests as flex games with assigned kickoff windows rather than fixed times.
Those flex windows include a range of start times across October and November: vs. Vanderbilt (12–1pm ET), at Alabama (6–8pm ET), vs. Auburn (3:30–4:30pm ET), at Ole Miss (3:30–8pm ET), vs.
Missouri (3:30–8pm ET), at South Carolina (3:30–8pm ET), and vs. Georgia Tech (3:30–8pm ET). The Florida game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Oct.
31 is already set for its traditional 3:30pm ET on ABC.
TV slate and kickoff window comparison
| Game | Announced Kickoff / Window | TV Designation |
|---|---|---|
| Ole Miss at Florida | 3:30pm | ABC or ESPN |
| Oklahoma at Georgia | 3:30pm | ABC or ESPN |
| Texas at Tennessee | 12:00pm | ABC |
| Vanderbilt at Auburn | 4:15pm | SECN |
SEC and College Football Playoff implications for Georgia and Oklahoma
The 3:30pm national window gives both programs a high-visibility measuring stick early in conference week-to-week evaluations and the broader College Football Playoff conversation. A quality win at this slot would bolster either school’s national profile during midseason rankings cycles.
Beyond standings and resume-building, the network assignment and national exposure matter for recruiting and program visibility. Playing in a widely distributed early-afternoon broadcast increases media touchpoints for prospects and amplifies game-day impressions that staff and evaluators track throughout the cycle.
Exact kickoff times for flex-designated games will be finalized 6–12 days before each matchup, so fans should monitor official SEC communications and their teams’ ticketing channels as the season approaches. See the linked report above for the SEC’s full Sept. 26 slate and additional scheduling context.
