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Alabama Governor Kay Ivey
Ivey signed House Joint Resolution 17 into law last week after the measure passed both chambers of the Alabama Legislature without a single dissenting vote. The legislation establishes the Alabama Community College Football Study Commission, which will investigate the feasibility of bringing full-contact football back to the state's two-year institutions.
The unanimous passage of the resolution is notable in an era of deep partisan division, suggesting that the prospect of returning football to Alabama's community colleges carries broad bipartisan appeal in a state where the sport holds an almost cultural significance.
That cultural backdrop has led some higher education advocates to argue that community colleges — which serve a disproportionately high number of first-generation students, low-income students and students of color — have long been missing out on the unifying power of collegiate athletics. Research has consistently shown that athletic programs can increase student enrollment, improve retention rates and foster a stronger sense of campus identity, particularly at smaller institutions that struggle to compete for students with larger four-year universities.
The commission will draw its membership from a broad cross-section of stakeholders, including state legislators, community college administrators, athletic directors and representatives from four-year universities. Supporters say the diverse composition is designed to ensure a comprehensive analysis of the issue from multiple perspectives, weighing not only the potential benefits of restoring football programs but also the financial and logistical challenges that led many community colleges to abandon the sport in the first place.
Indeed, cost remains one of the central concerns surrounding any push to restore community college football. Running a competitive football program requires significant investment in coaching staff, equipment, facilities, scholarships and travel — expenses that have historically strained the budgets of two-year institutions operating with limited state funding. Critics of restoration efforts have long argued that those dollars might be better directed toward academic programs, student services or workforce development initiatives that more directly serve the mission of community colleges.
But proponents counter that the financial calculus has shifted. The rise of Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deals, the expansion of the junior college football pipeline into major college programs, and growing interest from donors and local businesses in supporting community-based athletics have created new revenue possibilities that did not exist when Alabama's community colleges last fielded football teams.
Under the terms of the legislation, the commission must convene for the first time no later than May 1, 2026, and is required to deliver a final report — including its conclusions and policy recommendations — to the Governor, the Legislature and the Chancellor of the Alabama Community College System by November 1, 2026. The commission will be dissolved upon submission of its final report.
Lawmakers who championed the resolution say community college football programs could serve as a critical pipeline for student-athletes who might otherwise lack access to competitive play after high school, while also deepening campus engagement and providing a measurable economic boost to local communities through ticket sales, tourism and increased enrollment.
Alabama's community colleges phased out football programs decades ago, citing financial concerns. But with the national conversation around college athletics undergoing rapid transformation — driven by NIL rights, conference realignment and growing calls for expanded access to athletic opportunity — supporters of the commission say the time is right to take a fresh look at whether football's return could help Alabama's two-year institutions better serve their students and their communities.
The commission's final report is expected to set the stage for potential legislation in the 2027 session of the Alabama Legislature.
