Montgomery Schools Close as Alabama State Moves Homecoming Game to Oct. 9

Students across Montgomery, Alabama, lost access to in-person and remote classes Friday, Oct. 9, after Montgomery Public Schools announced a districtwide closure amid a surge in employee leave requests. The decision followed Alabama State University's move to advance its homecoming football game against Florida A&M University because Hurricane Isaias threatened the region with severe weather.

According to Montgomery Public Schools, all campuses and administrative facilities will remain closed until Oct. 13, following a scheduled federal holiday. District officials cited staffing coverage and the need to maintain student safety and supervision as the reasons for the closure.

The university rescheduled the Southwestern Athletic Conference matchup for Friday morning at ASU Stadium in Montgomery. Alabama State's athletics department announced the revised kickoff time as 11:05 a.m., moving the game forward from its original Saturday afternoon schedule to avoid potential weather-related disruptions.

Alabama State Athletics explained that the decision followed coordination between the two universities as tropical weather threatened the River Region.

"With tropical storms headed towards the River Region and other outdoor athletic events considering rescheduling, the two schools agreed to move the Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) clash up a day to avoid any delays or larger issues," Alabama State Athletics said in a statement.

The game will air on SWAC TV instead of HBCU GO, according to the university's revised broadcast announcement. The change is part of broader adjustments to the school's homecoming schedule, which originally included several events throughout the weekend.

Alabama State also announced changes to its other homecoming activities.

"All other Homecoming activities scheduled between Friday and Sunday have been rescheduled, with additional details forthcoming," the university said.

The Homecoming Concert scheduled for Thursday night was set to proceed as planned, while the 50 Under 50 Induction Ceremony scheduled for Thursday was postponed. Friday's tailgate and parade were canceled from the day's schedule, and events planned for Saturday and Sunday were rescheduled.

Hurricane Isaias prompted the changes as forecasters anticipated heavy rainfall, strong winds and possible isolated tornadoes across parts of Alabama. The storm strengthened from a tropical storm into the first Atlantic hurricane of the 2026 season and was forecast to reach Category 2 strength before making landfall.

According to the National Weather Service, the storm could bring significant impacts to the northern Gulf Coast, including flash flooding, storm surge and damaging winds. The forecast placed the system's expected arrival close to the original kickoff window for Alabama State's homecoming game.

By Friday morning, weather forecasts for the rescheduled game indicated a temperature near 61 degrees at kickoff, with a high of 77 degrees. The chance of rain was approximately 10% at kickoff and was expected to rise to 45% by 1 p.m., according to the National Weather Service forecast cited in live coverage.

Showers were expected after 4 p.m., with winds of 10 to 15 mph and gusts reaching 35 mph. Those conditions remained a concern for outdoor activities even after the football game was moved to an earlier time.

The schedule changes also affected ticket holders seeking refunds or transfers. Alabama State ticket operations director Porcia Carthen said fans had until 9 a.m. Friday to request a refund or transfer tickets to another game during the season.

The university's ticket office sent ticket holders an email through its sales platform with a form to begin the process. Fans could also contact the office by phone before its scheduled Thursday closing time of 4:30 p.m.; the office was set to reopen Friday at 8:30 a.m.

Carthen said customers contacting the office would need the name listed on the ticket and the last four digits of the payment card used for the purchase.

"We are here for customer service," Carthen said.

The ticket office received a high volume of calls after the schedule announcement as fans sought information about their options.

"That's our number one priority. So we aren't complaining or anything. We are here to handle that and make sure everyone is accommodated," Carthen said.

Alabama State entered the matchup with a 3-2 overall record and a 1-1 mark in conference play, while Florida A&M stood at 1-4 overall and 0-1 in conference games, according to Friday's live coverage. Alabama State was coming off a conference loss to Bethune-Cookman as it continued its Southwestern Athletic Conference schedule.