And it is not anywhere near too late to make a schedule change for 2018. July would be too late. Which is exactly when Bama had to reschedule their opener in 1966. Tulane left the SEC on July 1 and asked to be removed from Bama's 1966 schedule.
Actually, they left the SEC on June 1, not that I disagree with your point.
Of course the other little problem with this is the fact that the 1966 season didn't start until September 24. Nowadays we open Labor Day weekend at the absolute latest.
Bama was left scrambling and wound up scheduling non-1A La Tech. Gave the poll voters the excuse they were looking for to move Bama down in the polls.
Oh please. There's not a widespread conspiracy against Alabama and there wasn't one then, either.
Here's the first poll, with first-place vote totals included:
1) Alabama (15)
2) Michigan St (12)
3) Nebraska (2)
4) UCLA (6)
5) Arkansas
Then remember these facts:
1) Michigan State was a co-national champion in 1965, so they were already #1 in the UPI poll
2) AP only ranked TEN teams in 1966
3) Michigan St opened against a mid-level NC State on September 17 and won, 28-19
4) UCLA played Pitt ON THE ROAD and blew them to pieces, 57-14 (this was the first time many of the AP voters ever saw UCLA play as the
game was in the East)
5) Tulane was 2-8 in 1965 and hadn't had a winning season in a decade.
Here's the next poll:
1) Michigan St (12 - same as before)
2) UCLA (13)
3) Alabama (10)
In all probability, those five voters simply switched from Alabama to UCLA after watching the Bruins punch in 57 points. The week of the season opener, Michigan St smoked Penn St, 42-8, for the Nittany Lions' worst loss since 1948, Notre Dame beat a good Purdue team led by Bob Griese, and UCLA clobbered Syracuse AGAIN in the Eastern USA........Alabama's vote total from the AP shrunk to two AP votes. Alabama never had more than 4 AP votes at any point during the season until the infamous Michigan St-Notre Dame tie. Even in the final vote, Alabama only had 7 AP votes.
I'm not saying the outcome was just and it would certainly never happen that way today, but there was no 'conspiracy' to damage Alabama, and even had we played 2-8 in 1965 Tulane, it would not have mattered.
Moved Preseason #1 Bama down to #3 before they ever opened with La Tech.
Yes, and I just explained why that was. UCLA went back East and played two games and mauled the opposition behind Gary Beban while Michigan St was a defending national champion.