MOBILE, ALABAMA -- South Alabama officials announced Thursday that the school has signed a two-game football contract to play games against Nebraska. The games are scheduled for the 2015 and 2019 seasons. Both games against the Big Ten Conference member - the first Big Ten team to be scheduled by the Jaguars - will be played in Lincoln.



The addition of the Cornhuskers to the Jaguars' future schedules adds to the number of recognized programs South Alabama is scheduled to play in the future. The Jags will be in the final year of their two-year transition to Football Bowl Subdivision status in the 2012 season and will be a full FBS member for the 2013 season, which will also make them eligible to win the Sun Belt Conference championship and receive a bowl invitation.

"It's obviously a marque game that I think is a tremendous opportunity and challenge for our program,'' South Alabama director of athletics Dr. Joel Erdmann said. "I believe prospects over the next year or two are going to look at our schedules and they're going to enjoy the opportunity to play at a place like Nebraska. It will be here before you know it and then the follow-up game a few seasons after that. Our fans should be excited about following us and supporting us up in Lincoln.''

The Jags and Nebraska will play on Sept. 12 in 2015 and in the season-opener on Aug. 31 in 2019.

"We get another team to add to the list of many that we're playing,'' head coach Joey Jones said of adding Nebraska to the Jags' future schedules. "(These are) big-time schools and it excites our players and excites the people in our football program. We know that every year we're going to play two or three big-time teams around the country and that's what we want to do and we're looking forward to it.''

Last season, South Alabama played its first two FBS opponents on the road at North Carolina State and Kent State. This season, the Jags will play eight Sun Belt games as well as five non-conference opponents - Texas-San Antonio and Nicholls State at home at Ladd-Peebles Stadium and road games at N.C. State, Mississippi State and Hawaii.

Along with Nebraska, South Alabama will play at Navy and against N.C. State at home in 2015. In 2019, the only other non-conference game already scheduled is a road game at Tulane.

Other teams the Jags are scheduled to play in future seasons include Georgia, LSU, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Southern Miss, Oklahoma State and Louisiana Tech. Jones said he hopes the program will make similar announcements concerning future opponents in the near future.

"I don't think it's so much the conferences as it is looking for the top 20-type teams in the country, trying to play those type teams,'' he said. "We'd love to play a USC one day or an Oregon, anybody like that. We're trying to find those teams and play them to get to that level that we've got to play against, and that's why we're doing it.''

Here's a look at South Alabama's upcoming non-conference opponents, with some non-conference dates still available in some seasons:

2012: Texas-San Antonio, Nicholls State, at N.C. State, at Mississippi State, at Hawaii.

2013: at Tulane, at Tennessee, Kent State, at Navy.

2014: at Kent State, Mississippi State, at Georgia, Navy.

2015: at Nebraska, N.C. State, at Navy.

2016: at Mississippi State, at LSU, Navy.

2017: at Ole Miss, Oklahoma State, at Louisiana Tech.

2018: Louisiana Tech, at Oklahoma State.

2019: at Nebraska, at Tulane.

2020: at Southern Miss, at Oklahoma State, Tulane.

2021: Southern Miss.