MONTGOMERY, Ala. - Faulkner Men's Basketball looks to keep rolling after last season's Round of 16 appearance in an expanded Southern States Athletic Conference. The 2026-27 schedule features 19 conference contests, 12 home games, five neutral site games, and a battle against the reigning National Champions.
The season tips-off with the Jimmy Faulkner Classic where the Eagles will welcome Milligan and Talladega to Tine Davis Gymnasium Oct. 30 and Oct. 31 as part of an eight-game weekend between men's and women's basketball contests. It will mark the first game against Milligan since the turn of the millennium and a rematch of last year's overtime contest against the Tornadoes in the Jimmy Faulkner Classic.
Stillman returns to town for the first midweek game on Tues. Nov. 3 before the Eagles travel to play a couple of neutral site contests at Baptist University of Florida against Truett McConnell and Florida Memorial that weekend on Nov. 6-7. It will be the first time playing Truett-McConnell since the 2018-19 season and FMU since 2024-25.
The Eagles will compete in the SSAC West with UT Southern, Blue Mountain, Mobile, William Carey, Loyola and Xavier (La.) for seeding in the conference tournament. Xavier, the new team in the division and one of two new foes in the SSAC, went 20-11 last year before losing to William Carey in the First Round of the NAIA National Championship last year. Each of these teams, the Eagles will play both home and away with the East division only playing once with three home and four road games. The Eagles finished tied for second in the West last season with a 14-4 record.
SSAC competition begins Nov. 12 with UT Southern coming to Montgomery with Blue Mountain following on Saturday. Faulkner's first road conference games follow the next week at Mobile and William Carey.
The Eagles take a quick break from SSAC play to compete in The Show against St. Thomas and Tennessee Wesleyan Thanksgiving weekend. It will be the first time playing Tennessee Wesleyan since the turn of the millennium and the second time playing St. Thomas on a neutral floor.
Faulkner hosts two more intriguing SSAC West contests with the first visit from Xavier (La.) in conference play on Dec. 3 before the final time hosting Loyola before the Wolf Pack leave the NAIA for DII next season. Faulkner is 15-1 at home against LU.
Faulkner will leave West Division play Dec. 10 with a road trip to Life before a Dec. 12 Battle of I-85 at Point. With it being the only matchup of the season, the game will be worth 12 points in the Battle of I-85 standings. Faulkner is 11-1 all-time against the Skyhawks.
Faulkner's final two non-conference contests happen on either side of Christmas with a Dec. 17 game in Tuscaloosa against Stillman and a neutral site game against NAIA National Champion Freed-Hardeman Dec. 30. Faulkner went 2-2 against the pair last season, winning both against Stillman and losing both to FHU.
Faulkner completes the Eastern Division contests with the three home games against them starting with Dalton State on Jan. 7. One week later, the Eagles bring in new foe Andrew College before Thomas visits on the 16th. It will be the first time Faulkner has played Thomas in Montgomery since the 2024 SSAC Men's Basketball exit.
Faulkner travels to ABAC and Brewton-Parker the next week. Faulkner seeks revenge for the SSAC Quarterfinal exit to the Barons on Jan. 23. The Eagles return to West Division action at UT Southern on Jan. 28 and Blue Mountain on Jan. 30. Faulkner closes the home slate against William Carey on Feb. 4 and Mobile on Feb. 6 before the closing weekend in the Big Easy at XULA on Feb. 11 and Loyola on Feb. 13. Faulkner has not played against Xavier since 2014-15.
The SSAC Men's Basketball Championship is set for Feb. 23-27 at the Multiplex at Cramton Bowl with the NAIA First and Second Rounds scheduled for March 12-13 and March 18-23 to sort the final 16 in Kansas City.
