St. John’s head basketball coach Rick Pitino took to social media on Tuesday afternoon, cracking jokes shortly after the Red Storm officially announced a non-conference game against Alabama for the upcoming season.
Alabama joins Kentucky and Ole Miss as SEC opponents St. John’s is expected to face. The team has confirmed matchups with Kentucky and Alabama. While the game against Ole Miss is not yet official, it is expected to be finalized soon.
“We are playing 3 big-time SEC programs: Kentucky, Alabama, and Mississippi,” Pitino posted on X. “We are thinking of bringing back football under Head Coach, Anthony Zito. If we do, we will submit our application to join SEC football.”
St. John’s discontinued its football program in 2002. Zito, a standout defensive player from 1995 to 1998, was inducted into the Red Storm Hall of Fame in 2013. Pitino’s comment was clearly made in jest, as the basketball program continues to build a tough non-conference schedule.
While the full schedule has not been released, St. John’s will also take part in the Players Era Tournament this season. Matchups for the event have not been announced, but more SEC teams could appear. Alabama will compete in the Las Vegas-based tournament, making another game against St. John’s unlikely. Auburn and Tennessee are also participating and could potentially face the Red Storm.
Last season, St. John’s played two SEC teams and lost both games. The team suffered a narrow defeat to Georgia in the Bahamas and ended its season with a loss to Arkansas in the second round of the NCAA Tournament.
The SEC sent a record 14 teams to the NCAA Tournament this year, surpassing the previous record of 11 teams set by the Big East in 2011.
