ANOTHER SIZZLING HOT DAY: Temperatures are up in the mid 90s again today; some parts of west Alabama are in the upper 90s at mid-afternoon, a good 10-12 degrees above average for mid-September. The sky is mostly sunny, and showers remain very hard to find on radar.
FRIDAY AND THE WEEKEND: The persistent upper ridge responsible for the heat in recent days will shift a little to the east, and that will open the door for a few random, scattered showers and thunderstorms during the afternoon and evening hours on these three days — nothing widespread, but a few spots will see a cooling shower from roughly 1 until 11 p.m. Otherwise, expect partly sunny days and fair nights with afternoon highs between 87 and 90 degrees.
FOOTBALL WEATHER: For the high school games Friday night, a brief shower or thunderstorm is possible during the first half; otherwise, it will be fair with temperatures falling into the low 80s.
Saturday, Alabama hosts Texas A&M at Bryant-Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa (2:30 p.m. kickoff). The sky will be partly sunny, and a passing shower or storm is possible during the game. Temperatures will hover in the 85- to 90-degree range.
Auburn hosts Arkansas Saturday night at Jordan-Hare Stadium (6:30 p.m. kickoff). There will be some risk of a shower during the first half; otherwise, it will be mostly fair with temperatures falling from near 86 at kickoff into the low 80s by the final whistle.
UAB has a bye week.
NEXT WEEK: Scattered showers and thunderstorms will increase in coverage as the air becomes more unstable and the long-awaited front gets closer. The highest coverage of showers and storms will most likely come on Wednesday and Thursday, then just an outside risk of a stray shower Friday as noticeably cooler air rolls in. For the following weekend (Sept. 29-30), it looks clear with highs in the 70s and lows in the 50s; colder pockets have a good chance of going into the 40s for the first time this season.
TROPICS: A disturbance in the middle of the Atlantic, far from land, has a 50 percent chance of development over the next five days. Other waves show little promise of development anytime soon, and most of the Atlantic is quiet.
ONE YEAR AGO TODAY: One year ago today, Maria made landfall near Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, at 6:15 a.m. local time with winds of 155 mph — the most intense to strike the island since 1928.
ON THIS DATE IN 1967: Hurricane Beulah made landfall just north of the mouth of the Rio Grande River as a Category 3. It spawned 115 tornadoes across Texas, which established a new record for the highest number of tornadoes produced by a tropical cyclone. Because of its slow movement over Texas, Beulah led to significant flooding. Throughout its path, at least 59 people were killed and total damage reached $234.6 million.
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