James Spann has the Alabama forecast for midweek from Alabama NewsCenter on Vimeo.

RADAR CHECK: Most of the state is dry this morning, but showers are over far south Alabama due to a tropical disturbance in the Gulf of Mexico. Look for a mix of sun and clouds today with a few scattered showers or thunderstorms by afternoon ahead of a cold front. Temperatures will reach 85 to 88 degrees today; the average high for Birmingham on Sept. 8 is 88. Showers will end tonight as the front pushes southward and a nice surge of dry air rolls into the state.

THURSDAY THROUGH THE WEEKEND: We are forecasting sunny days; fair, pleasant nights, and lower humidity levels Thursday through Sunday. Highs will be in the mid 80s Thursday and Friday, followed by upper 80s over the weekend. Lows will be mostly in the 60s, but most of north and central Alabama will enjoy a low in the 50s Friday morning; it will be the coolest morning so far this season.

NEXT WEEK: Moisture begins to return Monday; we will mention a chance of isolated showers. Tuesday through Friday, we expect partly sunny days with scattered showers and thunderstorms possible. Highs will be in the mid to upper 80s next week.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: Expect perfect weather for the high school games across the state Friday night; the sky will be clear with temperatures falling from the upper 70s at kickoff into the upper 60s by the final whistle.

Saturday, Auburn hosts Alabama State at Jordan-Hare Stadium (11 a.m. kickoff). Look for a sunny sky during the game with temperatures rising from near 84 degrees at kickoff to around 87 by the fourth quarter. Alabama will host Mercer at Bryant-Denny Stadium (3 p.m. kickoff). The sky will be sunny with temperatures falling from 88 degrees at kickoff to near 80 degrees by the end of the game.

UAB is on the road, taking on the Georgia Bulldogs in Athens (2:30 p.m. CT kickoff). The sky will be sunny with temperatures falling from about 87 degrees at kickoff to near 81 by the final whistle. Jacksonville State is also on the road Saturday, taking on Florida State in Tallahassee (7 p.m. CT kickoff). A shower is possible during the first half; otherwise the sky will be mostly fair with temperatures hovering between 78 and 82 degrees during the game.

TROPICS: Hurricane Larry this morning is about 600 miles southeast of Bermuda in the Atlantic and has sustained winds of 115 mph. It will recurve into the open Atlantic well east of the U.S. but will be close enough to Bermuda to bring tropical storm conditions to the island Thursday. Significant swells will begin to reach the east coast of the United States and Atlantic Canada later today and continue affecting these shores through the end of the week. These swells will likely cause life-threatening surf and rip current conditions.

Closer to home, disorganized cloudiness and a few thunderstorms over the central and eastern Gulf of Mexico are associated with a surface trough and an upper-level disturbance. The system is expected to move northeastward over the northeastern Gulf of Mexico later today. Upper-level winds could become slightly more favorable to support some tropical or subtropical development as the system nears the northern Gulf Coast tonight or early Thursday. The disturbance is then expected to cross the southeastern United States, and some additional development will be possible after it emerges off the southeastern coast late this week. Regardless of development, areas of heavy rainfall will be possible across portions of the Florida Panhandle and southern Georgia through Thursday, with localized flooding possible.

The National Hurricane Center gives this feature a 50% chance of becoming a tropical depression or storm over the next 48 hours. The weather will improve along the central Gulf Coast Thursday as the disturbance moves away.

The main development region of the Atlantic basin is very quiet for mid-September.

ON THIS DATE IN 1900: A Category 4 hurricane made landfall in Galveston, Texas; it killed between 6,000 and 12,000 people, making it the deadliest U.S. Atlantic hurricane on record. The highest point in the city of Galveston was less than 9 feet above sea level. The hurricane brought a storm surge of more than 15 feet, which overwhelmed the entire island.

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