SUNNY FRIDAY: It is a fine early September day across Alabama. With ample sunshine, temperatures are in the 80s over north Alabama; some south Alabama communities have reached the low 90s. Tonight will be fair with a low in the 60s; cooler spots will visit the 50s.

The weather won’t change much over the weekend, with mostly sunny, warm days and fair, pleasant nights. We will mention some risk of isolated showers near the Georgia state line, but even there the chance of any one spot seeing rain is only 10-15%. Highs will hold in the 80s over north Alabama, with low 90s to the south.

NEXT WEEK: Dry weather is expected Monday and Tuesday; then we will introduce some risk of showers on Wednesday and Thursday ahead of a cold front. Rain amounts are expected to be light and spotty with only limited moisture available. A surge of drier, cooler air arrives by the end of the week, with highs dropping into the upper 70s over the northern counties of Alabama.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: The sky will be clear for the high school football games across Alabama tonight with temperatures falling through the 70s.

Saturday, UAB will take on Georgia Southern in Statesboro, Georgia (5 p.m. kickoff). The sky will be occasionally cloudy, and a passing shower or thunderstorm is likely during the game. Temperatures will fall from near 86 degrees at kickoff through the 80s during the second half.

Alabama will host Texas Saturday at Bryant-Denny Stadium (6 p.m. kickoff). The sky will be clear with temperatures falling from near 83 degrees at kickoff into the 70s by the second half.

Auburn will be in Berkeley to take on the California Golden Bears (9:30 p.m. kickoff). Expect a clear sky with temperatures in the 60s during the game.

TROPICS: Category 4 Hurricane Lee is about 550 miles east of the northern Leeward Islands this afternoon and is packing sustained winds of 155 mph. There will be fluctuations in intensity due to eyewall replacement cycles, but the hurricane is expected to remain at Category 4-5 strength for the next five days.

The official National Hurricane Center track takes Lee to a point east of the Bahamas by Wednesday. From there, ensemble output from global models continues to show a sharp turn to the north, keeping Lee east of the U.S. East Coast. There is unusually good agreement among the members of the ensemble, leading to a high-confidence forecast in the concept of the turn.

Lee could be close to either the coast of Maine or Nova Scotia in seven days, however, and everyone there needs to pay close attention to the hurricane in coming days.

The other system on the board is Tropical Storm Margot in the eastern Atlantic; this is expected to become a hurricane by Sunday night, but it will turn north and is no threat to land.No tropical systems will threaten the Gulf of Mexico for at least the next seven to 10 days.

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.

ON THIS DATE IN 2012: Severe storms affected the New York City area, forcing a delay of the United States Open. A tornado hit a beach club in Queens, and another brought damage to Canarsie, Brooklyn, New York.

For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit AlabamaWx.