The Alabama State Hornets are A&M's arch-rival as the teams play annually in the Magic City Classic on the last Saturday in October at Historic Legion Field.
A&M and State first played each other in 1924, though the annual classic series began in 1941 in Birmingham, which is roughly halfway between the two campuses.
The two competed from 1947–1975 in Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
The rivalry has intensified since A&M joined State in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in 1999, with the two teams regularly in contention for the Eastern Division Crown.
Alabama A&M leads the overall series 40-39-3.

The Bulldogs other in-state rivalry is with Tuskegee Golden Tigers.
The Bulldogs and Tigers began their series with in 1932 and would not meet on the gridiron for another 20 years.
They played annually from 1963–1999 including 35 years as conference rivals in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.
The series was discontinued when A&M moved up to Division I (FCS) and joined the SWAC.
A&M and Tuskegee resumed a two game set from 2008–2009, the latter as an installation of the Circle City Classic in Indianapolis.
The two teams played in 2014, with A&M leading the series 27-20-3.

A&M and the Tennessee State Tigers have a rivalry dating back to the 1930s.
After a 30 year hiatus, the two teams resumed play in the 1970s.
TSU dominated the series well into the 1980s, winning the first 15 contests.
A&M scored its first win, a 7–6 victory in 1986, followed by another 24–6 win in 1987.
A&M and TSU met annually for a decade beginning in 2001, usually on Labor Day Weekend in the John Merritt Classic at Nashville's LP Field.
Since their last contest in 2010, TSU holds a 23–8 series lead, with A&M winning 6 of the last 9 meetings.

The Bulldogs has developed new rivals since entering the SWAC in 1999.
A&M has a budding rivalry with the Jackson State Tigers, the second closet SWAC member institution after Alabama State.
Although JSU leads the all-time series 16–11, the teams have split the last dozen contests with A&M winning the last 3 in a row.
A&M's interdivisional nemesis is the Grambling State Tigers.
Grambling (9) and A&M (6) lead the league in title game appearances, squaring off against each other a record 4 times.
A&M won the first meeting in 1941 against the legendary Eddie Robinson, who was in his first season, but Grambling has gone on to win 10 of the next 11.
Grambling holds a decisive 20–7 series edge and is 4-0 against A&M in SWAC Championship Game matchups.

Alabama A&M has a rivalry with North Alabama Lions football that started in their days of being Division 2 playing 24 times between 1975-1997.
When A&M went division FCS the rivalry stopped but recently started back up in 2018 when UNA made the jump to division 1 FCS.
The two schools are separated by only 77 miles.
The Alabama State Hornets are A&M's arch-rival as the teams play annually in the Magic City Classic on the last Saturday in October at Historic Legion Field. A&M and State first played each other in 1924, though the annual classic series began in 1941 in Birmingham, which is roughly halfway between the two campuses. The two competed from 1947–1975 in Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The rivalry has intensified since A&M joined State in the Southwestern Athletic Conference in 1999, with the two teams regularly in contention for the Eastern Division Crown. Alabama A&M leads the overall series 40-39-3.
The Bulldogs other in-state rivalry is with Tuskegee Golden Tigers. The Bulldogs and Tigers began their series with in 1932 and would not meet on the gridiron for another 20 years. They played annually from 1963–1999 including 35 years as conference rivals in the Southern Intercollegiate Athletic Conference. The series was discontinued when A&M moved up to Division I (FCS) and joined the SWAC. A&M and Tuskegee resumed a two game set from 2008–2009, the latter as an installation of the Circle City Classic in Indianapolis. The two teams played in 2014, with A&M leading the series 27-20-3.
A&M and the Tennessee State Tigers have a rivalry dating back to the 1930s. After a 30 year hiatus, the two teams resumed play in the 1970s. TSU dominated the series well into the 1980s, winning the first 15 contests. A&M scored its first win, a 7–6 victory in 1986, followed by another 24–6 win in 1987. A&M and TSU met annually for a decade beginning in 2001, usually on Labor Day Weekend in the John Merritt Classic at Nashville's LP Field. Since their last contest in 2010, TSU holds a 23–8 series lead, with A&M winning 6 of the last 9 meetings.
The Bulldogs has developed new rivals since entering the SWAC in 1999. A&M has a budding rivalry with the Jackson State Tigers, the second closet SWAC member institution after Alabama State. Although JSU leads the all-time series 16–11, the teams have split the last dozen contests with A&M winning the last 3 in a row. A&M's interdivisional nemesis is the Grambling State Tigers. Grambling (9) and A&M (6) lead the league in title game appearances, squaring off against each other a record 4 times. A&M won the first meeting in 1941 against the legendary Eddie Robinson, who was in his first season, but Grambling has gone on to win 10 of the next 11. Grambling holds a decisive 20–7 series edge and is 4-0 against A&M in SWAC Championship Game matchups.
Alabama A&M has a rivalry with North Alabama Lions football that started in their days of being Division 2 playing 24 times between 1975-1997. When A&M went division FCS the rivalry stopped but recently started back up in 2018 when UNA made the jump to division 1 FCS. The two schools are separated by only 77 miles.
Alabama A&M Bulldogs football