James Spann: Occasional rain through tonight in Alabama; mostly dry weekend

RADAR CHECK: Large areas of rain continue to move across Alabama this afternoon … with a cloudy sky temperatures are mostly in the 60s, but parts of South Alabama have reached the mid 70s. Periods of rain will continue tonight; some thunder is possible. Not expecting any severe storms with a stable airmass in place.

THE ALABAMA WEEKEND: A few spots could see a stray shower early tomorrow, otherwise the weekend will be dry. The sky becomes partly sunny tomorrow with a high in the 74–80-degree range. Sunday will be a mostly sunny day with highs between 67 and 74 degrees.

THANKSGIVING WEEK: Monday will be dry and pleasant with a high in the low to mid 70s. Rain returns to the state Tuesday; a few thunderstorms could be involved but at this point it doesn’t look like a severe weather situation. Rain moves out very early Wednesday, followed by a clearing sky.

Thanksgiving is looking cool and dry with highs mostly in the 50s after a morning low in the 30s. “Black Friday” and Iron Bowl Saturday is also looking cool and dry. See the video briefing for maps, graphics and more details.

FOOTBALL WEATHER: Auburn hosts Mercer tomorrow (1 p.m. kickoff) … the sky will be partly sunny with temperatures in the mid 70s during the first half, falling into the upper 60s by the final whistle. Just a small risk of a shower.

Alabama will host Eastern Illinois in Tuscaloosa (1 p.m. kickoff) … the sky will be partly sunny with temperatures falling from the mid 70s in the first half to near 70 by the fourth quarter.

UAB hosts South Florida at Protective Stadium (2 p.m. kickoff) … dry and mild with temperatures in the mid 70s at kickoff, falling into the 60s by the final whistle.

EARLY IRON BOWL FORECAST: The biggest game of the year in Alabama is in Auburn this year (Saturday November 29 at 6:30 p.m.) … for now the weather looks clear and cold with temperatures falling through the 40s during the first half, reaching the 30s during the second half.

ON THIS DATE IN 1992: The November 21-23, 1992 tornado outbreak was the third largest outbreak in recorded history and one of the longest continuous outbreaks ever recorded. There was no break in tornado activity from 1:30 p.m. on the 21st when the tornadoes started in Texas until 7:30 a.m. on the 23rd when the last tornadoes lifted in North Carolina.

On this date, severe thunderstorms spawned six tornadoes within 70 minutes in the Houston metro area in Texas. At one time, there were three on the ground in Harris County. The strongest, an F4, tracked 20 miles through the eastern suburbs of Houston destroying 200 homes and damaging 1,000 more. In total, 23 tornadoes struck Mississippi and Alabama. An F4 tornado killed 12 people on a 128-mile track through seven Mississippi counties, the deadliest tornado of 1992.

For more weather news and information from James Spann and his team, visit the Alabama Weather Network.