College Football 2026 Schedule: Ranking Every Single Week of the Regular Season

Not every college football Saturday is built the same. Here are the weeks you absolutely can’t miss, and the others where you can probably make some other plans.

Ohio State walloped Michigan in last year’s rivalry showdown. This season’s version should be just as spicy. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

The 2026 college football season is upon us, which means it’s time to get fall plans in order. For some of us, the fall feels like both a sprint and a marathon—the three-month regular season goes by in the blink of an eye, but the long march toward the national championship is longer than ever in the College Football Playoff era. But it’s a race we’ll run from late August until mid-January, rarely missing a weekend of games.

Others may be looking to pick their spots. Sure, on the Saturday after Thanksgiving, they’re going to be locked in on The Game, the Iron Bowl and everything in between, but does every college football Saturday require that level of commitment? 

As much as we love the sport, not every weekend is built the same, and Sports Illustrated is here to help you decide which weeks demand your full attention and which Saturdays may have some space for a bit of apple picking, foliage gazing and whatever other autumnal activities may work their way into the schedule.

I’ve ranked each full week of the regular season (no Week Zero, and don’t worry Army-Navy, we’ll be tuned in for you this December), from the lightest slate to the most jam-packed with great games. Let’s dive in … 

13. Week 1 (Sept. 3–7)

Headliner: Clemson at LSU

Undercard: Louisville at Ole Miss, Colorado at Georgia Tech, Fresno State at USC, Boise State at Oregon, Washington State at Washington

Even if you lump the Week Zero slate (headlined by TCU vs. North Carolina, part two, in Dublin), this is an exceptionally weak start to the college football season. The good? Lane Kiffin opens his LSU tenure at home against a Clemson team desperate to return to national contention. Kiffin’s former team, Ole Miss, has an interesting season opener with Louisville coming to town. The Pacific Northwest delivers two of the best games of the week with Boise State at Oregon and an early season Apple Cup in Seattle. And perhaps Coach Prime can get things rolling again with an opener against a retooled Georgia Tech squad. But overall, there aren’t a ton of premier matchups nor significant schedule depth here.

Lane Kiffin opens his LSU tenure against Clemson in Week 1. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

12. Week 5 (Oct. 1–3)

Headliner: Ohio State at Iowa

Undercard: Vanderbilt at Georgia, Miami at Clemson, Washington at USC, Texas Tech at Colorado, BYU at TCU, Notre Dame at North Carolina

Trips to Iowa have historically turned into trap games for top teams. We’ll see if that’s the case for Ohio State in early October, weeks after the Buckeyes travel to Texas and a week after they host a relatively competitive Illinois team. Beyond that Big Ten matchup, we have a number of games that could be great, but require some things to break the right way. Can Jared Curtis pick up the baton from Diego Pavia and keep Vanderbilt competitive? Will Clemson reassert itself as an ACC contender? Can Bill Belichick’s Tar Heels take a leap in Year 2? If so, this is an intriguing weekend of football. If not, you may be able to schedule some other fall activities to start October.

11. Week 9 (Oct. 27–31)

Headliner: Ohio State at USC

Undercard: Florida vs. Georgia (Atlanta), Auburn at Ole Miss, Miami at North Carolina, Notre Dame vs. Navy (Foxborough, Mass.), Arizona State at BYU, Arizona at Texas Tech

Another October week in which a big Ohio State game lifts all boats. The Buckeyes face USC for the first time as Big Ten foes. The two powerhouses last met in the 2017 Cotton Bowl, and this will be the first regular-season matchup between them since the Trojans swept a home-and-home in 2007 and ’08. USC’s schedule is an absolute gauntlet before this game, with consecutive matchups against Oregon and Washington and trips to Penn State and Wisconsin (and a bye between those two road games). If USC is a true contender, we’ll know by this point in the season, and in that case this game against the Buckeyes could have significant Big Ten and CFP ramifications. 

Beyond that game, the rivalry game between Florida and Georgia—played in Atlanta this year as Jacksonville’s EverBank Stadium is renovated—is always intriguing, though it is hard to know what Year 1 under Jon Sumrall will look like for the Gators. The same goes for Auburn under new coach Alex Golesh, who will take on Pete Golding’s Ole Miss squad. Out West, the two Arizona schools, which could both contend in the Big 12 this season, have huge matchups with BYU and Texas Tech, the league’s favorites.

10. Week 3 (Sept. 17–19)

Headliner: LSU at Ole Miss

Undercard: Houston at Texas Tech, North Carolina at Clemson, Arizona State at Kansas (London), NC State at Vanderbilt, Florida State at Alabama, SMU at Louisville, Florida at Auburn, Michigan State at Notre Dame

Sometimes we get a cornucopia of great college football games on a Saturday, and sometimes it just takes one epic matchup for the entire sport to come to a halt and tune in. Kiffin’s return to Ole MIss, just three weeks into his tenure at LSU, certainly fits the bill. Both teams have high expectations and this matchup in Oxford, Miss., could be crucial to the early CFP race, before we even get to what could be one of the most raucous environments in any stadium this season.

The rest of the slate features some decent games. Alabama has its chance at revenge against Florida State after last year’s stunning upset loss, SMU and Louisville could have ACC race implications, Florida and Auburn’s new coaches go head-to-head in their SEC debuts and Pat Fitzgerald gets his first huge test as Michigan State coach.

9. Week 12 (Nov. 17–21)

Headliners: LSU at Tennessee, Texas A&M at Oklahoma

Undercard: Indiana at Washington, Ohio State at Nebraska, Iowa at Illinois, SMU at Notre Dame, Utah at TCU, Memphis at Navy

Two SEC matchups that could loom large on the CFP race headline this week, but it has some real depth as well. Defending national champion Indiana makes a tricky trip out to Seattle to face what should be a solid Washington team, while Ohio State heads to Nebraska. The Buckeyes have won eight straight in that series dating back to 2011, though the last two games have been very competitive. SMU and Notre Dame is a sneaky great matchup, courtesy of the Fighting Irish–ACC scheduling agreement, while Memphis and Navy could play a big part in the race for the Group of 6 playoff spot.

Indiana tight end Andrew Barker and the Hoosiers travel to Seattle to face Washington in Week 12. | USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect

8. Week 2 (Sept. 10–12)

Headliners: Oklahoma at Michigan, Ohio State at Texas

Undercard: Arizona State at Texas A&M, Oregon at Oklahoma State, Arizona at BYU, Alabama at Kentucky, Tennessee at Georgia Tech, Iowa State at Iowa

Now this is a proper early September weekend slate. Noon brings us Oklahoma at Michigan—a game won by the Sooners at home last season—while those two teams’ archrivals, Ohio State and Texas, face off in Austin in prime time. Last year’s Buckeyes win over the Longhorns stopped the Arch Manning hype train in its tracks. This year’s rematch will go a long way toward revealing the progress Manning made in the offseason. 

Throw in the Cy-Hawk game, Will Stein’s first SEC game (against Alabama, of all teams) at Kentucky, and some strong nonconference matchups and there’s a lot to like here.

7. Week 8 (Oct. 20–24)

Headliners: Texas A&M at Alabama, Ole Miss at Texas, Indiana at Michigan

Undercard: LSU at Auburn, Oregon at Illinois, Texas Tech at Cincinnati, Houston at Utah

This isn’t the deepest week of games by any stretch, but that top group should be excellent games between CFP hopefuls—and could be huge referendums on Alabama’s Kalen DeBoer, Texas’s Steve Sarkisian and Ole Miss’s Golding, depending on how the season plays out. Oregon’s trip to Illinois should be one of the Ducks’ toughest road games of the year, and of course, we have the Brendan Sorsby bowl between Texas Tech and Cincinnati, sans the star quarterback himself. Even if Sorsby is nowhere near Nippert Stadium, expect an electric atmosphere in Cincy.

Kalen DeBoer leads Alabama against Texas A&M in Week 8, which could be a referendum on his job security. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

6. Week 4 (Sept. 24–26)

Headliners: Texas A&M at LSU, Oklahoma at Georgia, Texas at Tennessee, Oregon at USC

Undercard: Clemson at Cal, Ole Miss at Florida, Illinois at Ohio State, Iowa at Michigan

The top games of Week 4 are excellent, especially for those looking forward to some of the new budding rivalries in the SEC as a result of the latest round of conference realignment. Oklahoma and Georgia will face off for the first time as conference foes and, amazingly, just the second time ever—with the first game being the incredible 2018 Rose Bowl. Texas and Tennessee have played three times, all at the Cotton Bowl, and not since 1969. Oregon at USC and Texas A&M at LSU are more familiar games, but both excellent in their own right, especially if the Trojans make the leap that many expect of them and Kiffin’s Tigers are competitive in Year 1.

Down the list, decent Big Ten tests for Ohio State and Michigan, Ole Miss heads to The Swamp and Clemson makes its first trip to Cal in ACC play to face one of the nation’s most talented quarterbacks, Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele.

5. Week 6 (Oct. 6–10)

Headliners: Georgia at Alabama, Texas vs. Oklahoma (Dallas), USC at Penn State

Undercard: Iowa at Washington, Ole Miss at Vanderbilt, North Dakota State at UNLV, Texas A&M at Missouri

Two of the SEC’s best rivalries will define this Saturday of football, as Georgia looks to win a second straight game against Alabama after snapping a three-game losing streak with a victory in last year’s SEC championship. The Red River Rivalry is historically unpredictable, but Texas has dominated Oklahoma the last two years. A third straight loss could spell trouble for Brent Venables in Norman. 

In the Big Ten, USC travels to Happy Valley for the first time as a conference foe of Penn State. The two historic programs last played at Beaver Stadium in 1994, and the Trojans have a 6–5 edge in the all-time series. The week has solid depth as well. North Dakota State’s trip to UNLV—one of the favorites to win the Mountain West—could prove to be the biggest game of its inaugural FBS season.

4. Week 11 (Nov. 10–14)

Headliners: Ole Miss at Oklahoma, Texas at LSU, Tennessee at Texas A&M, USC at Indiana, Michigan at Oregon

Undercard: Missouri at Georgia, Alabama at Vanderbilt, Duke at Miami, Utah at Arizona

Mid-November is chock full of excellent matchups across the power conferences, with Week 11 delivering us a slew of new-look conference clashes in the SEC and Big Ten among programs that should be playing for playoff spots. LSU and Texas will face off for the first time as conference foes, as well USC and Indiana—with the Hoosiers looking to score their first-ever win against the Trojans. Ole Miss and Oklahoma have played twice since the Sooners’ jump to the SEC, and the Rebels have taken both games. Oregon blew out Michigan last year and will look to do so again as the Ducks seek to get over the hump this year.

The depth choices here are less obvious hits, though Alabama vs. Vanderbilt has never had more juice than the last two years after the Dores signaled their arrival as a legitimate concern in the SEC with a win over the Crimson Tide in 2024. Duke (and the ACC’s chaotic tiebreakers) cost Miami a chance at their first conference title and nearly their incredible playoff run in the process a year ago. 

Arch Manning and the Longhorns will face LSU for the first time as conference opponents this season. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

3. Week 7 (Oct. 13–17)

Headliners: Alabama at Tennessee, Penn State at Michigan, Notre Dame at BYU, Ohio State at Indiana

Undercard: Auburn at Georgia, Mizzou at Ole Miss, Florida at Texas, Virginia at SMU, FSU at Miami

The Third Saturday in October always brings us Alabama-Tennessee, a classic SEC rivalry that has come back to the forefront with Josh Heupel bringing the Volunteers back to contention. The Crimson Tide won 15 straight games in the series from 2007 to ’21 but the two sides have traded wins the last four years. And that may only wind up being the second-most anticipated game of the weekend, with Ohio State traveling to face Indiana in a rematch of last year’s Big Ten championship. Throw in Penn State at Michigan and Notre Dame’s trip to BYU—one of the more underrated nonconference games of the season—and this is a great slate.

Florida beat Texas last year in a game that likely cost the Longhorns a playoff trip. The classic Florida State–Miami rivalry game, as well as the Deep South’s Oldest Rivalry between Auburn and Georgia are teed up for this weekend as well. It’s hard to know what to make of the Seminoles and Tigers this year, but those games are always worth keeping an eye on.

2. Week 10 (Nov. 3–7)

Headliners: Alabama at LSU, Georgia at Ole Miss, Miami at Notre Dame, Oregon at Ohio State

Undercard: Oklahoma at Florida, Texas at Missouri, Michigan State at Michigan, Penn State at Washington, BYU at Utah

Miami’s early season win over Notre Dame was one of the most consequential games of 2025, giving the Hurricanes the résumé to make the playoff and ultimately the national championship game, and costing the Fighting Irish that same opportunity. The rematch could have similar stakes, with Miami and ND both looking like preseason title contenders. Oregon–Ohio State has been one of the great new rivalries of the modern era, and the 2024 regular-season edition—a 32–31 Ducks win—was one of the great games of that season, though Oregon will want revenge for the CFP blowout loss to the Buckeyes just over two months later. Oh, and Alabama-LSU is this weekend, along with a star-studded Georgia–Ole Miss showdown, a rematch of last season’s CFP quarterfinal thriller at the Sugar Bowl. 

Penn State, which has never lost to Washington in four games, makes its first trip to Seattle since 1921, Oklahoma looks to avoid stubbing its toe at Florida, Fitzgerald is thrust into the Michigan–Michigan State rivalry and BYU faces Utah in a Holy War showdown which should have significant Big 12 stakes. Buckle up.

BYU quarterback Bear Bachmeier and the Cougars face Utah in the Holy War on one of the biggest weekends of the season. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

1. Week 13 (Nov. 24–28)

Headliners: Michigan at Ohio State, Texas at Texas A&M, Auburn at Alabama, Washington at Oregon

Undercard: TCU at Texas Tech, Mississippi State at Ole Miss, Nebraska at Iowa, Florida at Florida State, Oklahoma at Missouri, Georgia Tech at Georgia, Tennessee at Vanderbilt, USC at UCLA

Rivalry week is the obvious pick for No. 1 just about every year, but it is undoubtedly the right one in 2026. Plenty of these games should have an impact on the CFP race, with contenders like Ohio State, Texas, Alabama and Oregon facing hated rivals. Even those that may not, like a Florida–Florida State, mean everything to the fans of those teams. They can make or break seasons, and ensure that coaches get multimillion-dollar contract extensions or are shown the door a day later. 

The beautiful thing about college football has long been that every rivalry game has stakes, even if the teams involved aren’t playing for national title glory. The powers that be threaten to change that with the ever-expanding postseason, conference realignment that rips rivals apart and the NFL’s incessant scheduling creep. But right now, the week of Thanksgiving is still something to be treasured. In a few short months, it will be time to plate some leftovers and lock in for one of the great long weekends on the football calendar.

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