Ranking Maryland's 2026 Opponents by Tiers of Difficulty

The Maryland football schedule has been released, and it is time to look ahead and see what the 2026 season has in store. Despite the team not having an overall positive outlook due to a downward overall trend with Mike Locksley as the head coach, we won't know exactly how good or bad the Terrapins are until they step on the grass. However, that doesn't mean we can't do our best to make predictions based on their schedule. Unfortunately for Maryland, since it is in the Big Ten, the schedule overall won't be easy.

Close to Guaranteed Wins

No wins in college football are guaranteed. However, there are a few games on each Power Four team's schedule that are as close to guaranteed as they could get. Unfortunately for Maryland, they only have one of them, and that's their home opener against Hampton. The Pirates were a disaster last season, going 2-10 in the FCS. The FCS is several tiers below Big Ten competition. The Terrapins should breeze to a win here.

True Toss Ups

Maryland has four true toss-up games on its schedule. Those games being at UConn, Virginia Tech, UCLA, and at Purdue. Despite coming from a lower level of play, UConn was a very good team last season that was able to knock off weaker Power Five teams like Duke and Boston College. Maryland looks like it could be one of those "weaker" Power Five teams this season. Virginia Tech finished below Maryland in a weaker ACC last season but has undergone a rearmament program under new head coach James Franklin. UCLA finished just above the Terrapins in the Big Ten conference standings last season, but a long road trip could have a big effect on them. Reverse that thinking in Maryland's game at Purdue, as the Terrapins finished the 2025 season with one more conference win than the Boilermakers, but have to make the trip to West Lafayette.

Could Win, Likely Won't Be Favored

Only two games fall into this category: Maryland's home game against Rutgers in October and its home game against Wisconsin in November. The Scarlet Knights have beaten the Terrapins the last two years and will have an improved defense due to them cleaning house on that side of the ball. Wisconsin started to pull it together at the end of last season, beating teams like Washington and Illinois. The Terrapins, on the other hand, have not made the improvements needed to show that they will be much better next season. Maryland played Rutgers close last season and beat Wisconsin, so they will likely have a good chance to win, but it would be surprising to see them as the favorite when the betting lines are released.

Uphill Battles

Unfortunately for Maryland, they will likely be heavy underdogs in just under half of their games this season. They have a brutal road stretch against Nebraska and Ohio State in October, a big home test in Illinois in late October, and they finish out the season at a USC team that finished the season ranked and hosting a revamped Penn State team, which will likely return to its old form this season. It is hard to see Maryland winning any of these games, especially since a lot of them come one after another.

How Maryland Will Finish the Season

Another brutal season is likely in store for Maryland fans. Their ceiling sits around the 5-7 mark, assuming that they either sweep all of their tossups or lose one and win one of their "Could win, likely won't be favored games." Their floor could see them drop down to 2-10 in the worst-case scenario. More than likely, they will go 4-8 and finish the season the same way they have the last two.

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