Virginia Tech Football and Maryland Amend Series

In this story:
Virginia Tech football and Maryland have amended their future scheduling. The Hokies and Terrapins, per ESPN's Pete Thamel, will no longer play in 2027 and 2028. Per Thamel, Maryland will host Baylor in College Park in 2027, and it will travel to Texas to play the Bears in 2028.
With the move, this year's showdown at SECU Stadium (College Park, Md.) and 2029's game at Lane Stadium — set for Sept. 15 that year — are currently the only two contests scheduled between the two schools.
Virginia Tech's 2026 contest against the Terrapins is set for Saturday, Sept. 19, at 7:30 p.m. ET. That game will be carried on either FOX or FS1, and it will be the two schools' first regular-season meeting in 13 years.
Sources: Maryland and Virginia Tech have adjusted the schools' four-game home-and-home series to now play only twice. Maryland will host Tech in 2026 as planned and return the game in Blacksburg in 2029. Maryland has added Baylor to replace the other two Tech games. pic.twitter.com/2OitGfewc8
— Pete Thamel (@PeteThamel) May 29, 2026
Per Virginia Tech's press release, the schedule amendment is intended to provide flexibility for non-conference scheduling, "creating opportunities to add home games in future seasons, generate additional revenue, and align with the ACC’s current scheduling model."
“We’re pleased to keep the 2026 and 2029 games with Maryland on the schedule,” Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin said in the release. “It’s a good regional matchup for our players and fans, and these adjustments give us valuable flexibility as we continue to position our program for long-term success.”
Virginia Tech and Maryland last faced off in the 2021 Pinstripe Bowl, an affair the Terrapins ran away with 54-10. The Hokies last played Maryland in the regular season in 2013, where Virginia Tech lost 27-24 in overtime. Back then, Maryland was still an ACC member, before it bolted to officially join the Big Ten Conference on July 1, 2014.
Prior to that 2013 game, Virginia Tech held a five-game winning streak over the Terrapins, though it is 15-17 all-time. The Hokies are 4-3 against the Terrapins on the road.
“These adjustments reflect our commitment to building a schedule that best serves Virginia Tech football and our fans,” said athletic director Whit Babcock in Tech's release. "We look forward to two great matchups in 2026 and 2029."
2026 marks the first year of the ACC's new nine-game in-conference slate. With the extra conference game, which became a road tilt with SMU, Virginia Tech cancelled its home contest with James Madison. The ACC schedules nine in-conference games and requires at least 10 Power Four games.
At the time of writing, Virginia Tech has two non-conference games scheduled for the 2027, 2028 and 2029 seasons, and three for 2030. Here's the full non-conference slate at the moment.
- 2027: vs. Liberty (Sept. 4), at Notre Dame (Nov. 6)
- 2028: vs. Liberty (Sept. 2), vs. Notre Dame (Nov. 4)
- 2029: at Arizona (Sept. 8), vs. Maryland (Sept. 15)
- 2030: vs. Arizona (Aug. 30), at BYU (Sept. 14), vs. Old Dominion (Sept. 21)

Hughes serves as Virginia Tech On SI's lead editor, a position he has held since July 2025. He is a sophomore at Virginia Tech, majoring in multimedia journalism with a minor in creative writing. Hughes is also the assistant editor-in-chief for 3304 Sports, as well as an on-air talent for 3304's SportsCenter-style studio show. He is also a staff writer for Steering Wheel Nation, having written pieces on several motorsport series, including Formula 1 and the NTT IndyCar Series.
Follow thomashughes_05