It's never too early to prepare for the next college football season. After Indiana won the 2025-26 College Football Playoff title, the 2026-27 season looks to pick up where it left off with exciting action.
You can find information on when the 2026 college football season starts here. This story will be updated if games and times are changed.
When does the 2026 college football season start?
The 2026 season is set to begin on Thursday, Aug. 27 in this year's "Week Zero." Most of the nation's Division I programs will start their seasons the following week.
Here are some of the games currently scheduled for Week Zero:
Thursday, Aug. 27
- Mercyhurst at Youngstown State | 6 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Maine at Towson | 6 p.m. ET | FloSports
- Chattanooga at West Georgia | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Charleston Southern at Lindenwood | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Southern Illinois at West Florida | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Mississippi Valley State at Nicholls | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Central Arkansas at UT Martin | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Gardner-Webb at Austin Peay | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Stony Brook at Delaware State | Time TBA | ESPN+
- LIU at North Dakota | Time TBA | ESPN+
- Houston Christian at Southeastern Louisiana| Time TBA | ESPN+
Friday, Aug. 28
- Marist at New Haven | 6 p.m. ET | NEC Front Row
- Colgate at Fordham | 6 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- New Hampshire at UAlbany | 7 p.m. ET | FloSports
- Weber State at Northern Colorado | 9 p.m. ET| ESPN+
- Idaho at Cal Poly | 10 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Rhode Island at Merrimack | ESPN+
Saturday, Aug. 29
- Aer Lingus College Football Classic: North Carolina vs. TCU (in Dublin, Ireland) | 12 p.m. ET | ESPN
- San Jose State at Southern California | 3 p.m. ET | NBC/Peacock
- Jacksonville State at North Dakota State | 5:30 p.m. ET | CBS Sports Network
- Sacramento State at Eastern Michigan | 6:30 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- New Mexico State at Florida State | 7 p.m. ET | The CW
- Memphis at UNLV | 10 p.m. ET | FOX
- Hawaii at Stanford | 7 p.m. ET | ACC Network
- FCS games
- Southern vs. Alabama State (in Birmingham, AL) | 3 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- Morgan State at North Carolina A&T | 6 p.m. ET | FloSports
- East Texas A&M at Mercer | 7 p.m. | ESPN
- North Alabama vs. Samford (in Huntsville, AL) | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- North Carolina Central at Texas Southern | 7 p.m. ET | HBCUGO
- Monmouth at Tennessee Tech | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Eastern Kentucky at Western Carolina | 7 p.m. ET| ESPN+
- MEAC/SWAC Challenge: Alabama A&M vs. Howard (in Atlanta, Georgia) | 7:30 p.m. ET | ABC
- Prairie View A&M at Tarleton State | 9 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Jackson State at Tennessee State | Time TBA | ESPN+
- Abilene Christian at Lamar | Time TBA | ESPN+
- William & Mary at Villanova | Time TBA | ESPN+
The following week begins Week 1 of the 2026 college football season, with most of the games set for Saturday, Sept. 5 during Labor Day weekend. Here are some of the season-opening matchups.
Thursday, Sept. 3
- UMass at Rutgers | 6 p.m. ET | Big Ten Network
- Akron at Wake Forest | 7 p.m. ET | ACC Network
- UAlbany at Buffalo | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Bethune-Cookman at UCF | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Merrimack at Delaware | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- West Georgia at Kennesaw State | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Lindenwood at Stony Brook | 7 p.m. ET | FloSports
- Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Missouri | 8 p.m. ET | SEC Network
- Colorado at Georgia Tech | ESPN | 8 p.m. ET | ESPN
- Eastern Illinois at Minnesota | 8 p.m. ET | Peacock
- Idaho at Utah | 9 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- UAB at Illinois | 9 p.m. ET | Big Ten Network
- Southern Illinois at Samford | Time TBA | ESPN+
Friday, Sept. 4
- San Jose State at Eastern Michigan | 6:30 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- North Carolina A&T at Georgia State | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Indiana State at Purdue | 7 p.m. ET | Big Ten Network
- LIU at Kansas | 8 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- Toledo at Michigan State | 8 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- Fresno State at USC | 9 p.m. ET | FOX
- Miami (FL) at Stanford | 9 p.m. ET | ESPN
Saturday, Sept. 5
- North Texas at Indiana | 12 p.m. ET | FOX
- Liberty at James Madison | 12 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- East Carolina at Alabama | 12 p.m. ET | ABC
- Ball State at Ohio State | 12:30 p.m. ET | Big Ten Network
- Tennessee State at Georgia | 3 p.m. ET | SEC Network+
- Baylor vs. Auburn (in Atlanta, Ga.) | 3:30 p.m. ET | ABC
- Boise State at Oregon | 3:30 p.m. ET | CBS
- Texas State at Texas | 3:30 p.m. ET | ESPN
- Tulane at Duke | 3:30 p.m. ET | ACC Network
- Oklahoma State at Tulsa | 3:45 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- FIU at South Florida | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Clemson at LSU | 7:30 p.m. ET | ABC
- Western Michigan at Michigan | 7:30 p.m. ET | NBC/Peacock
- Florida Atlantic at Florida | 7:45 p.m. ET | SEC Network
- UCLA at California | 10:30 p.m. ET | ESPN
Sunday, Sept. 6
- Labor Day Classic: Texas Southern at Prairie View A&M | 12 p.m. ET | ESPN2
- Orange Blossom Classic: South Carolina State vs. Florida A&M (in Miami Gardens, FL) | 3 p.m. ET | ESPN
- Washington State at Washington | 4 p.m. ET | NBC/Peacock
- Louisville vs. Ole Miss (in Nashville, TN) | 7:30 p.m. ET | ABC
- Wisconsin vs. Notre Dame (in Green Bay, WI) | 7:30 p.m. ET | NBC/Peacock
Monday, Sept. 7
- SMU at Florida State | 7:30 p.m. ET | ESPN
Some other early-season nonconference games to watch can be found below:
Week 2
- Thursday, Sept. 10
- Florida A&M at Miami (FL) | 8 p.m. ET | ACC Network
- Friday, Sept. 11
- Richmond at NC State | 7 p.m. ET | ESPNU
- Villanova at Louisville | 7 p.m. ET | ACC Network
- Norfolk State at Virginia | 7 p.m. ET | ACC Network X
- Rutgers at Boston College | 7:30 p.m. ET ESPN2
- Missouri at Kansas | 8 p.m. ET | FOX
- Saturday, Sept. 12
- Oklahoma at Michigan | 12 p.m. ET | FOX
- Arizona State at Texas A&M | 12 p.m. ET | ABC
- Oregon at Oklahoma State | 12 p.m. ET | ESPN
- UCF at Pittsburgh | 3:30 p.m. ET | ESPN2
- Mississippi State at Minnesota | 3:30 p.m. ET | CBS
- Memphis at Boise State | 6 p.m. ET | USA
- Georgia State at Kennesaw State | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Tennessee at Georgia Tech | 7 p.m. ET | ESPN
- Iowa State at Iowa | 7:30 p.m. ET | NBC/Peacock
- Ohio State at Texas | 7:30 p.m. ET | ABC
- Arkansas at Utah | 10:15 p.m. ET | ESPN
Week 3
- Saturday, Sept. 19
- Union Jack Classic: Arizona State vs. Kansas (in London, England) | 12 p.m. ET | FS1
- North Texas at Texas State | 12 p.m. ET | USA
- Miami (Ohio) vs. Cincinnati (neutral site in Cincinnati) | 3:30 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Florida State at Alabama | 3:30 p.m. ET | ABC
- Utah State at Utah | 3:30 p.m. ET | FOX
- FIU at Florida Atlantic | 6 p.m. ET | ESPN+
- Duke's Mayo Classic: Virginia vs. West Virginia (in Charlotte, N.C.) | 7:30 p.m. ET | ACC Network
- Virginia Tech at Maryland | 7:30 p.m. ET | FOX or FS1
- Michigan State at Notre Dame | 7:30 p.m. ET | NBC/Peacock
College Football Playoff and New Year's Six bowl games schedule
The 2026 season is the 13th edition of the College Football Playoff and the third in the 12-team format.
Here are the College Football Playoff dates and schedule for next season. All New Year's Six games are also included:
- First round | Week of Saturday, Dec. 19
- Location: the home field of the higher-seeded team or another site designated by the higher-seeded program.
- One game | Friday, Dec. 18 | 8 p.m. ET | ESPN
- Three games | Saturday, Dec. 19
- 12 p.m. ET | ABC
- 3:30 p.m. ET | TNT/truTV/HBO MAX
- 7:30 p.m. ET | TNT/truTV/HBO MAX
- Quarterfinal sites:
- Fiesta Bowl | Wednesday, Dec. 30 | 7:30 p.m. ET | TNT/truTV/HBO MAX
- Cotton Bowl | Friday, Jan. 1 *
- Rose Bowl | Friday, Jan. 1 *
- Peach Bowl | Friday, Jan. 1 *
*Games will be assigned to one of the following windows on Selection Day: 12 p.m. ET on TNT/truTV/HBO MAX, 4 p.m. ET on ABC or 8 p.m. ET on ESPN
- Semifinal sites:
- Orange Bowl | Thursday, Jan. 14 | 7:30 p.m. ET | TNT/truTV/HBO MAX
- Sugar Bowl | Friday, Jan. 15 | 7:30 p.m. ET |ABC
- CFP National Championship Game: Monday, Jan. 25, 2026 (in Las Vegas, Nevada) | 7:30 p.m. ET | ABC
The title game will be played at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nevada on Monday, Jan. 25, 2027. This will mark the first time Las Vegas will host the CFP National Championship Game.
CALENDAR: 2026-27 College Football Playoff schedule, dates, TV channel, sites
Indiana won the College Football Playoff National Championship during the 2025-26 season. Here's a complete history of the CFP title game.
| Year (Game Date) |
Game | LOCATION |
|---|---|---|
| 2015 | No. 4 Ohio State 42, No. 2 Oregon 20 | Arlington, Texas |
| 2016 | No. 2 Alabama 45, No. 1 Clemson 40 | Glendale, Arizona |
| 2017 | No. 2 Clemson 35, No. 1 Alabama 31 | Tampa, Florida |
| 2018 | No. 4 Alabama 26, No. 3 Georgia 23 | Atlanta, Georgia |
| 2019 | No. 2 Clemson 44, No. 1 Alabama 16 | Santa Clara, California |
| 2020 | No. 1 LSU 42, No. 3 Clemson 25 | New Orleans, Louisiana |
| 2021 | No. 1 Alabama 52, No. 3 Ohio State 24 | Miami Gardens, Florida |
| 2022 | No. 3 Georgia 33, No. 1 Alabama 18 | Indianapolis, Indiana |
| 2023 | No. 1 Georgia 65, No. 3 TCU 7 | Inglewood, California |
| 2024 | No. 1 Michigan 34, No. 2 Washington 13 | Houston, Texas |
| 2025 | No. 8 Ohio State 34, No. 7 Notre Dame 23 | Atlanta, Georgia |
| 2026 | No. 1 Indiana 27, No. 10 Miami 21 | Miami Gardens, Florida |
🏆: Complete college football championship history | Schools with the most titles | Most CFP appearances
Future CFP national championship locations and dates
2026-27: Las Vegas (Allegiant Stadium) - Jan. 25
2027-28: New Orleans (Caesars Superdome) - Jan. 24
2028-29: Tampa (Raymond James Stadium) - Jan. 22
2029-30: Miami (Hard Rock Stadium) - Jan. 21
The views on this page do not necessarily reflect the views of the NCAA or its member institutions.
