The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Mountain West Conference (FBS Group Of Six)

Mountain West Conference (FBS Group Of Six)

Overview: Do you notice anything different about the Mountain West Conference going into the 2026 season? The major difference is in which teams have left the now 28-year-old league, and who's coming in to join it.

The biggest change of all is that eight teams (all with the word "State" in their names) will soon become members of the new-look Pacific-12 Conference. That leaves 10 schools taking the field in the newly restructured Mountain West Conference.

The newcomers for 2026 in the MWC are UTEP from Conference USA, Northern Illinois from the Mid-American Conference, and maybe the most-talked-about newcomer of all time, the North Dakota State University Bison from Fargo, North Dakota. 

NDSU joins the FBS ranks after dominating the FCS level for most of the last 15 years, winning 10 national championships all-time dating back to the 2011 season. That run includes five straight titles from 2011-2015, 2017-2019, and their most recent crowns in 2021 and 2024.

It'll be interesting to see how competitive the Bison will be in a conference that includes longtime members such as New Mexico and UNLV. Both of those squads are expected to be serious contenders for the Mountain West Conference crown this season.

 

174. Air Force

175. Hawai'i

176. New Mexico

177. Nevada

178. North Dakota State*

179. Northern Illinois

180. San Jose State

181. UNLV

182. UTEP

183. Wyoming

*-North Dakota State is transitioning from the FCS to the FBS level in 2026.

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THE RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Big Sky Conference (FCS)

Big Sky Conference (FCS) 

Overview: Any discussion of Big Sky Conference football for the 2026 season should begin and end with the two teams from the same state, the Montana State University Bobcats and the University of Montana Grizzlies, respectively. 

Montana State overcame an 0-2 start to win its final 14 games, culminating in a dramatic win over Illinois State in the FCS title game on January 5th, 2026. The 35-34 win over the Redbirds gave the Bobcats their second-ever FCS/NCAA Division I-AA national championship, with their only other title coming in 1984. With the win, Montana State finished the 2025 season at 14-2 overall.

As for Montana, the Grizzlies carried an undefeated record into their annual "Brawl of the Wild" showdown in Missoula, Montana. But it was the Bobcats that ended the Griz's quest for an undefeated regular season with a 31-28 Montana State win on November 22. 

The Grizzlies then won two FCS playoff games over South Dakota State and South Dakota to earn a rematch against the Bobcats in the semifinals. However, Montana State won that battle in a contest that wasn't really close, with the Bobcats cruising to a 48-23 win on December 20th, 2025. Montana's 2025 season ended at 13-2 overall after losing to Montana State.

The only other Big Sky Conference team to advance to the FCS playoffs last fall was the University of California-Davis Aggies. UC Davis defeated Rhode Island 47-26 in the second round before being eliminated by eventual national runner-up Illinois State 42-31. The Aggies finished their 2025 season at 9-4 overall.

The upcoming 2026 season will bring multiple changes to the Big Sky Conference membership, with longtime member Sacramento State leaving for the FBS Group of Six Mountain West Conference, while Southern Utah and Utah Tech are moving into the Big Sky from the United Athletic Conference (UAC).

It will be interesting to see whether Montana and Montana State will continue to dominate the Big Sky Conference discussion or if other squads will have a say in the conference championship conversation this season. 

161. Cal Poly

162. Eastern Washington

163. Idaho

164. Idaho State

165. Montana

166. Montana State

167. Northern Arizona

168. Northern Colorado

169. Portland State

170. Southern Utah

171. UC Davis

172. Utah Tech

173. Weber State

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Southland Conference (FCS)

Southland Conference (FCS)

Overview: After outlasting Abilene Christian 41-34 in the second round of the FCS playoffs, followed by a season-ending loss to eventual national champion Montana State in the quarterfinals, to finish the 2025 season at 11-3 overall, the Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks will look to win another Southland Conference crown in 2026. But SFA will have solid competition looking to dethrone the Lumberjacks, who finished unbeaten in SLC action at 8-0 last season. Expect challenges from Southeastern Louisiana (9-4, 7-1), second-year UT Rio Grande Valley (9-3, 5-3), and Lamar (8-5, 5-3), amongst other challengers.

151. East Texas A&M

152. Houston Christian

153. Lamar

154. McNeese State

155. Nicholls 

156. Northwestern State

157. Southeastern Louisiana

158. Stephen F. Austin

159. UIW

160. UT Rio Grande Valley

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: FCS Independent-Merrimack

Overview: Due to the nature of conference realignment in college sports, the lone FCS program that's currently not a conference member will stay independent, for now.

That one program is the Merrimack College Warriors from North Andover, Massachusetts. The Warriors struggled to a disappointing 4-8 record in 2025, with four of those losses coming by seven points or less. That includes a heartbreaking 23-20 overtime loss to Colgate on November 1. 

The 2026 schedule for Merrimack will be brutal, as all 12 of the Warriors' opponents this fall finished the 2025 season with a combined overall record of 96-51 (.653). Out of that group, 11 teams finished with a .500 or better winning percentage, 10 won six or more games, nine won seven or more games, and six squads advanced to postseason play in some form. Four of these teams-Rhode Island, Tarleton State, Yale, and New Hampshire- advanced to the FCS playoffs, while two FBS teams-Delaware and Wake Forest-played in bowl games last season.

If they play well during the first half of the season, don't be surprised if Merrimack finally gets its first winning season as an FCS program this fall. The Warriors' last winning season was in 2022, when they finished at 8-3 overall. 

150. Merrimack

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Ivy League (FCS)

Ivy League-(FCS)

Overview: The Ivy League experienced multiple changes in 2025, with the biggest being that all eight teams were eligible for the FCS playoffs for the first time in the storied history of the "Ancient Eight".

One team that made the most of this change was the Yale University Bulldogs. The Bulldogs pulled off the upset over their longtime archrivals in the Harvard University Crimson to clinch the Ivy League's first-ever automatic bid to the FCS playoffs. The Bulldogs then rallied from a 28-point halftime deficit to defeat and eliminate Youngstown State for Yale's first-ever FCS playoff win a week later. Yale's historic season came to a close the following week after giving eventual FCS national champion Montana State all it could handle before succumbing 21-13 to finish at 9-3 overall.

As for Harvard, the Crimson saw its quest for an undefeated regular season end after being upset by Yale, 45-28, and settled for a share of the Ivy League championship. Harvard was eliminated by Villanova in its first-ever FCS playoff game, 52-7. The Crimson finished its 2025 campaign at 9-2 overall.

With the 2026 season soon to start in just a matter of months, the questions are these: Will Harvard and Yale make it a two-team race for the Ivy League title, with both squads finishing the 2025 season at 6-1 in conference play? Or will one or more of the other six squads have a say in who comes out on top this fall?

142. Brown

143. Columbia 

144. Cornell (N.Y.)

145. Dartmouth

146. Harvard

147. Penn*

148. Princeton 

149. Yale

*-Schedule courtesy of fbschedules.com.


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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC)-(FCS)

Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC)-(FCS)

Overview:  After one of the most competitive football seasons in Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) history, the Prairie View A&M University Panthers traveled to Jackson, Mississippi, and knocked off the Jackson State University Tigers, 23-21, on Saturday, December 6, 2025, to win their first SWAC title since 2009. The Panthers then fell to MEAC champion South Carolina State, 40-38, in four overtimes at the Celebration Bowl the following week, to end the 2025 season at 10-4 overall.

 

The 2026 season promises more of the same intense competition from top to bottom, with Jackson State (9-3 overall in 2025) and Alabama State (10-2 in 2025) looking to win the East Division title, while Prairie View hopes to repeat as SWAC champions this fall.

However, there's one squad that won't be part of the conference championship conversation this season due to poor academic performance with the Florida A&M University Rattlers. On April 10, 2026, the NCAA banned FAMU from postseason play after receiving Level Two Academic Progress Rate (APR) penalties, which include practice restrictions, in addition to missing out on postseason action.

East Division

130. Alabama A&M

131. Alabama State

132. Bethune-Cookman

133. Florida A&M

134. Jackson State

135. Mississippi Valley State

West Division

136. Alcorn State

137. Grambling State

138. Prairie View A&M

139. Southern

140. Texas Southern*

141. UAPB

*-Schedule courtesy of fbschedules.com.

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Quick Schedule Updates-Louisiana Tech, San Diego, and West Florida

Editor's Note: Louisiana Tech, San Diego, and West Florida have updated their schedules as of Friday, May 1, 2026. Please click the following links listed below to find those schedules. All schedules are subject to change.)

Louisiana Tech (Schedule includes games vs. Sun Belt Conference opponents for the 2026 season.)

San Diego (11-game regular-season schedule in 2026) 

West Florida (12-game regular season schedule for the Argonauts first season at the FCS level in 2026. The schedule is courtesy of fbschedules.com.)

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)-(FCS)

 Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC)-(FCS)

Overview:  After outlasting SWAC champion Prairie View A&M 40-38 in four overtimes to win the Celebration Bowl on December 13, 2025, the South Carolina State University Bulldogs, who ended last year with a 10-3 overall record and unbeaten in conference play at 5-0, will enter the 2026 season hoping to win their third-straight title this fall. 

But S.C. State will get some serious competition this season from the Delaware State University Hornets, who finished their 2025 season at 4-1 in MEAC action en route to a final overall record of 8-4. Don't count North Carolina Central (8-4, 3-2) out of the MEAC mix either.

 

124. Delaware State

125. Howard

126. Morgan State

127. Norfolk State

128. North Carolina Central

129. South Carolina State

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker: United Athletic Conference (UAC)-(FCS)

United Athletic Conference (UAC)-(FCS)

Overview:  Despite only being in existence since 2023, the United Athletic Conference (UAC) has quickly established itself as one of the strongest conferences at the FCS level.

One case in point came in 2025, with five of the UAC's nine teams posting winning overall records last fall. Two of those teams, Tarleton State (12-2 overall in 2025) and Abilene Christian (9-5), both advanced to the FCS playoffs last season, with the Texans defeating North Dakota, 31-13, in the second round before succumbing to Villanova, 26-21, in the quarterfinals.

 

On the other hand, the Wildcats from Abilene, Texas, outlasted Lamar, 38-20 in the first round, only to see their season come to a heartbreaking end in a 41-34 loss to Stephen F. Austin in the second round. ACU handed Tarleton State its lone regular-season loss in a 31-28 upset win over the Texans on November 1. That win helped ACU win the UAC's automatic bid to the FCS playoffs.

The upcoming 2026 season will bring significant changes to the UAC line-up, with Southern Utah and Utah Tech leaving to rejoin the Big Sky Conference, while the University of West Florida moves up from NCAA Division II to the FCS ranks. The addition of UWF will bring instant credibility to this up-and-coming conference, as the Argonauts from Pensacola, Florida, won the Division II national championship in 2019.

116. Abilene Christian

117. Austin Peay

118. Central Arkansas

119. Eastern Kentucky

120. North Alabama

121. Tarleton State

122. West Florida*

123. West Georgia**

*-West Florida has started the first season of its four-season transition from the NCAA Division II to the NCAA Division I (FCS) level and is ineligible for postseason play during that span. UWF's first full season of FCS postseason eligibility is 2030.

**-West Georgia is currently transitioning from the NCAA Division II to the NCAA Division I (FCS) level and is ineligible for postseason play during the next two seasons. UWG's first full season of FCS postseason eligibility is 2027.

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker 2026: Pioneer Football League (PFL)-(FCS)

Overview: The Pioneer Football League (PFL) will enter the 2026 season with the same 11 teams that played the 2025 season from start to finish. The Drake University Bulldogs from Des Moines, Iowa, will look to win another PFL title after finishing 7-1 in conference play and 8-4 overall last fall. The Bulldogs lost to eventual national quarterfinalist South Dakota, 38-17, in the first round of the FCS playoffs last season.

Teams that hope to dethrone Drake in PFL play this season include Presbyterian (10-2 overall, 6-2 in the PFL in 2025), San Diego (8-4, 6-2), Dayton (7-4, 5-3), and St. Thomas (Minn.) (7-5, 5-3).

Pioneer Football League (PFL)

105. Butler 

106. Davidson

107. Dayton

108. Drake

109. Marist

110. Morehead State

111. Presbyterian

112. San Diego

113. Stetson

114. St. Thomas (Minn.)

115. Valparaiso

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker 2026: Northeast and Missouri Valley Football Conferences (FCS)

Overview: The Central Connecticut State University Blue Devils will try to advance to the FCS playoffs, as well as win three straight Northeast Conference (NEC) titles, all while starting the 2026 season with three straight road games at South Dakota, FBS Group of Six Conference foe Toledo, and defending FCS national champion Montana State, during the first three weeks.

Meanwhile, the Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) must adjust to a new look in its conference membership, as 10-time FCS national champion North Dakota State has moved on to the Mountain West Conference and the Group of Six ranks for 2026. NDSU's departure makes for a wide-open race for the MVFC title this fall, as squads such as South Dakota State, South Dakota, North Dakota, and national runner-up Illinois State hope to be in the championship conversation from start to finish.

Some notable early-season non-conference match-ups involving teams from both leagues include Long Island University (LIU) at North Dakota on August 27th, Central Connecticut State at South Dakota on August 29th, and Duquesne at Youngstown State on September 12th.

Finally, the NEC will have one less program among its membership in 2026, as St. Francis (Pa.) will downgrade to the NCAA Division III level after spending the past 35 seasons as an FCS program. Also, Stonehill becomes a fully-eligible FCS member after four seasons of being ineligible for postseason play, while Mercyhurst will enter the third season of its four-year transition period from the NCAA Division II ranks, and New Haven goes into season #2 of its transition period.

Northeast Conference (NEC)

88. Central Connecticut State (schedule courtesy of Hero Sports)

89. Duquesne

90. LIU

91. Mercyhurst

92. New Haven

93. Robert Morris

94. Stonehill

95. Wagner

 Missouri Valley Football Conference

96. Illinois State

97. Indiana State

98. Murray State

99. North Dakota

100. Northern Iowa

101. South Dakota

102. South Dakota State (schedule courtesy of Hero Sports)

103. Southern Illinois

104. Youngstown State

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker 2026: Mid-American Conference

Overview: The Mid-American Conference will have a new look in 2026, with longtime member Northern Illinois leaving for the Mountain West Conference, and Sacramento State University from Sacramento, California, moving up from the FCS level to the FBS level. The Hornets will play their first-ever FBS/MAC game in Week Zero, traveling to Ypsilanti, Michigan, to face the Eastern Michigan University Eagles on Saturday, August 29, 2026.

75. Akron

76. Ball State

77. Bowling Green

78. Buffalo

79. Central Michigan

80. Eastern Michigan

81. Kent State

82. Miami (Ohio)

83. Ohio

84. Sacramento State*

85. Toledo

86. UMass

87. Western Michigan

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The RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker 2026-Conference USA and the Sun Belt Conference

Editor's Note: Welcome to the RFC Offseason Schedule Tracker" here on the Real Football Central blog. The purpose of this blog is to track the schedules of every (or at least as many as possible) current "alternative" or "non-power conference" college football programs between now and the start of the 2026-2027 regular season in late August/early September. This includes teams at the FBS Group of 6, FCS, NCAA Division II, NCAA Division III, and the NAIA levels/divisions.

P.S.: Each post will be constantly updated, as schedules are subject to change. Only full-season schedules will be posted as they are received, unless otherwise indicated.

Sun Belt Conference

Overview: As this article is being posted, there's uncertainty as to whether Louisiana Tech will play a full season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference or Conference USA, with the Bulldogs listed in the composite schedules for both conferences. As for the on-the-field side of things, James Madison will not only look to win back-to-back SBC titles but also advance to the College Football Playoff for the second straight season in hopes of making a deeper postseason run.

East Division

49. Appalachian State

50. Coastal Carolina

51. Georgia Southern 

52. Georgia State

53. James Madison

54. Marshall

55. Old Dominion

West Division

57. Arkansas State

58. Louisiana

59. South Alabama

60. Southern Mississippi

61. Texas State

62. Troy

63. ULM 

Conference USA

64. Delaware

65. FIU

66. Jacksonville State

67. Kennesaw State

68. Liberty

69. Louisiana Tech

70. Middle Tennessee State

71. Missouri State

72. New Mexico State

73. Sam Houston State

74. Western Kentucky

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