Penn State Sports Magazine
Issue link: https://comanpub.uberflip.com/i/1543434
1 0 M A R C H 2 0 2 6 W W W . B L U E W H I T E O N L I N E . C O M P enn State's 2026 schedule is out, and not since December 2024, when their path through the College Football Playoff started with matchups against SMU and Boise State, have the Nittany Lions felt this good about an upcoming draw. Granted, we don't truly know what any of the op- ponents will look like when the season begins in September, but head coach Matt Campbell has to be smiling with the schedule now out in the open. Before the Big Ten added four Pac-12 teams and scrapped its East and West divisions, Penn State played Ohio State and Michigan annually. The league's ex- pansion in 2024 was supposed to spread out the heavy hitters and provide a more balanced outlook for everyone. That, in theory, would result in better overall records and more playoff berths for the conference. But Penn State's 2026 schedule looks like a throwback to that pre-expansion era. Outside of a November trip to Seattle to play Washington, the Nit- tany Lions are once again going to face the familiar complaint that theirs is a two-game season, with their toughest helmet-scouted tests coming in quick succession — a visit from USC on Oct. 10 followed by a trip to Michigan the next week. Because of how the calendar is set up, there's only one bye week this year. Penn State's bye will come just ahead of an Oct. 31 matchup against visiting Pur- due. That may not be ideal, but if their biggest gripe with the schedule is the placement of the bye week, the Nittany Lions will be just fine. Penn State will play five road games in 2026, but one of those trips is an out- of-conference visit to Philadelphia to face Temple. In addition to Michigan and Washington, the Big Ten road op- ponents are Northwestern and Mary- land. In one of the year's more exciting schedule-related developments, Penn State will be the first opponent to face Northwestern at its new stadium, 35,000-seat Ryan Field. The facility has been under construction since February 2024. It won't be ready for the Wild- cats' home opener versus South Dakota State on Sept. 5, but the turnstiles will be spinning for a Friday night clash with the Lions on Oct. 2 that will serve as Northwestern's Big Ten opener and will air on FOX Sports. The new stadium will debut 100 years to the day after the Wildcats' previous home field — originally dubbed North- western Stadium, then Dyche Stadium, then Ryan Field — first opened its doors. NEWS & NOTES 2026 PENN STATE FOOTBALL SCHEDULE Date Opponent/TV Sept. 5 MARSHALL Sept. 12 at Temple Sept. 19 BUFFALO Sept. 26 WISCONSIN Oct. 2 at Northwestern/FOX Oct. 10 USC Oct. 17 at Michigan Oct. 31 PURDUE Nov. 7 at Washington Nov. 14 MINNESOTA Nov. 21 RUTGERS Nov. 28 at Maryland LIONS' 2026 FOOTBALL SCHEDULE INSPIRES OPTIMISM S E A N F I T Z | S E A N . F I T Z @ O N 3 . C O M Penn State will help Northwestern christen its new 35,000-seat football stadium next fall. The Nittany Lions will face the Wildcats on Friday, Oct. 2, in the first game at Ryan Field, which is still under construction. COURTESY CENTRAL STREET CONSORTIUM