2026 schedule and search for 12th game

[shizzle787]

With Duke likely rescheduling our game to a future year, here are the following opponents we could have on 9/19 or 10/17:

@USC (body bag game-not a fan)
@FAU (as part of home and home)
Memphis (as part of home and home)
USF (as part of home and home)
@SDSU (as part of home and home)
SJSU (as part of home and home)
@UNLV (as part of home and home)
@Georgia State (as part of home and home)
@Southern Miss (as part of home and home)
@Marshall (as part of home and home)
@Kent State (as part of home and home)
@NIU (as part of home and home)
@FIU (as part of home and home)
Jacksonville State (as part of home and home)
@UTEP (as part of home and home)


Now, we could still lose more games (though it is unlikely at this point).

 

[uconnbill]

I would say any Florida, Georgia or Ohio school would make sense for recruiting purposes

 

[FightOnCT]

Highly doubt we’ll go for a buy game seeing as how that likely arose due to earlier scheduling difficulties in our first years as an independent. I’d rather not have another western opponent either.

 

[Scoe]

Would this 12th game be our bowl game or is half the team gonna bail on that game too.

 

[Drew]

With Duke likely rescheduling our game to a future year, here are the following opponents we could have on 9/19 or 10/17:

@USC (body bag game-not a fan)
@FAU (as part of home and home)
Memphis (as part of home and home)
USF (as part of home and home)
@SDSU (as part of home and home)
SJSU (as part of home and home)
@UNLV (as part of home and home)
@Georgia State (as part of home and home)
@Southern Miss (as part of home and home)
@Marshall (as part of home and home)
@Kent State (as part of home and home)
@NIU (as part of home and home)
@FIU (as part of home and home)
Jacksonville State (as part of home and home)
@UTEP (as part of home and home)


Now, we could still lose more games (though it is unlikely at this point).

Kent/UTEP home and home - sign me up. Need more W’s.

 

[How Sway?!]

Offer USC to continue the ND series with us, we'll play the game whenever they want to /s

USF makes too much sense for me. Old BE rivals, helps with FL recruiting.

 

[Windham4th]

Mountain West or Pac-12 opponents would be my vote.

I just think those teams are infinitely more interesting because we have little to no history out there. I hate to see the same teams over and over again like USF or a boring team like Georgia State.

Southern Miss would be good from a newness perspective too.

 

[DoctorWho85]

I'd love to see one of the california schools on the schedule again. Cal or UCLA would be cool.

 

[Hskies4Ever]

I want a winnable game - but not a cake walk. Memphis or USF would be ideal IMO.

Easy Ws do nothing for our national perception.

 

[psilotic]

Do we know if week 0 is an option (for more flexibility)?

 

[freescooter]

I'd love to see one of the california schools on the schedule again. Cal or UCLA would be cool.

Only if it is a home game. We are already taking 2 long road trips. No need to ad another.

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Kent/UTEP home and home - sign me up. Need more W’s.

If not, won’t be surprising for one of the schools in important recruiting target states with similar solid opportunities for a W, e.g., FAU, FIU, GA St.

 

[Drew]

If not, won’t be surprising for one of the schools in important recruiting target states with similar solid opportunities for a W, e.g., FAU, FIU, GA St.

This is definitely the more likely approach IMO but would selfishly love to go to the Sun Bowl for a game against UTEP. And we’re most likely to win both legs of a series against UTEP and Kent. Right now it’s all about building our record to be 8+ wins a year, pull off one or more of the P4 games and drill the other G5s to show we’re “not like them”. Can’t be losing to Delaware and Rice moving forward.

 

[DoctorWho85]

Only if it is a home game. We are already taking 2 long road trips. No need to ad another.

Home and home.

 

[BlueandOG]

USF home and home. Go time.

 

[BonaConn]

Easiest solution might be to move up the 2028 game at USF to next year, gives us the Tampa trip we almost got the last two years

 

[Da_Aisijimo_Gou]

Home and home.

From UCLA's and Cal's perspectives, an additional cross country trip to the east coast is a near zero scenario. Both already have more cross country trips than desired, and far more likely scheduling opportunities with SDSU, SJSU, UNLV, USC (for Cal), or worst case, closer games only as needed, e.g., UTEP & Memphis.

From UConn's perspective, NFW the Huskies add an additional 2026 long trip on top of existing scheduled away games far outside reasonable/desired recruiting areas, i.e., Air Force and Wyoming. The Cowboys were only scheduled due to early independence scheduling needs. The Falcons, a late scheduling fill-in for the 2025 season.

 

[Nameless]

With Duke likely rescheduling our game to a future year, here are the following opponents we could have on 9/19 or 10/17:

@USC (body bag game-not a fan)
@FAU (as part of home and home)
Memphis (as part of home and home)
USF (as part of home and home)
@SDSU (as part of home and home)
SJSU (as part of home and home)
@UNLV (as part of home and home)
@Georgia State (as part of home and home)
@Southern Miss (as part of home and home)
@Marshall (as part of home and home)
@Kent State (as part of home and home)
@NIU (as part of home and home)
@FIU (as part of home and home)
Jacksonville State (as part of home and home)
@UTEP (as part of home and home)


Now, we could still lose more games (though it is unlikely at this point).

If I'm looking at this from the standpoint of who I would actually like to see us play, my top 5 in order are as follows:

Memphis
USF
@USC (don't care if it's a body bag game, I would enjoy the matchup to see how we stacked up)
@SDSU
@UNLV (these final 2 games would be fun/interesting opponents when they played the return game)

If I'm looking at this solely from a W/L perspective (who brings the easiest W's) my top 5 would change to:

@Kent State
@FIU
@UTEP
@Georgia State
@Jacksonville State

Although honestly FIU-Jacksonville State are all kind of neck and neck. Kent State is the clear favorite here in terms of an easy W

 

[shizzle787]

If I'm looking at this from the standpoint of who I would actually like to see us play, my top 5 in order are as follows:

Memphis
USF
@USC (don't care if it's a body bag game, I would enjoy the matchup to see how we stacked up)
@SDSU
@UNLV (these final 2 games would be fun/interesting opponents when they played the return game)

If I'm looking at this solely from a W/L perspective (who brings the easiest W's) my top 5 would change to:

@Kent State
@FIU
@UTEP
@Georgia State
@Jacksonville State

Although honestly FIU-Jacksonville State are all kind of neck and neck. Kent State is the clear favorite here in terms of an easy W

I honestly think we should pay Kent 1.8-2 million for a home game. They usually do three body bag games a year.

 

[Drew]

I honestly think we should pay Kent 1.8-2 million for a home game. They usually do three body bag games a year.

Will not happen. Save ourselves $1.5M for rev share and play a H/H series against a team we can beat

 

[HCCForever]

Easiest solution might be to move up the 2028 game at USF to next year, gives us the Tampa trip we almost got the last two years

But their new stadium is not scheduled to open until 2027. The game could move to Raymond James but I’d like UConn to play in new stadium.

 

[FfldCntyFan]

I imagine it may be a couple months before all ACC schools get their 2026 schedules sorted out. That might be the best time to look into completing our schedule.

 

[BonaConn]

But their new stadium is not scheduled to open until 2027. The game could move to Raymond James but I’d like UConn to play in new stadium.

It could be like the Rice situation where we end up doing another home-and-home with them.

 

[uconnbill]

I honestly think we should pay Kent 1.8-2 million for a home game. They usually do three body bag games a year.

Home and Home with them, no paying them when UConn needs the money as well

 

[shizzle787]

Will not happen. Save ourselves $1.5M for rev share and play a H/H series against a team we can beat

If we pay one MAC team a year for a home game, we will guarantee ourselves 7 home games a year.