The 2026 college football season will feature a significant number of games played on Friday nights, with a schedule that includes conference matchups, rivalry games, and a full slate on Black Friday. Broadcast details for these games have been released, though additional networks and kickoff times may be added as the season approaches.
The Friday night lineup will showcase games from various conferences across the FBS. Among the early season matchups, Toledo will visit Michigan State and Fresno State will play at USC in Week 1. These games are part of a broader schedule that extends throughout the season.
Key Friday Night Matchups
The schedule for Friday, September 4, includes several notable contests. San Jose State will face Eastern Michigan at 6:30 p.m. ET on ESPN+. Later that evening, UTEP will play at Oklahoma at 8 p.m. ET on SEC Network+, and Toledo will take on Michigan State at 8 p.m. ET on FS1. The night concludes with Fresno State at USC at 9 p.m. ET on FOX, and Miami (FL) at Stanford at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN.
Later in September, Rutgers will travel to Boston College on September 11 at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, followed by Missouri at Kansas at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. On September 18, Miami (FL) will play at Wake Forest at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN, and Houston will visit Texas Tech at 8 p.m. ET on FOX. The September 25 schedule includes Army at Temple at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN, Navy at UAB at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, Northwestern at Indiana at 8 p.m. ET on FOX, and Clemson at California at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
October and November Highlights
The October 2 schedule features Liberty at Delaware at 7 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, Pittsburgh at Virginia Tech at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, and Penn State at Northwestern at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
On October 9, Florida State will play at Louisville at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN. Other games that night include Wyoming at San Jose State at 9 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, Iowa at Washington at 9 p.m. ET (TV TBD), Washington State at Utah State at 9 p.m. ET on CW, and Iowa State at BYU at 10:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The October 16 schedule includes Memphis at Tulane at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN, Appalachian State at Coastal Carolina at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN2, and Washington at Purdue at 8 p.m. ET on FOX.
Later in October, on the 23rd, Duke will visit Virginia at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, UMass will play at UConn at 7 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, Army will be at Tulsa at 8:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, Air Force at Wyoming at 9 p.m. ET on CW, and NC State at Stanford at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The final Friday in October, the 30th, will see Tulane at Charlotte at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN2, Baylor at UCF at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN, and Kent State at Sacramento State at 10:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2.
In November, Virginia Tech will play at SMU on the 6th at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN. Other games that night include South Florida at East Carolina at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, Nebraska at Illinois at 8 p.m. ET on FOX, New Mexico at Nevada at 9 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, and TCU at Arizona at 10:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.
On November 13, Florida State will be at Pittsburgh at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN, Illinois at UCLA at 9 p.m. ET on FOX, and Houston at Colorado at 10:15 p.m. ET on ESPN.
The November 20 schedule includes Iowa State at UCF at 6 p.m. ET on FS1, Clemson at Duke at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN, Bowling Green at Toledo at 7:30 p.m. ET on ESPN2, UTEP at Air Force at 8 p.m. ET on CW, Oregon at Michigan State at 8 p.m. ET on FOX, and New Mexico at Wyoming at 9 p.m. ET on FS1.
Black Friday Games
The Black Friday schedule on November 27 features a full day of college football. Games include Buffalo at Akron at noon ET (TV TBD), Mississippi State at Ole Miss at noon ET on ABC, and Nebraska at Iowa at noon ET on CBS. Other matchups that day are Toledo at Ohio at noon ET (TV TBD), Tulsa at UTSA (Time TBD, TV TBD), Florida Atlantic at East Carolina (Time TBD, TV TBD), Temple at Memphis (Time TBD, TV TBD), and Tulane at South Florida (Time TBD, TV TBD).
Later on Black Friday, Appalachian State will play at South Alabama at 3 p.m. ET on ESPN+, Florida at Florida State at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC, North Dakota State at San Jose State at 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS Sports Network, and Air Force at New Mexico at 4:30 p.m. ET on CW. The evening concludes with Texas at Texas A&M at 7:30 p.m. ET on ABC, Minnesota at Wisconsin at 7:30 p.m. ET on NBC and Peacock, and West Virginia at Utah at 9 p.m. ET on FOX.
These Friday night games will be broadcast across various networks, including FOX, FS1, ESPN networks, CBS, CBS Sports Network, NBC, and The CW.
Source: nytimes.com
Mason Reed
Sports reporter covering football, basketball and international competitions.