The Big Ten released the 2026 football schedules. Penn State football head coach Matt Campbell has an ideal slate ahead of him for his first season leading the Nittany Lions, but the order of which opponents he faces made things even better.
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Penn State football 2026 schedule released
Penn State kicks off the season with a three-game, non-conference slate:
- Sept. 5 vs. Marshall
- Sept. 12 at Temple
- Sept. 19 vs. Buffalo
Like usual, the Nittany Lions have a light non-conference schedule. This gives Campbell time to see exactly what he's working with, get guys necessary reps, and develop a good rotation across the depth chart.
Penn State then starts its Big Ten slate at home, and faces its most competitive opponents in the first half of the season:
- Sept. 26 vs. Wisconsin
- Oct. 3 at Northwestern
- Oct. 10 vs. USC
- Oct. 17 at Michigan
- Oct. 31 vs. Purdue
- Nov. 7 at Washington
- Nov. 14 vs. Minnesota
- Nov. 21 vs. Rutgers
- Nov. 28 at Maryland
The Nittany Lions have their bye week during Week 8 on Oct. 24.
Campbell should get off to a good start with the non-conference slate, and facing the Badgers and Wildcats to open Big Ten play is ideal to get his and his crew of former Iowa State players' feet wet. Northwestern finished 2025 just above Penn State with a 4-5 conference record after beating the Nittany Lions in what ultimately was Virginia Tech head coach James Franklin's last game with the blue and white. Wisconsin finished 2-7 in 2025. Both of those teams aren't expected to be anything special in 2026.
Penn State faces its most competitive opponents back-to-back, including one on the roads. It meets the Trojans at Beaver Stadium in Week 6 and heads to the Wolverines in Week 7 right after. Getting a taste for the Big Ten before these two contests is a huge benefit, and what makes the order of this schedule even better is Campbell gets to take a breather after Michigan and evaluate how the Nittany Lions held up in the first half of the season.
If Campbell gets off to a hot start — even losing just one of either USC or Michigan is acceptable too — the worst of the schedule is over. The only other semi-competitive team left is Washington in Week 10 on the road. By that point, Campbell is ideally in a comfortable spot with his Nittany Lions.
While Penn State can't underestimate its opponent in any week of the season, its schedule sets the team up for success. A 10-2 or even 11-1 finish isn't a pipe dream, but that also means Campbell and the Nittany Lions have to hit the ground running before their bye week.