The Ohio State Buckeyes' 2026 Schedule is full of must-watch games as the Buckeyes march back to the top of College Football.
Two things are true about Ohio State's 2026 schedule: first, it is filled with awesome matchups, and second, it is an absolute gauntlet of opponents.
To say that Ohio State will have to earn its way back to the National Championship would be the understatement of the year.
Ohio State 2026 Schedule
- September 5th - vs. Ball State
- September 12th - at No. 13 Texas
- September 19th - vs. Kent State
- September 26th - vs. No. 25 Illinois
- October 3rd - at No. 17 Iowa
- October 10th - vs. Maryland
- October 17th - at No. 1 Indiana
- October 24th - BYE
- October 31st - at No. 21 USC
- November 7th - vs. No. 4 Oregon
- November 14th - vs. Northwestern
- November 21st - at Nebraska
- November 28th - vs. No. 22 Michigan
(Rankings according to the 2025-26 Final Coaches Poll)
Now, that is a schedule.
For the people out there who have criticized Ohio State's strength of schedule in the past, me included, will simply not have that argument in 2026. The Buckeyes' trip back to the postseason will go through seven total ranked opponents, according to the 2025-26 final Coaches Poll.
Ohio State's season starts right away with a Week Two trip to Austin to take on the No. 13-ranked Texas Longhorns. On their home turf, it is likely that this will be a primetime, night kickoff on ESPN that is easily the crown jewel of Week Two.
The story lines in the highly-anticipated matchup are going to be loud and impactful, centering primarily around the quarterbacks. For the Buckeyes, Julian Sayin will look to prove if he can raise his play against good competition, something that eluded him in 2025. On the other side, Arch Manning is slowly running out of time to prove himself.
Following Week Two, the Buckeyes get a break, as the program welcomes the Kent State Golden Flashes to Columbus before preparing for back-to-back home and away games against two of the tougher Big Ten opponents in No. 25 Illinois and No. 17 Iowa.
If they survive that, they will then have to avoid a trap home game against the Maryland Terrapins before the game of the year—Ohio State vs. No. 1 Indiana in Bloomington, Indiana.
Head coach Ryan Day is 1-1 against the defending National Champions and Curt Cignetti. This leads directly into a much-needed and much-deserved bye week before two tough games against No. 21 USC and No. 4 Oregon.
Again, if the Buckeyes survive those two, they will have a trap game against Northwestern before hitting the road to Lincoln, NE, to take on the Cornhuskers right before "The Game."
The Wolverines come to town on November 28th with the Buckeyes looking to create a win streak, this time against the Kyle Wittingham led Wolverines.
This schedule is a gauntlet, and the Buckeyes are going to have to earn it if they want to hoist the trophy again in 2026.