A road matchup against the defending national champion for the third consecutive year. A trip to the Pacific Northwest to face a Big Ten newcomer for the second year in a row. And a pair of home games with Floyd of Rosedale and the Little Brown Jug on the line.
Those are some of the highlights of the Gophers football team’s 2026 Big Ten schedule, which was announced Tuesday, Jan. 27, on the Big Ten Network.
Big Ten teams already knew their 2026 opponents — both nonconference and in league play — but Tuesday’s announcement set the dates and times for the matchups. There still could be tweaks, as there were last year when Minnesota’s home game against Nebraska and game at Oregon were moved up a day from Saturday to Friday.
The Gophers will open the season Thursday, Sept. 3, against Eastern Illinois, play Mississippi State on Sept. 12 and wrap up their nonconference schedule Sept. 19 against Akron. All three games will be at Huntington Bank Stadium. The Gophers open Big Ten play Sept. 26 at Washington.
The Gophers have four Big Ten home games — Iowa, Michigan, Northwestern and UCLA — and five road contests — Indiana, Penn State, Purdue, Washington and Wisconsin. Each Big Ten team has one bye week this year. The Gophers will be off after their Oct. 10 game at Purdue.
Here’s the schedule and a way too early look at the Gophers’ probability of winning each game:
Sept. 3 vs. Eastern Illinois
Way too early win percentage for Gophers: 99%
Comment: The Panthers, an FCS team that went 3-9 last year, have played three Power Four opponents over the past two seasons, losing to Alabama, Illinois and Northwestern by a combined 132-7. Unless EIU alums Tony Romo or Jimmy Garoppolo have some eligibility left and suit up for the Panthers, this should be a name-your-score game for the Gophers.
