College Football Schedule 2024-25

Conference Schedules icon
Tuesday, October 22, 2024
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo FIU SAMHOU 10 , FIU 7 Jase Bauer 76 Jase Bauer 72 Eric Rivers 42
team logo UTEP LATECH 14 , UTEP 10 Evan Bullock 248 Jevon Jackson 112 Jimmy Holiday 93
Wednesday, October 23, 2024
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Liberty KENNST 27 , LIB 24 Kaidon Salter 206 Kaidon Salter 87 Jaden Robinson 72
team logo Middle Tennessee JACST 42 , MIDDTN 20 Nicholas Vattiato 297 Tre Stewart 210 Omari Kelly 128
Thursday, October 24, 2024
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Georgia Southern ODU 47 , GASO 19 Colton Joseph 304 Aaron Young 77 Isiah Paige 100
team logo Syracuse PITT 41 , SYR 13 Kyle McCord 321 Desmond Reid 47 Emanuel Ross 78
Friday, October 25, 2024
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Penn
vs team logo Yale
YALE 31 , PENN 10 Grant Jordan 289 Josh Pitsenberger 83 David Pantelis 123
team logo Boston College LOU 31 , BC 27 Tyler Shough 332 Isaac Brown 85 Ja'Corey Brooks 120
team logo UNLV BOISE 29 , UNLV 24 Maddux Madsen 209 Ashton Jeanty 128 Ricky White III 57
team logo Rutgers USC 42 , RUT 20 Athan Kaliakmanis 313 Woody Marks 94 Makai Lemon 134
Saturday, October 26, 2024
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Charlotte MEM 33 , CHAR 28 Seth Henigan 212 Mario Anderson Jr. 141 O'Mega Blake 128
team logo North Texas TULN 45 , UNT 37 Chandler Morris 449 Makhi Hughes 195 DT Sheffield 125
team logo Oklahoma MISS 26 , OKLA 14 Jaxson Dart 311 Jovantae Barnes 67 Caden Prieskorn 71
team logo Navy ND 51 , NAVY 14 Riley Leonard 178 Blake Horvath 129 Jordan Faison 52
team logo Buffalo OHIO 47 , BUFF 16 C.J. Ogbonna 257 Rickey Hunt Jr. 89 Coleman Owen 146
team logo Georgia Tech VATECH 21 , GT 6 Aaron Philo 184 Bhayshul Tuten 79 Eric Singleton Jr. 90
team logo Virginia UNC 41 , UVA 14 Jacolby Criswell 293 Omarion Hampton 105 J.J. Jones 129
team logo Washington IU 31 , UW 17 Will Rogers 202 Justice Ellison 123 Jeremiah Hunter 60
team logo Nebraska OHIOST 21 , NEB 17 Will Howard 221 Dante Dowdell 60 Carnell Tate 102
team logo Colgate
@ team logo Merrimack
MERRIM 51 , COLG 17 Ayden Pereira 292 Ayden Pereira 103 Seth Sweitzer 73
team logo Marist
vs team logo Valparaiso
VALPO 17 , MARIST 14 Sonny Mannino 162 Michael Mansaray 135 Will Downes 78
team logo Dayton
vs team logo Morehead State
MOR 14 , DAYTON 6 Carter Cravens 284 Mason Hackett 82 Nate Garnett 212
team logo Central Connecticut State
@ team logo LIU
LIU 24 , CENTCT 21 Brady Olson 185 Ethan Greenwood 66 Michael Love 84
team logo Bryant
vs team logo Richmond
RICH 41 , BRYANT 14 Camden Coleman 278 Aziz Foster-Powell 76 Nick DeGennaro 162
team logo Cornell
@ team logo Brown
BROWN 23 , COR 21 Jake Willcox 316 Stockton Owen 79 Ben Moseley 100
team logo Fordham
@ team logo Lehigh
LEHIGH 33 , FORD 19 Hayden Johnson 99 Jaden Green 147 Geoffrey Jamiel 47
team logo Mercyhurst
@ team logo Sacred Heart
SHEART 31 , MERCYH 14 Adam Urena 229 Jalen Madison 140 Cameron Barmore 96
team logo Mississippi State ARK 58 , MSST 25 Taylen Green 314 Braylen Russell 175 Kevin Coleman Jr. 100
team logo San Diego
@ team logo St. Thomas (MN)
STTHMN 34 , SD 14 Grant Sergent 144 Hope Adebayo 277 Ja'seem Reed 74
team logo Georgia State APP 33 , GAST 26 Joey Aguilar 299 Ahmani Marshall 115 Kaedin Robinson 121
team logo Maine
@ team logo Rhode Island
URI 24 , MAINE 14 Carter Peevy 279 Brian Santana-Fis 89 Montigo Moss 80
team logo Davidson
vs team logo Butler
BUTLER 48 , DAV 38 Luke Durkin 155 Mari Adams 103 Brody Reina 118
team logo Stetson
vs team logo Presbyterian
PRESBY 42 , STET 14 Collin Hurst 297 Antonio Wright 106 Dominic Kibby 127
team logo Southern Illinois
@ team logo Indiana State
INST 20 , SIU 17 Jake Curry 171 Elijah Owens 119 Rashad Rochelle 56
team logo Stonehill
vs team logo Duquesne
DUQ 48 , STONEH 34 Darius Perrantes 412 JaMario Clements 108 Brigham Dunphy 152
team logo Monmouth
vs team logo Towson
TOWSON 26 , MONM 14 Derek Robertson 305 Devin Matthews 75 Gavin Nelson 133
team logo Columbia
vs team logo Dartmouth
DART 24 , COLUM 21 Cole Freeman 173 Q Jones 182 Bryson Canty 90
team logo Lafayette
vs team logo Holy Cross
HOLYCR 34 , LAF 28 Dean DeNobile 261 Jamar Curtis 117 Carson Persing 74
team logo Murray State
vs team logo North Dakota State
NDAKST 59 , MUR 6 Nathan Hayes 141 CharMar Brown 97 Bryce Lance 108
team logo Temple ECU 56 , TEM 34 Evan Simon 294 Rahjai Harris 130 Chase Sowell 117
team logo Central Michigan MIA-OH 46 , CMU 7 Brett Gabbert 165 Keyon Mozee 120 Javon Tracy 118
team logo Howard
@ team logo Norfolk State
NOR 21 , HOW 20 Ja'Shawn Scroggins 159 Ja'Shawn Scroggins 109 Jacquez Jones 53
team logo Saint Francis U
@ team logo Robert Morris
RMOR 17 , STF-PA 0 Anthony Chiccitt 197 Tyvon Edmonds Jr. 69 Noah Robinson 71
team logo Samford
@ team logo Citadel
CIT 28 , SAM 11 Quincy Crittendon 223 Johnathan Bennett 54 Iaan Cousin 47
team logo Wofford
vs team logo ETSU
EASTTN 24 , WOF 7 Jaylen King 198 Jaylen King 88 Karim Page 88
team logo Bucknell
@ team logo Georgetown
GTOWN 21 , BUCK 20 Ralph Rucker IV 226 Tariq Thomas 145 Josh Gary 91
team logo Elon
@ team logo Hampton
HAMP 41 , ELON 21 Matthew Downing 181 Ja'Quan Snipes 106 Onuma Dieke 86
team logo West Georgia
vs team logo Southern Utah
SOUT 28 , WESTGA 17 Jackson Berry 257 Targhee Lambson 135 Devion Newson 105
team logo Charleston Southern
@ team logo Tennessee Tech
TNTECH 28 , CHSOU 23 Kaleb Jackson 213 Tyson Greenwade 95 Chris Rhone 129
team logo Northern Colorado
vs team logo Montana
MONT 24 , NORCOL 0 Kia'i Keone 153 Nick Ostmo 107 Eli Gillman 50
team logo Gardner-Webb
@ team logo Southeast Missouri State
SEMO 30 , G-WEBB 24 Paxton DeLaurent 312 Cole Ruble 122 Edward Saydee 84
team logo Mississippi Valley State
@ team logo Arkansas-Pine Bluff
ARK-PB 35 , MSVL 21 Mekhi Hagens 204 Ty'Jarian Williams 124 JaVonnie Gibson 102
team logo East Texas A&M
@ team logo Prairie View A&M
PVA&M 34 , ETA&M 27 Jaden Johnson 236 James Burns 76 James Burns 139
team logo Eastern Illinois
@ team logo UT Martin
TN-MAR 52 , EASTIL 17 Pierce Holley 348 Patrick Smith 87 Cooper Willman 143
team logo Northwestern State
vs team logo Lamar
LAMAR 42 , NWST 10 Robert Coleman 202 Khalan Griffin 120 Myles Kitt-Denton 77
team logo Western Illinois
@ team logo Lindenwood
LINDEN 49 , WESTIL 38 Nathan Lamb 564 Steve Hall 259 Matthew Henry 226
team logo Princeton
@ team logo Harvard
HARV 45 , PRINCE 13 Jaden Craig 345 Xaviah Bascon 71 Seamus Gilmartin 108
team logo Bethune-Cookman
vs team logo Jackson State
JKST 37 , B-C 17 Luke Sprague 190 Irv Mulligan 171 Isaiah Spencer 61
team logo Albany
@ team logo Delaware
DEL 28 , ALBANY 14 Myles Burkett 208 Marcus Yarns 127 Seven McGee 77
team logo Utah Tech
@ team logo Eastern Kentucky
EASTKY 28 , UTAHTE 17 Bronson Barben 231 Joshua Carter 167 Josh Rillos 72
team logo Stanford WAKE 27 , STAN 24 Hank Bachmeier 245 Demond Claiborne 127 Elic Ayomanor 96
team logo Illinois ORE 38 , ILL 9 Dillon Gabriel 291 Jordan James 83 Tez Johnson 102
team logo UTSA TLSA 46 , TX-SA 45 Owen McCown 434 Robert Henry Jr. 67 Houston Thomas 132
team logo Missouri BAMA 34 , MIZZOU 0 Jalen Milroe 215 Marcus Carroll 80 Germie Bernard 82
team logo Texas Tech TCU 35 , TTU 34 Josh Hoover 344 Tahj Brooks 121 Caleb Douglas 140
team logo Oklahoma State BAYLOR 38 , OKST 28 Alan Bowman 359 Dawson Pendergrass 142 Brennan Presley 183
team logo Northwestern IOWA 40 , NW 14 Brendan Sullivan 79 Kaleb Johnson 109 Seth Anderson 44
team logo Maryland MINN 48 , MD 23 Max Brosmer 320 Darius Taylor 81 Daniel Jackson 117
team logo Alabama A&M
vs team logo Alabama State
ALST 27 , ALAA&M 19 Xavier Lankford 207 Daquon Kincey 156 Keenan Hambrick 139
team logo Rice UCONN 17 , RICE 10 Nick Evers 128 Durell Robinson 132 Skyler Bell 47
team logo Southern Miss JMU 32 , SOUMIS 15 Ethan Crawford 178 George Pettaway 119 Dannis Jackson 94
team logo UCF BYU 37 , UCF 24 Jake Retzlaff 228 RJ Harvey 127 Jacoby Jones 116
team logo Eastern Michigan AKRON 25 , EASTMI 21 Cole Snyder 346 Jordon Simmons 109 Oran Singleton 102
team logo Northern Illinois BALLST 25 , NIU 23 Kadin Semonza 211 Vaughn Pemberton 69 Cam Thompson 128
team logo Toledo BGSU 41 , TOL 26 Tucker Gleason 320 Terion Stewart 99 Jerjuan Newton 164
team logo Kent State WESTMI 52 , KENTST 21 Hayden Wolff 208 Jaden Nixon 135 Kenneth Womack 68
team logo Wagner UMASS 35 , WAGNER 7 Taisun Phommachanh 129 Rickey Spruill 90 T.Y. Harding 49
team logo Delaware State
@ team logo South Carolina State
SCST 69 , DELST 35 Eric Phoenix 341 Jaden Sutton 150 Caden High 132
team logo Morgan State
@ team logo North Carolina Central
NCCENT 16 , MORGST 7 Walker Harris 216 J'Mari Taylor 196 Markell Quick 96
team logo Western Carolina
@ team logo Mercer
MERC 44 , WCU 34 Cole Gonzales 395 Dwayne McGee 223 Kelin Parsons 102
team logo New Hampshire
@ team logo Villanova
VILL 14 , UNH 6 Barry Kleinpeter 125 Myles Thomason 79 Devin Smith 60
team logo William & Mary
@ team logo Stony Brook
STNYBR 35 , W&M 13 Tyler Knoop 240 Roland Dempster 144 Jayce Freeman 101
team logo Oregon State CAL 44 , ORST 7 Fernando Mendoza 364 Anthony Hankerson 49 Trond Grizzell 95
team logo McNeese
@ team logo Nicholls
NICH 24 , MCNE 19 Kamden Sixkiller 233 Joshon Barbie 121 Terry Matthews 94
team logo Austin Peay
vs team logo Tarleton State
TARLST 27 , APSU 17 Victor Gabalis 264 Kayvon Britten 106 Darius Cooper 112
team logo VMI
@ team logo Chattanooga
CHAT 31 , VMI 10 Brady Hammonds 134 Reggie Davis 131 Ethen Horne 58
team logo North Carolina A&T
@ team logo Campbell
CAMP 21 , NCA&T 7 Justin Fomby 185 Cameren Dalrymple 75 Sincere Brown 150
team logo Vanderbilt TEX 27 , VANDY 24 Quinn Ewers 288 Quintrevion Wisner 79 DeAndre Moore Jr. 97
team logo New Mexico CSU 17 , NM 6 Devon Dampier 319 Avery Morrow 89 Ryan Davis 146
team logo Louisiana-Monroe USA 46 , UL-MON 17 Gio Lopez 168 Kentrel Bullock 141 Jamaal Pritchett 89
team logo North Alabama
@ team logo Central Arkansas
CENARK 24 , NORTAL 19 Will McElvain 250 ShunDerrick Powell 70 Malachi Henry 90
team logo UNI
vs team logo Missouri State
MOSTU 49 , UNI 42 Jacob Clark 275 Jacardia Wright 145 Tysen Kershaw 96
team logo Sacramento State
@ team logo Idaho State
IDAST 30 , SAC 27 Kobe Tracy 296 Curron Borders 145 Christian Fredericksen 163
team logo North Dakota
@ team logo Youngstown State
YSU 41 , NORDAK 40 Simon Romfo 212 Beau Brungard 176 Bo Belquist 105
team logo Arizona WVU 31 , ARI 26 Noah Fifita 294 Jahiem White 92 Tetairoa McMillan 202
team logo Wyoming USU 27 , WYO 25 Spencer Petras 194 Rahsul Faison 131 Chris Durr Jr. 83
team logo Troy ARKST 34 , TROY 31 Jaylen Raynor 349 Gerald Green 113 Corey Rucker 193
team logo Utah HOU 17 , UTAH 14 Isaac Wilson 171 J'Marion Burnette 81 Brant Kuithe 113
team logo Southeastern Louisiana
vs team logo UIW
INCWOR 34 , SELA 31 Zach Calzada 238 Dekalon Taylor 82 Jaylon Domingeaux 97
team logo Grambling State
@ team logo Texas Southern
TXSO 24 , GRAM 17 Jace Wilson 128 Jace Wilson 78 Jyrin Johnson 60
team logo Houston Christian
@ team logo Stephen F. Austin
SFA 55 , HOUCHR 6 Sam Vidlak 316 Jaylen Jenkins 110 Jordan Nabors 108
team logo Florida State MIA-FL 36 , FSU 14 Cam Ward 208 Damien Martinez 148 Isaiah Horton 65
team logo Southern University
@ team logo Florida A&M
FLAA&M 24 , SOU 6 Daniel Richardson 274 Kobe Dillon 60 Jamari Gassett 118
team logo LSU TEXA&M 38 , LSU 23 Garrett Nussmeier 405 Amari Daniels 91 Aaron Anderson 126
team logo Wisconsin PSU 28 , WISC 13 Braedyn Locke 217 Kaytron Allen 86 Will Pauling 79
team logo South Dakota
@ team logo South Dakota State
SDAKST 20 , SOUDAK 17 Mark Gronowski 163 Angel Johnson 81 Jack Martens 66
team logo Michigan State MICH 24 , MSU 17 Aidan Chiles 189 Nate Carter 118 Colston Loveland 67
team logo Kentucky AUBURN 24 , UK 10 Payton Thorne 172 Jarquez Hunter 278 Dane Key 87
team logo San Jose State FRES 33 , SJSU 10 Mikey Keene 275 Floyd Chalk IV 89 Justin Lockhart 93
team logo Kansas KSU 29 , KU 27 Avery Johnson 253 DJ Giddens 102 Jayce Brown 98
team logo Duke SMU 28 , DUKE 27 Maalik Murphy 295 Brashard Smith 117 Roderick Daniels Jr. 153
team logo Eastern Washington
@ team logo Idaho
IDAHO 38 , EASTWA 28 Jack Layne 235 Deshaun Buchanan 116 Efton Chism III 114
team logo Cincinnati CU 34 , CIN 23 Shedeur Sanders 323 Corey Kiner 94 Travis Hunter 153
team logo San Diego State WSU 29 , SDSU 26 John Mateer 257 Marquez Cooper 78 Ja'Shaun Poke 80
Sunday, October 27, 2024
MATCHUP RESULT HI PASS HI RUSH HI REC
team logo Nevada HAWAII 34 , NEVADA 13 Chubba Purdy 155 Brayden Schager 120 Marcus Bellon 111

All times are in ET. Tap on each match's time to view it in your local timezone.

College Football Schedule

Rose Bowl

The United States probably has the biggest following with respect to any college sport in the world. In fact, there are plenty of people in America who are not as gung ho about the professional sports leagues such as the NFL, NBA, MLB, etc. as they are about the NCAA (National Collegiate Athletics Association) sports. There could be several reasons for this but the one thing that stands out is the passion individuals have for their school and the respective college team.

The college football season typically starts from the end of August to the early part of January. Teams generally play anywhere between 8 to 12 games a year. They play an equal number of home and away games throughout the season but the scheduling process is quite complex to understand.

Understanding how the NCAA runs college football games can be quite confusing. The NCAA for instance does not control all aspects of college football games. It only has control over the rules and compliances on the field, apart from that everything else including the money and the tournaments is managed by the respective conferences of college football.

NCAA Football Conferences

The NCAA football constitutes first and foremost of four divisions which are Division 1 FBS, Division 1 FCS, Division 2, and Division 3. Most of the college football teams belong to either one of these divisions. Although not everything is set in stone, it is generally considered that playing college football for a Division 1 school will get you the maximum chance of going professional in the future.

We will check out only the Division 1 FBS in this article as it is the most important one and really the only one that matters. FBS stands for Football Bowl Subdivision and within this division, we have a total of 10 different conferences. The four teams of Notre Dame, Brigham Young University, Army, and Navy do not belong to any of the conferences despite being in the FBS.

Out of these ten, there are five conferences known as the Power Five Conferences, which are the Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC), Big Ten Conference, Big 12 Conference, Pac-12 Conference, and Southeastern Conference (SEC).

The remaining five conferences which are at times referred to as the Non-Power Five (Group of 5) Conferences are the American Athletic Conference (AAC), Conference USA Conference, Mid-American Conference (MAC), Mountain West Conference (MWC), and the Sun Belt Conference (SBC).

NCAA Football Schedule Process

This is where things start getting tricky because every conference in college football has its individual freedom. That means all conferences have the autonomy to create their own schedules, but it is not as simple as just assigning two teams to play each other within their own conference.

Every conference has its own set of rules and guidelines which they use to schedule games. In addition to that, some conferences have more pull than others thereby directly impacting which teams get to play the best games. To create one national schedule from this is one tough ask.

It may come as a surprise that in today's day and age when the simplest of simple things are done with the help of an algorithm run by software, that college football schedules are drawn up by speaking to one another and agreeing to terms. The conference officials and the athletic directors all must come together and work out a possible schedule that works for everyone and which also allots an equal number of home and away games to each team.

There are three main factors which go into consideration during the scheduling of college football games. They are conference scheduling, non-conference scheduling, and TV broadcasting.

Conference scheduling

Since each conference has its own method of scheduling games, the process remains unique to all conferences. Generally, all the schools will play the other schools within their conference at least once a year. The Power Five conferences also play a few cross-divisional games in addition to their conference games.

Non-conference scheduling

These are the games that each team needs to play outside of their own conference against other teams. As each team must figure out with whom they will play and when and where, this can get a bit complicated, especially for the smaller school.

Power Five teams will normally play one or two non-conference games with other Power Five conferences as well as one or two games with teams from Group of Five conferences. Since the reward is greater for Group of Five teams when they go up against the Power Five competition, teams from the former conferences will generally try to play more games with the latter. In doing so, Group of Five teams will get a significantly more amount of revenue.

TV Broadcasting

The third factor that goes into scheduling college football games is that of TV broadcasting. This is because all top networks want to show the best possible games at the best time slots on their respective networks. Therefore, many times the TV networks will also have a say in the scheduling matters and may request any changes or modifications as they see fit.

Power 5 and Group of 5 Conferences

Typically, the best of the best teams are all in the Power 5 conferences. They are the ones who receive the maximum media attention, the maximum revenue, and boast of the maximum fan following as well. The teams in these conferences have a long-standing history of winning and producing the best talent that will carry forward to the professional league.

Each conference in the Power Five has its own rules for scheduling and not all conferences play the same number of games within their own conference. For example, teams in the Big Ten conference will play nine conference games and three non-conference games, but the same is not the case with the SEC as they play only eight conference games and four non-conference games.

However, a lot of mixing up and shaking up of the conferences and their rules keep taking place and therefore not everything can be attributed to a permanent way of functioning. For instance, some teams are looking to jump from one conference to another while some conferences that are playing eight inter-conference games want to move to nine.

Therefore, for the various conferences to make their schedules, a lot of attention must be given to all the guidelines and a committee needs to monitor all the intricacies such as the competitive balance between the teams, broadcast terms and conditions, an equal number of home and away games, and more.

As for the Group of Five conferences, most of them will play eight inter-conference games and four non-conference games. The same level of thought process must go into making the schedule for these conferences as well. But one disadvantage for the Group of 5 teams is that they must strive harder to get a matchup with some of the Power 5 teams.

Conference Scheduling

Since all conferences have their unique ways of creating a schedule, not all teams will play each other from their respective conference on an annual basis. Such a case arises because there are a greater number of teams in conferences than the number of games a team can play. Therefore, each conference needs to resort to a rotation-based design to ensure that teams will play each other once every few years.

For example, if we look at the Big 12 conference, it has a total of ten teams. This conference plays 9 conference and 1 non-conference game throughout the season. Thus, as per the rotation policy, each team will play all other teams in the conference at least once in two years.

Taking the example of the SEC, which is probably the most popular conference today, it has fourteen teams within the conference and it is also subdivided into two divisions, namely: the East and the West. Each team will play a total of eight conference games out of which six are from their own division and the other two are from the other division. This conference also has 1 permanent rival for each team and it rotates the other seven conference games every year.

Non-Conference Scheduling

Scheduling the non-conference games does not require any rotational policy as teams are free to select their opponents mutually. However, teams will want to play games against top-quality opposition to ensure they remain at a high level when they play their conference games. Also, the Group of 5 conference teams can take this opportunity to not only see where they are in terms of performance with the top tier teams, but they can also generate much more income from these games as more media and revenue are associated with the Power 5 teams.

When it comes to non-conference scheduling, there are many teams that have created matchups with one another years in advance. This is done as careful planning is required to generate proper revenue for home games and to maintain steady competition. Teams will alternate between easy and difficult games every other year as a way of balancing out their schedules.

FBS Power 5 Conferences

ACC Scheduling

From 2023, the ACC will play their games with the newly introduced 3-5-5 format. That means that each team will play three of their rivals on a permanent basis which leaves ten teams. These ten teams will be separated into two groups of five and they will be flipped every other year. Therefore, within the conference the ACC will play eight teams and then they will play a further four teams outside of their conference as well.

As of 2023, the ACC consists of 14 schools in the conference which are as follows:

  1. Boston College Eagles
  2. Clemson Tigers
  3. Duke Blue Devils
  4. Florida State Seminoles
  5. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
  6. Louisville Cardinals
  7. Miami Hurricanes
  8. North Carolina Tar Heels
  9. North Carolina State Wolfpack
  10. Pittsburgh Panthers
  11. Syracuse Orange
  12. Virginia Cavaliers
  13. Virginia Tech Hokies
  14. Wake Forest Demon Deacons

The permanent matchups for the ACC teams are as below:

UniversityRival 1Rival 2Rival 3
Boston CollegeMiamiPittsburghSyracuse
ClemsonFlorida StateGeorgia TechNC State
DukeNorth CarolinaNC StateWake Forest
Florida StateClemsonMiamiSyracuse
Georgia TechClemsonLouisvilleWake Forest
LouisvilleGeorgia TechMiamiVirginia
MiamiBoston CollegeFlorida StateLouisville
North CarolinaDukeNC StateVirginia
NC StateClemsonDukeNorth Carolina
PittsburghBoston CollegeSyracuseVirginia Tech
SyracuseBoston CollegeFlorida StatePittsburgh
VirginiaLouisvilleNorth CarolinaVirginia Tech
Virginia TechPittsburghVirginiaWake Forest
Wake ForestDukeGeorgia TechVirginia Tech

Big 10 Scheduling

The Big 10 which is divided into the East and West division follows a nine game conference schedule. Seven teams are placed in both divisions based upon their locality. The Big 10 schedules six divisional games and three cross divisional games. The Indiana and Perdue game is an annual cross division game which is a permanent fixture. Apart from this, each team will face three non-conference teams as well.

As of 2023, the Big Ten’s two divisions and their respective teams are as follows:

EastWest
Ohio State BuckeyesMinnesota Golden Gophers
Rutgers Scarlet KnightsIowa Hawkeyes
Maryland TerrapinsWisconsin Badgers
Michigan WolverinesIllinois Fighting Illini
Michigan St. SpartansPurdue Boilermakers
Penn St. Nittany LionsNorthwestern Wildcats
Indiana HoosiersNebraska Cornhuskers

Big 12 Scheduling

The Big 12’s current scheduling system is a 14 team round robin event. Upon its conclusion, the top two teams in the conference will fight it out in the Championship game to declare the eventual winner of the conference.

The current teams playing in the Big 12 conference are:

  1. BYU Cougars
  2. Cincinnati Bearcats
  3. Houston Cougars
  4. Iowa State Cyclones
  5. Kansas Jayhawks
  6. Kansas State Wildcats
  7. Oklahoma Sooners
  8. Oklahoma State Cowboys
  9. Texas Longhorns
  10. UCF Knights
  11. Baylor Bears
  12. TCU Horned Frogs
  13. Texas Tech Red Raiders
  14. West Virginia Mountaineers

PAC-12 Scheduling

The PAC-12 which once followed divisions of two has done away with them and now hold a round robin system similar to that of the Big 12. Once the season comes to an end the top two teams in the conference will play the Championship game.

The PAC-12 football conference is made up of the following teams:

  1. USC Trojans
  2. Arizona Wildcats
  3. Arizona State Sun Devils
  4. California Golden Bears
  5. Colorado Buffaloes
  6. Oregon Ducks
  7. Oregon State Beavers
  8. Stanford Cardinal
  9. UCLA Bruins
  10. Utah Utes
  11. Washington Huskies
  12. Washington State Cougars

SEC Scheduling

Considered by many to be the best conference in college football at least since the past few years, the SEC operates in a division format with two divisions of seven teams each. However, with more teams joining next year, it is expected that the current system will undergo a change to better accommodate the expansion of the conference. At present though, each team within the conference plays eight conference games.

From the division itself, each team plays all the other six teams every year. Then, each team has a permanent cross division rival for the seventh game and the eighth game is a cross divisional rotation.

The SECs permanent cross-divisional matchups are:

  1. Alabama vs. Tennessee
  2. Arkansas vs. Missouri
  3. Auburn vs. Georgia
  4. LSU vs. Florida
  5. Mississippi State vs. Kentucky
  6. Ole Miss vs. Vanderbilt
  7. Texas A&M vs. South Carolina.

The teams participating in the SEC conference as of 2023 are:

EastWest
Vanderbilt CommodoresAlabama Crimson Tide
Georgia BulldogsArkansas Razorbacks
Kentucky WildcatsAuburn Tigers
Missouri TigersOle Miss Rebels
Tennessee VolunteersMississippi State Bulldogs
Florida GatorsTexasA&M Aggies
South Carolina GamecocksLSU Tigers

FBS Group of Five Conferences

AAC Scheduling

The AAC scheduling system has just recently undergone a change which is expected to be continued till 2026. Featuring a conference of 14 teams, each team is set to play 8 conference games. As per this schedule, each team within the conference will face every other team twice in a period of four years getting one home game and one away game respectively. The ACC has also included six annual matchups which are as follows:

  1. North Texas vs. SMU
  2. UAB vs. Memphis
  3. Rice vs. UTSA
  4. Charlotte vs. East Carolina
  5. Florida Atlantic vs. South Florida
  6. Navy vs. Temple

The 14 members of the AAC are as follows:

  1. Memphis Tigers
  2. Charlotte 49ers
  3. Florida Atlantic Owls
  4. Navy Midshipmen
  5. Rice Owls
  6. SMU Mustangs
  7. South Florida Bulls
  8. Temple Owls
  9. Tulane Green Wave
  10. Tulsa Golden Hurricane
  11. UAB Blazers
  12. UTSA Roadrunners
  13. East Carolina Pirates
  14. North Texas Mean Green

C-USA Scheduling

This conference has been quite unstable since its formation. Several teams have left to join different conferences while new teams are making their way to the C-USA. This conference is set to expand further by next year making it one of the most unpredictable conferences in college football. As a result, the current schedule is in place only for the 2023 season and is expected to undergo some type of modification before the 2024 season. As for now, all nine teams from the conference will play each other in a round robin format.

The nine teams which make up the C-USA conference are:

  1. Liberty Flames
  2. Jacksonville State Gamecocks
  3. Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
  4. Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
  5. Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
  6. Sam Houston Bearkats
  7. FIU Panthers
  8. New Mexico State Aggies
  9. UTEP Miners

MAC Scheduling

The MAC conference is quite simple as it is divided into divisions featuring six teams each. Teams in this conference are set to play eight conference games which includes five divisional games and three cross divisional games.

The divisions of the MAC are as below:

EastWest
Ohio BobcatsCentral Michigan Chippewas
Akron ZipsEastern Michigan Eagles
Bowling Green FalconsNorthern Illinois Huskies
Miami (OH) RedHawksToledo Rockets
Buffalo BullsWestern Michigan Broncos
Kent State Golden FlashesBall State Cardinals

MWC Scheduling

The MWC has made a change from 2023 onwards. Earlier this conference had a divisional system but now that has been scrapped. The twelve-team conference will play a 2-6 format wherein the 2 games will be against fixed opponents every year. The remaining six games will be rotation based and will be flipped every other year.

The teams making up the Mountain West Conference are:

  1. Air Force Falcons
  2. Fresno State Bulldogs
  3. Wyoming Cowboys
  4. San Diego State Aztecs
  5. New Mexico Lobos
  6. UNLV Rebels
  7. Utah State Aggies
  8. Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
  9. San Jose State Spartans
  10. Colorado State Rams
  11. Boise State Broncos
  12. Nevada Wolf Pack

The two permanent fixtures per team are as below:

UniversityRival 1Rival 2
Air ForceColorado StateWyoming
Boise StateNew MexicoUtah State
Colorado StateAir ForceWyoming
Fresno StateNevadaSan Jose State
HawaiiSan Diego StateUNLV
NevadaFresno StateUNLV
New MexicoBoise StateSan Jose State
San Diego StateHawaiiUtah State
San Jose StateFresno StateNew Mexico
UNLVHawaiiNevada
Utah StateBoise StateSan Diego State
WyomingAir ForceColorado State

SBC Scheduling

The SBC conference is another one divided into two divisions of seven teams each. According to their scheduling, each team will play two cross divisional games, one at home and one away. Furthermore, each team will play against all six divisional opponents every year for a total of eight conference games.

The divisions of the SBC conference are as below:

EastWest
Old Dominion MonarchsLouisiana-Monroe Warhawks
Georgia Southern EaglesSouth Alabama Jaguars
Georgia State PanthersSouthern Miss Golden Eagles
James Madison DukesTexas State Bobcats
Marshall Thundering HerdTroy Trojans
Appalachian State MountaineersArkansas State Red Wolves
Coastal Carolina ChanticleersLouisiana Ragin' Cajuns

Independents (FBS) Scheduling

The Independent programs in college football are very few today with only four of them left. Most of the independent schools from earlier have joined other conferences as they can then earn revenue from television broadcasting. In addition to that, joining a conference makes their scheduling worries easier. However, the independent schools do get more flexibility to schedule their matchups as they are not conference bound. This gives them added advantage in having interesting games throughout the year.

The four independent football schools that are remaining are:

  1. Army West Point Black Knights
  2. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
  3. Connecticut Huskies
  4. Massachusetts Minutemen

The Army has fixed annual games against the Navy and Air Force. They also have a rivalry game with Notre Dame but it is not on an annual basis and is scheduled quite randomly. As for Notre Dame, they have many long-standing rivalry matchups throughout the year and they also have a deal with the ACC which gives them five games every year.

UConn was earlier part of the AAC but their other sports faced some issues due to which they had to leave the conference in 2020. Nowadays, as their football program is not so strong, many FBS schools play against them in order to fill out their schedules.

FCS Conferences

The conferences in the FCS division of college football are undergoing regular changes with new conferences coming up and teams leaving and joining every passing year. As a result of which the scheduling format for these conferences keep on changing and information pertaining to the same is scantily available.

Big Sky Scheduling

The Big Sky Conference consists of twelve teams currently. Their schedule from 2022 to 2024 is set at eight league games which comprises two fixed annual opponents and six rotating ones. This new format was put into action to make sure that teams would get to play other teams in the conference more frequently than earlier. Teams have also been afforded the flexibility to choose at least one of their permanent opponents.

The Big Sky’s twelve-member conference is as follows:

  1. Idaho Vandals
  2. Montana Grizzlies
  3. Sacramento State Hornets
  4. Weber State Wildcats
  5. Cal Poly Mustangs
  6. Montana State Bobcats
  7. UC Davis Aggies
  8. Eastern Washington Eagles
  9. Idaho State Bengals
  10. Northern Arizona Lumberjacks
  11. Northern Colorado Bears
  12. Portland State Vikings

Big South Scheduling

The Big South Conference is one of the newest conferences in college football. Initially starting out with nine teams, it has quickly been reduced to only four at present. This conference has decided to merge with the Ohio Valley Conference in 2026 as both conferences do not have sufficient teams. Due to so many ongoing changes, the exact scheduling format for the Big South Conference is not available.

The four teams in the Big South Conference are as below:

  1. Bryant Bulldogs
  2. Charleston Southern Buccaneers
  3. Gardner-Webb Runnin' Bulldogs
  4. Robert Morris Colonials

Coastal Athletic Association Conference Scheduling

The CAA conference which consists of fifteen teams has each team playing eight games in the conference. Moreover, each team has been allotted two permanent rivals annually while the remaining six games are on rotation basis. This means each team will play every other team at home and away at least once in eight years.

The fifteen members of the CAA conference are:

  1. William & Mary Tribe
  2. Delaware Fightin' Blue Hens
  3. Monmouth Hawks
  4. Rhode Island Rams
  5. Villanova Wildcats
  6. Hampton Pirates
  7. New Hampshire Wildcats
  8. Albany Great Danes
  9. Elon Phoenix
  10. Maine Black Bears
  11. North Carolina A&T Aggies
  12. Richmond Spiders
  13. Campbell Fighting Camels
  14. Towson Tigers
  15. Stony Brook Seawolves

Independents (FCS) Conference Scheduling

In the FCS division of college football, the Kennesaw State Owls are the only team which are playing as an independent conference. The Owls are slowly beginning their transition from the FCS to the FBS as they are moving to Conference USA football conference in 2024.

Ivy League Conference Scheduling

There are a total of eight Ivy League Schools featuring in the college football program. The Ivy League Conference usually starts a little later than the other conferences, mostly near mid-September. These schools play ten games each which include a complete round-robin system where each team plays all the other seven teams. The remaining three games are scheduled against non-conference teams.

Ivy League Conference teams include:

  1. Dartmouth Big Green
  2. Harvard Crimson
  3. Columbia Lions
  4. Princeton Tigers
  5. Cornell Big Red
  6. Penn Quakers
  7. Yale Bulldogs
  8. Brown Bears

Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference Scheduling

The MEAC is a conference consisting of six football teams. As per their schedule for the 2023 season, teams will play non-conference games at the start and the end of the season with conference games being sandwiched in between.

The six participating teams in MEAC are”

  1. North Carolina Central Eagles
  2. Howard Bison
  3. Morgan State Bears
  4. Norfolk State Spartans
  5. Delaware State Hornets
  6. South Carolina State Bulldogs

Missouri Valley Conference Scheduling

The Missouri Valley Conference is one of those which has somewhat of a complex history. It has undergone a couple of name changes over the years as well. This conference uses a simple round robin system to decide the eventual conference champion. The first three weeks are usually reserved for non-conference matchups while the remaining nine weeks are for conference games. Teams are also allowed to make changes to their schedule provided both teams have a written agreement in place.

  1. Teams participating in this conference currently are:
  2. Illinois State Redbirds
  3. North Dakota Fighting Hawks
  4. North Dakota State Bison
  5. South Dakota State Jackrabbits
  6. Southern Illinois Salukis
  7. Murray State Racers
  8. South Dakota Coyotes
  9. Youngstown State Penguins
  10. Indiana State Sycamores
  11. Missouri State Bears
  12. UNI Panthers
  13. Western Illinois Leathernecks

Northeast Conference Scheduling

The Northeast Conference features eight teams which will all play each other. Each team will get four home games and three away games in the conference. Each team will also play three away non-conference games for the 2023 season.

The eight teams making up the Northeast Conference are:

  1. Stonehill Skyhawks
  2. Duquesne Dukes
  3. LIU Sharks
  4. Merrimack Warriors
  5. Sacred Heart Pioneers
  6. Saint Francis U Red Flash
  7. Wagner Seahawks
  8. Central Connecticut State Blue Devils

Ohio Valley Conference Scheduling

The Ohio Valley Conference has joined forces with the Big South Conference as both conferences had lost several teams. Now the two conferences together have a total of ten teams and will play a schedule consisting of six conference games. As prior commitments with teams are still prevalent, more conference games cannot be played currently.

The Ohio Valley Conference teams are:

  1. Southeast Missouri State Redhawks
  2. Eastern Illinois Panthers
  3. Tennessee State Tigers
  4. UT Martin Skyhawks
  5. Tennessee Tech Golden Eagles
  6. Lindenwood Lions

Patriot League Conference Scheduling

The Patriot League Conference features seven teams which are as follows:

  1. Georgetown Hoyas
  2. Fordham Rams
  3. Bucknell Bison
  4. Holy Cross Crusaders
  5. Lafayette Leopards
  6. Lehigh Mountain Hawks
  7. Colgate Raiders

Pioneer League Conference Scheduling

This conference is truly a one-of-a-kind conference given the fact that it has teams from both coasts and many more through the heart of the country. The eleven team conference boasts teams such as:

  1. Stetson Hatters
  2. Butler Bulldogs
  3. Dayton Flyers
  4. Morehead State Eagles
  5. Presbyterian Blue Hose
  6. St. Thomas (MN) Tommies
  7. Marist Red Foxes
  8. Davidson Wildcats
  9. Drake Bulldogs
  10. San Diego Toreros
  11. Valparaiso Beacons

Southern Conference Scheduling

The Southern Conference is a nine-team conference which is comprised of the following teams:

  1. Western Carolina Catamounts
  2. Mercer Bears
  3. Chattanooga Mocs
  4. ETSU Buccaneers
  5. Furman Paladins
  6. VMI Keydets
  7. Citadel Bulldogs
  8. Wofford Terriers
  9. Samford Bulldogs

Southland Conference Scheduling

With eight teams featuring in the Southland Conference, each team will play against the other teams in a round-robin format in 2023. This is the first time since 2013 that the round-robin format has been implemented. Apart from these seven games, teams will also play non-conference games.

The Southland Conference is made up of the following eight teams:

  1. Houston Christian Huskies
  2. UIW Cardinals
  3. Lamar Cardinals
  4. McNeese Cowboys
  5. Nicholls Colonels
  6. Northwestern State Demons
  7. Southeastern Louisiana Lions
  8. Texas A&M-Commerce Lions

Southwestern Athletic Conference Scheduling

The SWAC has been divided into two divisions and since 2021, it has implemented the following schedule to its football program. Each team will play five divisional and three non-divisional games. Three teams from the other division will be rotated every two years. The team with the best record in the conference will get the chance to host the Championship game.

The two divisions of the SWAC are as follows:

EASTWEST
Florida A&M RattlersPrairie View A&M Panthers
Mississippi Valley State Delta DevilsAlcorn State Braves
Alabama A&M BulldogsArkansas-Pine Bluff Golden Lions
Alabama State HornetsGrambling State Tigers
Bethune-Cookman WildcatsSouthern University Jaguars
Jackson State TigersTexas Southern Tigers

United Athletic Conference Scheduling

The United Athletic Conference is a newly formed conference with the merger of two previously independent conferences, namely, the ASUN Conference and the Western Athletic Conference. Having nine teams currently as part of its membership, the UAC will be limited to six conference games for the 2023 season before it switches to a full round-robin system in 2024.

The UAC teams at present include:

  1. Tarleton State Texans
  2. Abilene Christian Wildcats
  3. Central Arkansas Bears
  4. Stephen F. Austin Lumberjacks
  5. Austin Peay Governors
  6. Eastern Kentucky Colonels
  7. Southern Utah Thunderbirds
  8. Utah Tech Trailblazers
  9. North Alabama Lions

Conclusion

In short, college football scheduling is not the same for each team as it has more flexibility. This is the case because the NCAA does not have a say in scheduling matters which is being handled by the respective conferences. Furthermore, each conference has its own set of rules that it follows to prepare its unique schedule taking into consideration various factors such as home and away games, conference, and non-conference games, and of course the broadcasting terms and conditions.

Sometimes, another issue which crops up during scheduling is the lack of availability of a stadium due to various factors beyond the team’s control. Considering all these factors, the committee members of each conference come out with a schedule which is then overseen by the NCAA.

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