Penn State Releases 2026 Football Schedule

The full Big Ten football schedule was officially released on Tuesday evening, following what appeared to be a protracted delay. With that, we know exactly when Penn State will play its conference opponents in 2026.

Penn State will open Big Ten play at home against Wisconsin on September 26. Penn State will then play home and away games in Big Ten competition for the duration of the season. The exception to this back-and-forth will be back-to-back home games versus Minnesota (Nov. 14) and Rutgers (Nov. 21).

The most notable games on the schedule are also back-to-back. Penn State will host USC on October 10 before travel to Michigan the following week (October 17). The games versus the Trojans and Wolverines could be the biggest challenges on the schedule. Penn State’s West Coast trip to Washington will be on November 7, with no bye weeks before or after the game.

Penn State will have a bye week in the Big Ten schedule after the Michigan game. Following a bye week on Halloween (Oct. 31), the Nittany Lions return home to face Purdue before making a long West Coast trip to Washington.

Michigan and Purdue will each have a bye week before hosting Penn State this year.

Here is Penn State’s full 2026 football schedule…