Gopher Football announces 2026 Schedule

(Minneapolis, MN/Minnesota News Network) — The Big Ten announced Minnesota’s 2026 football schedule along with the rest of the conference. Minnesota will open the season at home on Thursday, September 3 against Eastern Illinois. This will be the 18th time that Minnesota will start the season at home on a Thursday night and the Gophers have opened on a Thursday for the last 13 full seasons (excluding the 2020 season) since 2012. The Gophers open Big Ten play on September 26 at Washington. Minnesota plays at defending national champion Indiana on October 31. This will mark the third straight season that the Gophers will face the defending national champion on the road, as Minnesota played at Michigan in 2024 and at Ohio State in 2025.

Here’s the full 2026 schedule for Golden Gopher football: September 3 – Eastern Illinois September 12 – Mississippi State September 19 – Akron September 26 – at Washington October 3 – Michigan October 10 – at Purdue October 17 – BYE October 24 – Iowa October 31 – at Indiana November 7 – UCLA November 14 – at Penn State November 21 – Northwestern November 28 – at Wisconsin