College football toughest schedules based on 2026 preseason rankings
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There's plenty of optimism for every team heading into the 2026 college football season, but those hopes can easily be cast aside thanks to some daunting schedules awaiting.
The release of the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll signals the upcoming season is rapidly approaching, and while everyone has known for months who they will face and when, the rankings provide another snapshot of the course ahead. The rankings will fluctuate throughout the season, and some teams may not be as good as predicted. Yet plenty of squads — mostly in the Big Ten and SEC — have their work cut out for them in order to make the College Football Playoff.
For some, it might feel like their own version of "The Odyssey". Marquee nonconference matchups. Hostile road trips. Cruel stretches. You name it, these teams got it. Here are the most difficult schedules for the 2026 season:
10. LSU
Lane Kiffin will be tested in his first month in the Bayou. The Tigers meet No. 23 Clemson in the season opener, and Kiffin makes his big return to face No. 10 Mississippi two weeks later. After that emotional roller coaster will be No. 8 Texas A&M. The Tigers get a break before ending the season with a three-game stretch with No. 11 Alabama and No. 4 Texas coming to Death Valley, followed by a trip to No. 18 Tennessee in the penultimate game.
9. South Carolina
Shane Beamer has one of the hottest seats in the country, and the slate doesn't offer many chances to cool it down. The only noticeable challenge in the first half of the season is at No. 11 Alabama (Sept. 26), but the second half features five ranked opponents in the last six games, three of which are in the top 10 – No. 18 Tennessee, No. 9 Oklahoma, No. 6 Texas A&M, No. 3 Georgia and the finale against rival No. 23 Clemson. Beamer has his work cut out for him to keep his job.
8. Mississippi State
Year 3 under Jeff Lebby has another difficult slate with another big stretch of games that will dictate overall success before November begins. The first five SEC games come against No. 25 Missouri, No. 11 Alabama, at No. 13 LSU, No. 9 Oklahoma and at No. 4 Texas. It gets a little easier after that until the Egg Bowl at No. 10 Mississippi as the Bulldogs look for multiple conference wins for the first time since 2022.
7. USC
The pressure is on for Lincoln Riley to finally get Southern California into the College Football Playoff. You think it would be easier with Notre Dame off the schedule, but instead the Trojans have to deal with its toughest schedule since joining the Big Ten. USC gets the top two ranked teams — No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Oregon — at home alongside No. 19 Washington, with trips to No. 17 Penn State and No. 6 Indiana.
6. Oklahoma
The Sooners find themselves again with another loaded schedule in the way of making the playoff in back-to-back seasons. They will travel to the Big House in Week 2 to face No. 16 Michigan, and two weeks later, open up SEC play away from home with a visit to No. 3 Georgia and the Red River showdown with No. 4 Texas in early October. To end the season, Oklahoma gets another back-to-back games against top 10 teams with No. 10 Ole Miss and No. 8 Texas A&M coming to Norman before ending the season at No. 25 Missouri.
5. Arkansas
Picked to finish last in SEC, Arkansas gives Ryan Silverfield a schedule with seven ranked matchups — tied for the most — in his first season with the Hogs. They have to go play at No. 21 Utah in Week 2 and then host No. 3 Georgia the week after. In October, there is a visit to No. 8 Texas A&M that is followed by No. 18 Tennessee, and then No. 25 Missouri on Halloween. Just to ensure it doesn't get easier, the season ends with No. 4 Texas and No. 13 LSU. Good luck trying to get out of the conference cellar.
4. Ohio State
Not even the top team in the country is safe from a tough slate. The Buckeyes will face six ranked teams, and to up the difficulty, four of them will be on the road. Ohio State travels to No. 4 Texas in Week 2, and the challenge continues in October with three grueling road trips awaiting: No. 22 Iowa, No. 6 Indiana and No. 14 USC. It's not until November when the Buckeyes get a marquee matchup in "The Shoe," against No. 2 Oregon. Then of course, there's the annual finale against No. 16 Michigan. It's rare for the preseason No. 1 team to be there by the end of it all, and Ohio State's journey to achieve it isn't easy.
3. Missouri
There's playing a bunch of ranked teams, then there's what faces Missouri. Even though the Tigers have just five ranked opponents, all of them start the season in the top 10, most of which is loaded into the back half of the schedule. It starts Oct. 10 against No. 8 Texas A&M and No. 10 Ole Miss. The final three ranked opponents come in the last four games, with No. 4 Texas and No. 3 Georgia before ending the campaign against No. 9 Oklahoma, a true test to whether Missouri can hang on by the time November comes around.
2. Texas
Of all the teams in the SEC, Texas is the one that can claim the toughest schedule in the conference. Tied with Arkansas with seven ranked opponents, four of them are starting in the top 10. That gets started early with No. 1 Ohio State visiting in Week 2, and its SEC schedule starting at No. 18 Tennessee and against No. 9 Oklahoma in the Cotton Bowl. No. 10 Mississippi comes in on Oct. 24, and two of the final three games feature going to Death Valley to play No. 13 LSU and the finale with rival No. 8 Texas A&M. Steve Sarkisian and Arch Manning get no cakewalks on the path to returning to the playoff after missing out last season — although it's all but guaranteed Sarkisian uses it as an argument at some point.
1. Michigan
Congratulations, Kyle Whittingham. Awaiting your first season at Michigan is the most difficult schedule in the country. The Wolverines are one of five teams that get the top two teams in the country, and in total, get four top-10 opponents. No. 9 Oklahoma comes in for Week 2 and then play No. 22 Iowa in the first Big Ten game. In October, they face No. 17 Penn State and No. 6 Indiana in back-to-back games. Then at the end of the season, Michigan has to go play at No. 2 Oregon on Nov. 14, and two weeks later, get rival No. 1 Ohio State on the road in regular-season finale.
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: College football toughest schedules based on 2026 preseason rankings
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