NCAA Division I Council Approves 12-Game Regular Season Schedule In 2026

The FCS subdivision will officiallly move to a 12-game regular season schedule in 2026.

The NCAA Division I Council approved the change on Wednesday during its summer meetings. It will go into effect next season, allowing more scheduling flexibility for FCS programs. This follows the recommendation of the FCS Oversight Committee, which also voted in favor of the change earlier this offseason.

Starting next season, FCS programs will be able to compete in 12 regular-season games, with the season starting 13 weeks before the FCS championship selection date.

FCS programs are now allowed to schedule games two Thursdays prior to Labor Day. In 2026, programs can schedule games as early as Thursday, August 27.

This could allow FCS teams to take advantage of national TV opportunities and have more flexibility with out-of-conference scheduling. As of now, there are only two FBS games scheduled on that weekend. Hawaii will host Stanford and North Carolina will face TCU in Dublin on Aug. 29.

Multiple FCS conferences have voted to add an extra conference game starting next season, including the Southland and Patriot League. This expanded schedule will add much-needed flexibility, allowing schools to expand in-conference matchups while not missing out on non-conference opportunities.