Ten teams from Worcester to Williamsburg, a season that starts on a Thursday in August, and a November where every single game counts in the standings. Here is the whole Patriot League season, week by week.
Times are Eastern. Conference games are in bold. TBA means the networks have not set the window.
A league that opens with league play
Most conferences spend September collecting paydays and save the standings for October. The Patriot League does the opposite. Eight of the twelve games in the opening fortnight are conference games, and the first one kicks off on Thursday, August 27, before almost anybody else has played.
Then the pattern inverts. September fills with Ivy League crossovers and trips to Power Four stadiums, October narrows, and from October 24 to the final Saturday every game on the board is a conference game. The season tightens rather than opens up.
Week 1 — August 27 to September 5
| Matchup | Date | Time | TV | Pick |
| Lafayette at Georgetown | Thu Aug 27 | 7:00 | Pick → | |
| William & Mary at Villanova | Fri Aug 28 | 6:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Colgate at Fordham | Fri Aug 28 | 6:00 | Pick → | |
| Lehigh at Holy Cross | Sat Aug 29 | 3:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Bucknell at Richmond | Sat Aug 29 | 6:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Lafayette at Connecticut | Sat Sep 5 | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Lehigh at Georgetown | Sat Sep 5 | 12:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Holy Cross at Colgate | Sat Sep 5 | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Fordham at North Dakota State | Sat Sep 5 | 3:30 | Pick → | |
| Richmond at Howard | Sat Sep 5 | 6:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Villanova at Bucknell | Sat Sep 5 | 6:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Delaware State at William & Mary | Sat Sep 5 | 6:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
Eight conference games before anyone else has finished their first weekend. Lafayette at Georgetown on the Thursday is the earliest league game of the year.
Week 2 — September 11 and 12
| Matchup | Date | Time | TV | Pick |
| Richmond at NC State | Fri Sep 11 | 7:00 | ESPNU | Pick → |
| Villanova at Louisville | Fri Sep 11 | 7:00 | ACCNX | Pick → |
| Marist at Lafayette | Sat Sep 12 | 12:30 | Pick → | |
| Colgate at Central Michigan | Sat Sep 12 | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Holy Cross at Miami (OH) | Sat Sep 12 | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Bucknell at VMI | Sat Sep 12 | 1:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| William & Mary at Lehigh | Sat Sep 12 | 2:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Fordham at Coastal Carolina | Sat Sep 12 | 7:30 | Pick → |
Two Friday night paydays in ACC stadiums, and the league’s only conference game of the weekend is in Bethlehem.
Week 3 — September 19
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Dartmouth at Lehigh | 12:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Villanova at LIU | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Lafayette at Columbia | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Cornell at Colgate | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Yale at Holy Cross | 2:00 | Pick → | |
| Penn at Bucknell | 3:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Georgetown at Richmond | 3:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Fordham at William & Mary | 6:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
Five Ivy League opponents on one Saturday — Dartmouth, Columbia, Cornell, Yale and Penn all cross over in the same afternoon.
Week 4 — September 26
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Holy Cross at Lafayette | TBA | Pick → | |
| Bucknell at Pittsburgh | 12:00 | ACCNX | Pick → |
| Columbia at Georgetown | 12:30 | Pick → | |
| Lehigh at Penn | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Stony Brook at Fordham | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Furman at Richmond | 2:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Colgate at Villanova | 2:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| William & Mary at Duke | 3:30 | ACCNX | Pick → |
Week 5 — October 3
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Richmond at Lafayette | TBA | Pick → | |
| Fordham at Lehigh | 12:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Cornell at Georgetown | 12:30 | Pick → | |
| Morgan State at Villanova | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Holy Cross at William & Mary | 3:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Colgate at Harvard | 7:00 | Pick → |
Week 6 — October 10
| Matchup | Time | Pick |
| Bucknell at Georgetown | 12:30 | Pick → |
| William & Mary at North Carolina Central | 1:00 | Pick → |
| Richmond at Fordham | 3:30 | Pick → |
Three games, the lightest Saturday of the season. Seven of the ten teams are idle.
Week 7 — October 17
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Georgetown at Colgate | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Holy Cross at Harvard | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Lehigh at Cornell | 2:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Lafayette at Bucknell | 3:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Villanova at Fordham | 3:30 | Pick → |
The last Saturday with any non-conference football on it.
Week 8 — October 24
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Lafayette at Fordham | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Bucknell at Holy Cross | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Colgate at Richmond | 2:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Georgetown at William & Mary | 3:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Lehigh at Villanova | 3:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
All conference from here to the end. Five games, ten teams, nothing else on the board.
Week 9 — October 31
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Villanova at Lafayette | TBA | Pick → | |
| Bucknell at Lehigh | 12:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Richmond at Holy Cross | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| William & Mary at Colgate | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
Halloween, and only four games. Fordham and Georgetown both sit it out.
Week 10 — November 7
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Colgate at Lehigh | 12:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Holy Cross at Georgetown | 12:30 | Pick → | |
| Richmond at Villanova | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Lafayette at William & Mary | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Fordham at Bucknell | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
Five games, five kickoffs inside an hour of each other. The standings move all at once.
Week 11 — November 14
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Georgetown at Fordham | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Villanova at Holy Cross | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Bucknell at William & Mary | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Lafayette at Colgate | 1:00 | Pick → | |
| Lehigh at Richmond | 2:00 | ESPN+ / MASN | Pick → |
Week 12 — November 21
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| William & Mary at Richmond | 12:00 | ESPN+ / MASN | Pick → |
| Fordham at Holy Cross | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Lehigh at Lafayette | 12:30 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Colgate at Bucknell | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Georgetown at Villanova | 1:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
Lehigh at Lafayette is The Rivalry, the most-played series in college football, and it closes the season at Fisher Stadium. William & Mary at Richmond is the Capital Cup, kicking off half an hour earlier. Five games, ten teams, and the league finishes together.
Dig deeper
- Make your picks — week by week, +20 points each
- Compare two teams — the School Rivalry tool stacks any two side by side
- Track the race — the Heisman NIL Power Rankings score every contender on performance, NIL visibility, social power and fan demand
- Read the rest — the 2026 SEC, Big Ten, ACC, Big 12 and American schedules
- Watch the movement — the Transfer Tracker
