SWAC Football Schedule 2026: Every Game, Every Week
Twelve teams from Daytona Beach to Prairie View, a September built almost entirely out of classics and paydays, and a season that ends on NBC in the Superdome. Here is the whole SWAC season, week by week.
Times are Eastern. Conference games are in bold. TBA means the networks have not set the window.
A month of classics before a game counts
Most leagues open with tune-ups and start league play in late September. The SWAC opens with twenty-one games in the first fortnight and exactly one of them counts in the standings.
What fills the gap is the classic circuit — neutral-site meetings in Birmingham, Atlanta, Little Rock, Memphis and Chicago, played against MEAC, SIAC and Division II opponents as often as conference rivals. Conference play does not properly begin until September 26, and once it does the league barely stops: from that Saturday to the end of November, nearly every game on the board counts.
Week 1 — August 27 to September 6
Twenty-one games, one of which counts. Alabama A&M meets Howard in Atlanta on ABC, and the league’s only conference game of the fortnight is a Sunday noon kickoff in Prairie View.
Week 2 — September 10 and 12
| Matchup | Date | Time | TV | Pick |
| Florida A&M at Miami | Thu Sep 10 | TBA | ACCN | Pick → |
| Alabama State at Troy | Sat Sep 12 | 4:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Mississippi Valley State at Lincoln (PA) | Sat Sep 12 | 4:00 | Pick → | |
| Stetson at Bethune-Cookman | Sat Sep 12 | 3:00 | Pick → | |
| Tennessee State at Alabama A&M | Sat Sep 12 | 7:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Southern at Houston | Sat Sep 12 | 7:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Alcorn State at Arkansas-Pine Bluff | Sat Sep 12 | 7:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Grambling State at TCU | Sat Sep 12 | 8:00 | Pick → | |
| Prairie View A&M at Baylor | Sat Sep 12 | 8:00 | Pick → | |
| Texas Southern at UTEP | Sat Sep 12 | 9:00 | Pick → |
Four SWAC teams at FBS stadiums in one afternoon, and the conference game is played on a neutral field in Memphis.
Week 3 — September 19
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Virginia Lynchburg at Bethune-Cookman | 3:00 | Pick → | |
| Central State at Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 5:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Alcorn State at North Alabama | 7:00 | Pick → | |
| Louisiana Christian at Southern | 7:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Delta State at Mississippi Valley State | 7:00 | Pick → | |
| Bowie State at Alabama A&M | 7:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Tuskegee at Jackson State | 7:00 | Pick → | |
| Tennessee State at Florida A&M | 6:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| SFA at Prairie View A&M | 8:00 | Pick → |
Nine games, none of them conference games. The last Saturday before the standings start moving.
Week 4 — September 26
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Texas Southern at Alcorn State | 4:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Mississippi Valley State at Alabama State | 6:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Southern at Jackson State | 7:00 | ESPN Family | Pick → |
| Grambling State at Prairie View A&M | 7:00 | Pick → | |
| South Carolina State at Bethune-Cookman | 6:00 | Pick → | |
| Alabama A&M at Florida A&M | 6:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
Conference play arrives all at once — five league games out of six, after four weeks of almost none. Grambling State and Prairie View A&M meet in Dallas.
Week 5 — October 3
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Alcorn State at Grambling State | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Prairie View A&M at Mississippi Valley State | 3:00 | Pick → | |
| Alabama State at Bethune-Cookman | 3:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Alabama A&M at Jackson State | 5:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Texas Southern at Florida Atlantic | 6:00 | Pick → | |
| Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Southern | 7:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
Alabama A&M and Jackson State play in Mobile.
Week 6 — October 10
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Florida A&M at Alabama State | TBA | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Arkansas Baptist at Alcorn State | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Mississippi Valley State at Texas Southern | 3:00 | Pick → | |
| Southern at Prairie View A&M | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Jackson State at Grambling State | 5:00 | Pick → | |
| Bethune-Cookman at Alabama A&M | 7:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
All twelve teams in action, five conference games.
Week 7 — October 17
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Grambling State at Alabama A&M | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Florida A&M at Jackson State | 3:00 | ESPN Family | Pick → |
| Alcorn State at Prairie View A&M | 3:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Bethune-Cookman at Mississippi Valley State | 3:00 | Pick → | |
| Alabama State at Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
Five games, five kickoffs at the same time.
Week 8 — October 24
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Jackson State at Bethune-Cookman | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Southern at Texas Southern | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Florida A&M | 2:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Prairie View A&M at East Texas A&M | 7:00 | Pick → |
The lightest Saturday of league play — four games, and five teams idle.
Week 9 — October 31
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Alcorn State at Mississippi Valley State | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Bethune-Cookman at Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Southern at Florida A&M | 2:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Alabama State at Alabama A&M | 3:30 | ESPN TBD | Pick → |
| Grambling State at Texas Southern | 8:30 | Pick → |
Alabama State and Alabama A&M meet in Birmingham for the Magic City Classic, the best-attended game on the league’s calendar.
Week 10 — November 7
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Florida A&M at Alcorn State | TBA | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Grambling State | 3:00 | Pick → | |
| Alabama State at Texas Southern | 3:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Bethune-Cookman at Southern | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Alabama A&M at Prairie View A&M | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Mississippi Valley State at Jackson State | 3:00 | Pick → |
All twelve teams, all six games conference games. The cleanest Saturday on the calendar.
Week 11 — November 14
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Grambling State at Bethune-Cookman | 12:00 | Pick → | |
| Prairie View A&M at Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Alcorn State at Southern | 3:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Texas Southern at Alabama A&M | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Jackson State at Alabama State | 3:00 | ESPN TBD | Pick → |
| Mississippi Valley State at Florida A&M | 2:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
Another full board — twelve teams, six conference games, nothing else.
Week 12 — November 21
| Matchup | Time | TV | Pick |
| Florida A&M at Bethune-Cookman | TBA | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Jackson State at Alcorn State | 3:00 | ESPN+ | Pick → |
| Alabama A&M at Mississippi Valley State | 3:00 | SWAC TV | Pick → |
| Prairie View A&M at Alabama State | 3:00 | ESPN TBD | Pick → |
| Arkansas-Pine Bluff at Texas Southern | 4:00 | Pick → |
Florida A&M and Bethune-Cookman play the Florida Classic in Orlando.
Week 13 — November 26 and 28
| Matchup | Date | Time | TV | Pick |
| Tuskegee at Alabama State | Thu Nov 26 | 3:00 | HBCU GO | Pick → |
| Grambling State at Southern | Sat Nov 28 | 2:00 | NBC | Pick → |
The Bayou Classic in New Orleans, on NBC, closes the regular season — the only SWAC game of the weekend and the only one on a broadcast network all year besides the season opener.
SWAC Championship — December 5
Saturday, December 5 on ESPN2, at a campus site. Participants are decided by the final standings.
Celebration Bowl — December 12
Saturday, December 12 in Atlanta on ABC. The SWAC champion meets the MEAC champion.
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
