SMU Mustangs 2026 schedule release, notes, and trivia

The SMU Mustangs are ready for year three of ACC membership.

The first two years went swimmingly, as the Mustangs compiled a 14-2 conference record — better than all other 16 teams in the ACC over that timespan. They qualified for the 2024 ACC Championship Game, the 2024 College Football Playoff, and were less than a minute away from returning to Charlotte for a conference championship matchup in 2025. Still, 2025 proved to be a landmark year for SMU as it concluded with a Holiday Bowl win over Arizona — its first bowl victory since 2012 — although it was snubbed from a season-ending ranking.

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Through all the recent success, SMU’s message to the conference is clear — the Mustangs are ready to contend on an annual basis. Rhett Lashlee and his staff brought back star quarterback Kevin Jennings and a slew of starters from offensive tackle PJ Williams to wide receiver Yamir Knight to linebackers Brandon Miyazono and Alex Kilgore. In addition, they’ve filled in some cracks in the portal, reloading their receiving corps with East Carolina all-conference standout Yannick Smith, adding Jimmy Wyrick (UTSA) and Jarvis Lee (South Florida) to the defensive backfield, and bringing in the talented of Kendrick Raphael (California) at running back.

SMU is ready to make another run, this time eyeing its first ACC title and second CFP appearance. On Monday, the Mustangs learned of their path to accomplish those goals in the 2026 ACC schedule reveal:

Notes and trivia

• The ACC Championship Game is moving from its typical Saturday night 8 p.m. ET block to 12 p.m. ET, remaining in its usual location of Bank of America in Charlotte, NC on Dec. 5. The noon ET ABC slot was occupied by the Big 12 Championship Game every year from 2017-25. Several conferences have yet to release schedules, but this time slot has also been occupied by MAC Championship Game (on ESPN) every year since 2021.

• The ACC moves to a 9-game conference schedule in 2026. This schedule adjustment cancels SMU’s previously-scheduled in-state contest at Baylor (originally scheduled for Sept. 19, 2026).

• For the first time in program history, SMU does not play a single opponent from the state of Texas.

• This is the sixth time in SMU history that crosstown arch rival TCU does not appear on the schedule (1919, 1920, 1925, 2006, 2020). The Iron Skillet rivalry played its final installment for the foreseeable future in 2025, with TCU winning in 35-24 fashion. With no matchups slated down the road, the future of the rivalry remains uncertain.

• SMU has three games that are not set in stone. Each matchup from Week 8 through Week 10 could be played on Friday or Saturday. That includes SMU’s Oct. 23 or Oct. 24 home matchup vs. California, its Oct. 30 or Oct. 31 road matchup at Syracuse, and its Nov. 6 or Nov. 7 home matchup vs. Virginia Tech.

• SMU opens in the Monday night Labor Day Weekend game at Florida State — a game which usually features an ACC conference matchup. As of right now, this is a standalone contest. Florida State played in Monday night games on Labor Day in 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2013, 2016, 2018, and 2024 and has a record of 4-4 on the holiday. SMU last played on Labor Day in 2007 when it hosted Texas Tech (the only other game that day was Florida State vs. Clemson).

• SMU gets a 5-week stay in Dallas in from its Week 4 non-conference matchup vs. Missouri State on Saturday, Sept. 26 all the way through its game vs. California on Oct. 23 or Oct. 24 game. There are four home games and zero byes during this stretch. Including the following three weeks, SMU only has one road game in an 8-week stretch from Week 4 through Week 11.

• SMU finished 5-2 against its 2026 opponents in 2025 with wins over Missouri State (non-conference), Louisville, Boston College, Syracuse, and Stanford, and losses to Wake Forest and California. In fact, Wake Forest and California are the only ACC opponents to win a regular season conference game over SMU.

• SMU will face Virginia Tech for the first time as ACC opponents in 2026. The programs’ last meeting transpired in 1974 in Dallas. SMU leads the all-time series 2-1, with all three meetings occurring from 1972-74.

• The seven ACC opponents missing from SMU’s 2026 schedule are Clemson, Duke, Georgia Tech, Miami (FL), NC State, North Carolina, and Pittsburgh. SMU still has not faced Georgia Tech, NC State, or North Carolina in a conference matchup through three years of ACC membership.

• Opponents traveling to SMU for the first time ever in 2026: Missouri State and Virginia.

• Road trips SMU is taking for the first time ever in 2026: Florida State.

• SMU’s two protected rivals are California and Stanford — the teams that also joined the ACC in 2024. Although not a protected rival, SMU is also facing Boston College and Louisville for a third-straight year in conference play (Boston College for a fourth-straight year overall since they met in the 2023 Pinstripe Bowl).

• SMU plays in three different time zones in 2026. Seven games are in Central Time (all seven home games), four games are in Eastern Time (Florida State, Louisville, Syracuse, Notre Dame), and one game is in Pacific Time (Stanford).