The Athletic Ranks 30 Must-Watch 2026 College Football Games, Led by Ohio State-Texas
Updated
Updated · The New York Times · Aug 23
The Athletic Ranks 30 Must-Watch 2026 College Football Games, Led by Ohio State-Texas
3 articles · Updated · The New York Times · Aug 23
Summary
Thirty games made The Athletic’s 2026 watch list, with Ohio State at Texas on Sept. 12, LSU at Ole Miss on Sept. 19 and Oregon at Ohio State on Nov. 7 topping the headliner tier.
Nov. 7 stands out as the season’s densest marquee date, also featuring Georgia at Ole Miss, Miami at Notre Dame and Alabama at LSU with conference and playoff stakes across multiple leagues.
October drives much of the rivalry and contender drama, including Texas-Oklahoma and Georgia-Alabama on Oct. 10, Notre Dame-BYU and Ohio State-Indiana on Oct. 17, and Florida-Georgia in Atlanta on Oct. 31.
Week Zero opens with TCU vs. North Carolina in Dublin, while the broader list mixes blue-blood showdowns, revenge rematches and new wrinkles such as Florida-Georgia leaving Jacksonville for the first time since 1995.