If you were hoping for a gentle easing-in period for the new era of Kentucky football, the SEC scheduling office had other plans. Will Stein will be tackling a really odd schedule in 2026.
The 2026 schedule has been released, and brutal might be an understatement. The Wildcats will face a gauntlet that includes powerhouse programs in strange months, a road trip to Norman, and no room for error early in the season.
The September gauntlet starts in week 2
Usually, September is reserved for non-conference tune-ups and maybe one manageable SEC game. Not this year.
- Sept. 5: Youngstown State (Home)
- Sept. 12: Alabama (Home)
- Sept. 19: at Texas A&M
You read that right. Alabama comes to Kroger Field in Week 2. There is no time to work out the kinks. The new coaching staff will have to have the team firing on all cylinders immediately, because after hosting the Crimson Tide, they have to fly to College Station to face Texas A&M at Kyle Field.
That is arguably the toughest two-week stretch in college football during the first 3 weeks of the season.
New faces, new places
The schedule also features a trip to Oklahoma on October 17. It will be the first time Kentucky visits Norman as an SEC opponent.
- Oct. 10: LSU (Home)
- Oct. 17: at Oklahoma
Mid-October sees another back-to-back heavy-hitter situation with Sam Leavitt, Lane Kiffin, and LSU coming to Lexington before that Oklahoma trip.
The takeaway
There are seven home games, which is good news. The bad news is that those home games include Alabama, LSU, Florida, and Louisville. This schedule is a massive test for the new regime. If Kentucky can survive September with a winning record, anything is possible. But if they stumble out of the gate, it could be a long autumn in the Bluegrass. Sneaking a win against Alabama or Texas A&M would be huge.
2026 Kentucky football schedule
- Sept. 5: vs. Youngstown State | Lexington, Ky.
- Sept. 12: vs. Alabama | Lexington, Ky.
- Sept. 19: at Texas A&M | College Station, Texas
- Sept. 26: vs. South Alabama | Lexington, Ky.
- Oct. 3: at South Carolina | Columbia, S.C.
- Oct. 10: vs. LSU | Lexington, Ky.
- Oct. 17: at Oklahoma | Norman, Okla.
- Oct. 24: vs. Vanderbilt | Lexington, Ky.
- Nov. 7: at Tennessee | Knoxville, Tenn.
- Nov. 14: vs. Florida | Lexington, Ky.
- Nov. 21: at Missouri | Columbia, Mo.
- Nov. 28: vs. Louisville | Lexington, Ky.