Wisconsin Football Schedule 2026: Full Badgers Slate, Dates, and Key Games

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Wisconsin’s 2026 season starts somewhere no college team usually plays: Lambeau Field, on a Sunday night. The Badgers face Notre Dame on Sept 6 — a date moved off Saturday — then settle into Camp Randall for two home non-conference games before a Big Ten slate that opens at Penn State and ends with the Axe on Black Friday.

Luke Fickell’s fourth team plays six games at Camp Randall plus the Lambeau opener. Several kickoff windows are already set; the rest lock 6-12 days out.

2026 Team Schedule
Wisconsin Football Schedule
Big Ten · Camp Randall Stadium · Luke Fickell (4th year)
6
Home Games
9
Big Ten Games
Sun Sept 6
Opener at Lambeau
Nov 27
Circle It: Minnesota
Date Opponent Time (CT) / TV Result
Sun, Sept 6 vs Notre Dame (Lambeau Field) 6:30 PM —
Sat, Sept 12 vs Western Illinois (Stripe Out) 6:15 PM —
Sat, Sept 19 vs Eastern Michigan 11:30 AM —
Sat, Sept 26 at Penn State (Big Ten opener) No later than 4 PM —
Sat, Oct 3 vs Michigan State (Homecoming) No later than 4 PM —
Sat, Oct 10 Bye Week — —
Sat, Oct 17 at UCLA TBA —
Sat, Oct 24 vs USC TBA —
Sat, Oct 31 at Iowa No later than 4 PM —
Sat, Nov 7 vs Rutgers TBA —
Sat, Nov 14 at Maryland TBA —
Sat, Nov 21 at Purdue TBA —
Fri, Nov 27 vs Minnesota (Paul Bunyan’s Axe) 6:30 PM —
Times listed in Central. Big Ten assigns remaining windows 6-12 days before kickoff.

Games That Will Decide Wisconsin’s Season

Sept 6 vs Notre Dame A Sunday night neutral-site opener at Lambeau Field against the No. 4 Irish. The single biggest stage Wisconsin will occupy all year, and it comes in Week 1.
Sept 26 at Penn State The Big Ten opener in Happy Valley against Matt Campbell’s first Penn State team. Wisconsin faces first-year head coaches in each of its opening three conference games.
Oct 24 vs USC A ranked Trojans team at Camp Randall, sandwiched between the UCLA trip and a road date at Iowa. The best home win available on this schedule.
Nov 27 vs Minnesota Paul Bunyan’s Axe on Black Friday night, at home, to close the regular season. The oldest rivalry trophy game in FBS gets a standalone national window.
Why Lambeau, and Why Sunday
The Notre Dame game moved from Saturday, Sept 5 to Sunday, Sept 6 for television. Here’s the background on why Notre Dame is playing at Lambeau Field.
The Pitt Game That Vanished
Wisconsin and Pitt mutually cancelled their Sept 19 game at Camp Randall. Eastern Michigan took the date. The two still meet in Dublin in August 2027.
Three New Coaches in a Row
Penn State, Michigan State, and UCLA all have first-year head coaches — and Wisconsin plays all three in its opening stretch of Big Ten games.

How the Schedule Sets Up

Notre Dame at Lambeau is a brutal opener but a free roll — nobody expects a win, and one would remake the season. Western Illinois and Eastern Michigan follow at home, then the Big Ten arrives with Penn State on the road and Michigan State for Homecoming. The bye lands well on Oct 10, before a stretch of UCLA, USC, and Iowa that will define the year. November is winnable on paper: Rutgers at home, Maryland and Purdue on the road, then the Axe game on Black Friday. Six or seven wins is the realistic band, with the Lambeau opener and the USC home date as the swing games. For the postseason math, here’s how the College Football Playoff works. The nine-game Big Ten slate reflects the NCAA FBS shift toward deeper conference scheduling.

The Bottom Line

A Sunday night opener at Lambeau, six games at Camp Randall, USC as the marquee home date, and the Axe under the lights on Black Friday — Luke Fickell’s fourth Wisconsin schedule has more national TV real estate than most 8-win teams get. Bookmark this page; times, networks, and results are updated throughout the season.