Pitt Football Schedule 2026: Full Panthers Slate, Dates, and Key Games

by

Pitt plays its first four games at Acrisure Stadium, gets a nine-game ACC schedule for the first time, and has two Friday night kickoffs, at Virginia Tech on Oct 2 and against Florida State on Nov 13. The Wisconsin game that was supposed to be on this schedule was mutually cancelled, so the non-conference slate is Miami (Ohio), UCF and Bucknell, all at home.

Pat Narduzzi enters his 12th season after an 8-5 year (6-2 ACC) that ended with a 23-17 loss to East Carolina in the Military Bowl. True freshman Mason Heintschel took over at quarterback in late October and sparked a five-game winning streak before losses to Notre Dame and Miami closed the regular season.

2026 Team Schedule
Pitt Football Schedule
ACC · Acrisure Stadium · Pat Narduzzi (12th year)
7
Home Games
Nov 7
Bye Week
Sept 5
Opener vs Miami (OH)
Nov 13
Circle It: Florida State, Friday night
Date Opponent Location Time (ET) / TV Result
Sat, Sept 5 Miami (Ohio) Pittsburgh 12:00 or 12:30 PM · The CW —
Sat, Sept 12 UCF Pittsburgh 3:30 PM · ESPN2 —
Thu, Sept 17 Syracuse Pittsburgh 7:30 PM · ESPN —
Sat, Sept 26 Bucknell Pittsburgh 12:00 PM · ACCNX —
Fri, Oct 2 at Virginia Tech Blacksburg, VA 7:00 PM · ESPN —
Sat, Oct 10 North Carolina Pittsburgh TBA —
Sat, Oct 17 at Boston College Chestnut Hill, MA TBA —
Sat, Oct 24 at Miami (FL) Miami Gardens, FL TBA —
Sat, Oct 31 Georgia Tech Pittsburgh TBA —
Sat, Nov 7 BYE WEEK — — —
Fri, Nov 13 Florida State Pittsburgh 7:00 PM · ESPN —
Sat, Nov 21 at Louisville Louisville, KY TBA —
Sat, Nov 28 at California Berkeley, CA TBA —
Remaining ACC kickoff times and networks are announced 6 to 12 days before each game. The ACC Championship Game is in early December in Charlotte.

Games That Will Define the Panthers’ Season

Sept 17 vs Syracuse The ACC opener on a Thursday night at home. Pitt has won seven of the last eight and 20 of the last 24 in a series that dates to 1955.
Oct 2 at Virginia Tech Pitt’s first regular-season Friday game since 2019, on the road in Blacksburg. It’s also the first true road trip of the year after four straight at Acrisure.
Oct 24 at Miami The Hurricanes ended Pitt’s ACC title hopes in Pittsburgh last November. This time it’s in Miami Gardens, a week after Boston College and a week before Georgia Tech.
Nov 13 vs Florida State A Friday night rematch of Pitt’s 34-31 upset in Tallahassee last October. Two regular-season Friday games in one year hasn’t happened for Pitt since 2012.
Four Straight at Home
Miami (Ohio), UCF, Syracuse and Bucknell before the first road trip. Bucknell’s visit is its first since 1945; Miami (Ohio) hasn’t played in Pittsburgh since 1949.
Nine ACC Games
Pitt is one of 12 ACC programs on the nine-game league model in 2026, with four at home and five on the road. The league goes to nine for everyone in 2027.
A Cross-Country Finish
Three of the last four are on the road: Miami, Louisville and a Thanksgiving weekend trip to Cal in Berkeley to close the regular season.

How the Schedule Sets Up

The front half is friendly. Two Group of Five opponents, Syracuse on a short week, and an FCS game all at home, then Virginia Tech on a Friday night and North Carolina back at Acrisure. From there it gets heavier: Boston College and Miami on the road in consecutive weeks, Georgia Tech at home, and the bye. Pitt beat Georgia Tech last year when the Yellow Jackets were ranked 16th.

After the bye it’s Florida State on Friday night, then trips to Louisville and Cal. For the other side of those matchups, see our Louisville schedule and Georgia Tech schedule. The official schedule and ticket details are on PittsburghPanthers.com.

The Bottom Line

Seven home games, four of them before the first road trip, two Friday nights, a Thursday night ACC opener, and a Nov 7 bye ahead of a road-heavy close. Narduzzi’s 12th team has a young quarterback with a five-game streak on his résumé and a schedule that lets him settle in. Bookmark this page; results and kickoff times are updated throughout the season.