Rhode Island's 2026 Football Schedule Features Temple Trip, Eight CAA Games

Rhode Island head coach Jim Fleming released the Rams' 2026 football schedule in December, and it comes with a marquee early test: a Sept. 5 trip to Philadelphia to face Temple, an American Athletic Conference program that carries a guaranteed financial payout for URI. The 12-game slate also features eight Coastal Athletic Association contests as the Rams look to build on their position within the league.

Temple, coached by KC Keeler, will host Rhode Island as the first game on its 2026 non-conference calendar before turning its attention to Penn State on Sept. 12. For the Owls, Rhode Island represents their lone FCS opponent in a non-conference slate that also includes Power Four and Group of Six matchups. For URI, the trip represents the kind of revenue-generating guarantee game that smaller programs use to offset scheduling costs and fund their athletic operations, though no specific dollar amount was disclosed in the schedule announcement.

The Rams' five home games are all set for Centreville Bank Stadium in downtown Pawtucket, URI's temporary home field. Rhode Island opens its home schedule Sept. 12 against Elon before hosting Brown on Oct. 3 in the Governor's Cup. The CAA home slate continues with UAlbany on Oct. 24 and Maine on Oct. 31 in back-to-back weeks. Towson closes out the home schedule on Nov. 14.

The schedule also includes three non-conference FCS opponents, with Brown accounting for one of those matchups. The complete non-conference slate rounds out a 12-game schedule built around eight CAA games against league opponents including Elon, UAlbany, Maine, Towson, and a Nov. 7 road trip to New Hampshire.

Rhode Island closes the season strong at home, with three of its final five games at Centreville Bank Stadium. After the trip to New Hampshire on Nov. 7, Fleming's team returns to Pawtucket to host Towson and finish the regular season there. Season tickets for the 2026 campaign at Centreville Bank Stadium are currently on sale.