UAC Revises 2026 Football Schedule to Accommodate West Florida Addition

The United Athletic Conference overhauled its 2026 football schedule after announcing the University of West Florida's addition, triggering adjustments across all seven existing member programs that swapped bye weeks, rerouted road trips, and expanded the conference footprint from seven to eight football members.

Each UAC team will now play a seven-game, round-robin league schedule. With FCS teams permitted to play 12-game slates beginning in 2026, every conference member retains room for up to five non-conference opponents.

The schedule rewrites were immediate and concrete. North Alabama converted its open November 7 date from a bye week into a home conference game, with West Florida visiting Bobby Wallace Field at Bank Independent Stadium in Florence. Tarleton State's mid-November road assignment changed entirely; one road game was altered on the Texans' schedule, with Tarleton State now playing at West Florida on Saturday, November 14. The Texans' 2026 slate remains at 12 regular season games, six at home at Memorial Stadium in Stephenville and six true road contests.

West Florida's full seven-game UAC slate opens with a road test at Central Arkansas. The first UAC game of the 2026 season will come in week one when Central Arkansas welcomes newcomer West Florida to Conway on Saturday, September 5. Austin Peay will head to Pensacola to take on West Florida in week three before the Argonauts navigate road trips to Abilene Christian on October 3 and Eastern Kentucky on October 24, setting up the November stretch run at North Alabama and a home date against Tarleton State before a regular season finale at West Georgia on November 21.

Currently a member of the Gulf South Conference in Division II, West Florida will officially join the UAC on July 1, 2026. Following a three-year reclassification period, West Florida will be eligible for the FCS Playoffs, putting full postseason access on hold until Fall 2029. In the interim, UAC rules allow the Argonauts to compete in the conference standings and chase a league title.

The conference's existing governance structure made the rapid revision workable. The UAC was established in 2023 as a single-sport football conference through a partnership between the ASUN and the Western Athletic Conference. On July 1, the UAC will discontinue its football-only structure, with the WAC adopting the UAC name as part of a broader rebranding initiative. The addition grows the UAC to eight football members and the FCS to 128 programs.

"Our transition to Division I marks a historic step forward for UWF and reflects the momentum, ambition and excellence that define our community," said UWF President Manny Diaz Jr.

The revised November schedule is already loaded. One of the late-season highlights is the November 7 rematch between 2025 co-champions Abilene Christian and Tarleton State in Stephenville. The FCS Playoff field will be selected on November 22, with opening-round games set for November 28. Kickoff times and broadcast arrangements for the newly added West Florida matchups are still being finalized, with further adjustments expected as schools lock in game-day logistics before the season opener in Conway.