BETHLEHEM, Pa.—Fresh off an exciting postseason run to the FCS playoff semifinals, a new era will dawn for Villanova Football in 2026 as the Wildcats join the Patriot League as an associate member. The complete schedule for the League's 41^st football season was announced by the conference office on Friday morning. The two newest additions to the Patriot League – Villanova and William & Mary – will face each other in a season-opening Week Zero (August 29) matchup.
 
The Patriot League expands to 10 teams for the first time, as the FCS playoff semifinalist Wildcats and Tribe join second-year member Richmond, along with Bucknell, Colgate, Fordham, Georgetown, Holy Cross, Lafayette and two-time defending champion Lehigh. The 2026 schedule features 74 total games, including 45 League matchups, with the 10-member programs playing a nine-game round-robin schedule. Villanova will continue its historical conference rivalries with William & Mary and Richmond, with home games against both foes on the Wildcats home schedule.
 
Villanova has an evenly balanced 2026 slate with six regular season games at home and six on the road. The non-conference schedule includes a trip to ACC member Louisville (September 11) and a road game at LIU (September 19), as well as a home date with Morgan State (September 26).
 
The Patriot League will continue to feature a full conference schedule to determine the League champion and automatic bid to the NCAA DI FCS Championship. Due to the odd number of League games, Patriot League programs will rotate between five and four home games during the upcoming scheduling cycle. Fordham, Holy Cross, Richmond, Villanova and William & Mary will play five home League games, while Bucknell, Colgate, Georgetown, Lafayette and Lehigh will be on the road five times during the 2026 League schedule.
 
Villanova compiled a record of 48-18 (.727) over the last five seasons (2021-25) while making four playoff appearances and winning 10+ games four times. Its winning percentage is the eighth highest among all FCS programs during that time span, while the Wildcats are one of just four FCS teams with 10+ wins in at least four of the last five years. Expanding the snapshot to the last 10 seasons (2016-25), Villanova owns a record of 78-40 (.661) with six playoff appearances.
 
PATRIOT LEAGUE FIRSTS
Villanova and William & Mary will open their Patriot League schedules on Week Zero (Aug. 29) against each other. The Wildcats will play their next League game the following week when they travel to Bucknell. The Tribe's second League meeting will be in Week Two when they head to Lehigh.
 
RIVALRY WEEK
The final week of the regular season (Nov. 21) will feature meetings between historic rivals, including two of the four most-played matchups in college football. Lafayette hosts Lehigh in the 162nd meeting of "The Rivalry," college football's most-played rivalry game. William & Mary plays Richmond for the Capital Cup in the 137th meeting of a matchup coined "The Oldest Rivalry in the South."
 
Fordham hosts Holy Cross for the Ram-Crusader Cup, in a series that began in 1902, with the trophy to be contested for the 41st time. Bucknell will host Colgate for the 74th time in a series that began in 1894, and Georgetown and Villanova meet on the gridiron for the first time since 1950, in a matchup more known for its important games on the hardwood.
 
FCS PLAYOFF REMATCH
For the second straight season, Patriot League Champion Lehigh will meet its previous season's FCS Playoff opponent during the regular season as a new League rival. The Mountain Hawks travel to Villanova to take on the Wildcats in Week Eight on Oct. 24. Lehigh met Richmond to open the 2025 season.
 
FCS POSTSEASON SUCCESS
Eight of the 10 programs have finished ranked in the Stats Perform and AFCA FCS Coaches Poll since 2015. During that span, the 10 programs have combined to win 20 games in the FCS Playoffs, advancing to the quarterfinal round nine times, including three by Villanova and two apiece by Colgate and Richmond. Holy Cross and William & Mary have both advanced to the quarterfinals once.
 
For more information on the 2026 Patriot League football schedule, including times and coverage, visit the football composite schedule on the League's official website – www.PatriotLeague.org. Follow the Patriot League on X (@PatriotLeague) and Instagram (@patriotleague) to stay connected.
 
2026 Patriot League Football Schedule By Week
*denotes Patriot League Game
Week 0 (Aug. 29)
Bucknell at Richmond*
Colgate at Fordham*
Lafayette at Georgetown*
Lehigh at Holy Cross*
William & Mary at Villanova*
 
Week 1 (Sept. 5)
Villanova at Bucknell*
Holy Cross at Colgate*
Georgetown at Lehigh*
Fordham at CCSU
Delaware State at William & Mary
Richmond at Howard
Lafayette at UConn
 
Week 2 (Sept. 11-12)
(Friday, Sept. 11)
Villanova at Louisville
(Saturday, Sept. 12)
Bucknell at VMI
Lehigh at William & Mary*
Georgetown — Bye
Colgate at Central Michigan
Fordham at Coastal Carolina
Holy Cross at Miami (Ohio)
Lafayette at Marist
Richmond at NC State
 
Week 3 (Sept. 19)
Bucknell at Penn
Georgetown at Richmond*
Colgate at Cornell
Holy Cross at Yale
Lafayette at Columbia
Lehigh at Dartmouth
Villanova at LIU
Fordham at William & Mary*
 
Week 4 (Sept. 26)
Bucknell at Pittsburgh
Holy Cross at Lafayette*
Colgate at Villanova*
Lehigh at Penn
Georgetown at Columbia
Fordham at Stony Brook
Richmond at Furman
William & Mary at Duke
 
Week 5 (Oct. 3)
Bucknell — Bye
Fordham at Lehigh*
Holy Cross at William & Mary*
Richmond at Lafayette*
Georgetown at Cornell
Morgan State at Villanova
 
Week 6 (Oct. 10)
Bucknell at Georgetown*
Richmond at Fordham*
Colgate — Bye
Holy Cross — Bye
Lafayette — Bye
Lehigh — Bye
Villanova — Bye
William & Mary at NC Central
 
Week 7 (Oct. 17)
Lafayette at Bucknell*
Georgetown at Colgate*
Villanova at Fordham*
Holy Cross at Harvard
Lehigh at Cornell
Richmond — Bye
William & Mary — Bye
 
Week 8 (Oct. 24)
Bucknell at Holy Cross*
Colgate at Richmond*
Georgetown at William & Mary*
Lafayette at Fordham*
Lehigh at Villanova*
 
Week 9 (Oct. 31)
Bucknell at Lehigh*
William & Mary at Colgate*
Richmond at Holy Cross*
Villanova at Lafayette*
Georgetown — Bye
Fordham — Bye
 
Week 10 (Nov. 7)
Fordham at Bucknell*
Colgate at Lehigh*
Holy Cross at Georgetown*
Lafayette at William & Mary*
Richmond at Villanova*
 
Week 11 (Nov. 14)
Bucknell at William & Mary*
Lafayette at Colgate*
Georgetown at Fordham*
Villanova at Holy Cross*
Lehigh at Richmond*
 
Week 12 (Nov. 21)
Colgate at Bucknell*
Fordham at Holy Cross*
Georgetown at Villanova*
Lehigh at Lafayette*
William & Mary at Richmond*
 
2026 Patriot League Football Schedules By Team
*denotes Patriot League Game
Bucknell
Week 0 (Aug. 29): at Richmond*
Week 1 (Sept. 5): Villanova*
Week 2 (Sept. 12): at VMI
Week 3 (Sept. 19): Penn
Week 4 (Sept. 26): at Pittsburgh
Week 5 (Oct. 3): Bye
Week 6 (Oct. 10): at Georgetown*
Week 7 (Oct. 17): Lafayette*
Week 8 (Oct. 24): at Holy Cross*
Week 9 (Oct. 31): at Lehigh*
Week 10 (Nov. 7): Fordham*
Week 11 (Nov. 14): at William & Mary*
Week 12 (Nov. 21): Colgate*
 
Colgate
Week 0: at Fordham*
Week 1: Holy Cross*
Week 2: at Central Michigan
Week 3: Cornell
Week 4: at Villanova*
Week 5: at Harvard
Week 6: Bye
Week 7: Georgetown*
Week 8: at Richmond*
Week 9: William & Mary*
Week 10: at Lehigh*
Week 11: Lafayette*
Week 12: at Bucknell*
 
Fordham
Week 0: Colgate*
Week 1: at CCSU
Week 2: at Coastal Carolina
Week 3: at William & Mary*
Week 4: Stony Brook
Week 5: at Lehigh*
Week 6: Richmond*
Week 7: Villanova*
Week 8: Lafayette*
Week 9: Bye
Week 10: at Bucknell*
Week 11: Georgetown*
Week 12: at Holy Cross*
 
Georgetown
Week 0: Lafayette*
Week 1: Lehigh*
Week 2: Bye
Week 3: at Richmond*
Week 4: Columbia
Week 5: Cornell
Week 6: Bucknell*
Week 7: at Colgate*
Week 8: at William & Mary*
Week 9: Bye
Week 10: Holy Cross*
Week 11: at Fordham*
Week 12: at Villanova*
 
Holy Cross
Week 0: Lehigh*
Week 1: at Colgate*
Week 2: at Miami (OH)
Week 3: Yale
Week 4: at Lafayette*
Week 5: at William & Mary*
Week 6: Bye
Week 7: at Harvard
Week 8: Bucknell*
Week 9: Richmond*
Week 10: at Georgetown*
Week 11: Villanova*
Week 12: Fordham*
 
Lafayette
Week 0: at Georgetown*
Week 1: at UConn
Week 2: Marist
Week 3: at Columbia
Week 4: Holy Cross*
Week 5: Richmond*
Week 6: Bye
Week 7: at Bucknell*
Week 8: at Fordham*
Week 9: Villanova*
Week 10: at William & Mary*
Week 11: at Colgate*
Week 12: Lehigh*
 
Lehigh
Week 0: at Holy Cross*
Week 1: at Georgetown*
Week 2: William & Mary*
Week 3: Dartmouth
Week 4: at Penn
Week 5: Fordham*
Week 6: Bye
Week 7: at Cornell
Week 8: at Villanova*
Week 9: Bucknell*
Week 10: Colgate*
Week 11: at Richmond*
Week 12: at Lafayette*
 
Richmond
Week 0: Bucknell*
Week 1: at Howard
Week 2: at NC State
Week 3: Georgetown*
Week 4: Furman
Week 5: at Lafayette*
Week 6: at Fordham*
Week 7: Bye
Week 8: Colgate*
Week 9: at Holy Cross*
Week 10: at Villanova*
Week 11: Lehigh*
Week 12: William & Mary*
 
Villanova
Week 0: William & Mary*
Week 1: at Bucknell*
Week 2 (Sept. 11): at Louisville
Week 3: at LIU
Week 4: Colgate*
Week 5: Morgan State
Week 6: Bye
Week 7: at Fordham*
Week 8: Lehigh*
Week 9: at Lafayette*
Week 10: Richmond*
Week 11: at Holy Cross*
Week 12: Georgetown*
 
William & Mary
Week 0: at Villanova*
Week 1: Delaware State
Week 2: at Lehigh*
Week 3: Fordham*
Week 4: at Duke
Week 5: Holy Cross*
Week 6: at NC Central
Week 7: Bye
Week 8: Georgetown*
Week 9: at Colgate*
Week 10: Lafayette*
Week 11: Bucknell*
Week 12: at Richmond*
 
ABOUT THE PATRIOT LEAGUE
The Patriot League is in its fourth decade of academic and athletic achievement, continually demonstrating that student-athletes can excel at both academics and athletics without sacrificing high standards. The Patriot League's athletic success is achieved while its member institutions remain committed to its founding principle of admitting and graduating student-athletes who are academically representative of their class. Participation in athletics at Patriot League institutions is viewed as an important component of a well-rounded education.