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UTRGV Athletics released its 2026 schedule for the Vaqueros football team on Jan. 6. The schedule consists of 12 matches against familiar Southland Conference opponents, but also new faces.
These include the University of Texas at San Antonio, Northwestern State University and California State University, Sacramento.
Head coach Travis Bush said it will be a “tough schedule” compared to 2025.
“That’s the direction we want to go as a program,” Bush said. “We’re going to see some tougher teams and play an extra conference game. Now, we’re playing every team in the Southland Conference.”
The announcement comes after a winning inaugural season, where the Vaqueros accomplished a seven-game home win streak and came out tied for the eighth-longest active streak in the NCAA Division I Football Championship Subdivision.
Angela Cazares, a student assistant for the Athletics Ticketing department and a criminal justice senior, said she hopes the team will do “even better” this time.
“Hopefully, we can win all of the games this season,” Cazares said. “It was crazy how we were able to win all of our home games. To go undefeated completely would be awesome to see.”
The Vaqueros will open the season against the University of Texas Permian Basin Aug. 29 at the Robert and Janet Vackar Stadium in Edinburg.
According to Bush, many of the non-conference games will also prove to be a challenge.
“We’re facing some of the top teams in the country,” he said. “Permian Basin was a quarter final team, and that’s our opener. They’re a very talented team, so they’ll definitely be a tough team to beat.”
After, the Vaqueros will play their first match against a D-1 opponent, UTSA, on Sept. 5 at the Alamodome.
Bush said he believes facing the Roadrunners will aid in “getting ready” for the SLC.
“Being able to play a high-caliber team like UTSA is going to be a challenge,” he said. “It won’t be easy, but facing a team with that much size and skill will help us be prepared for our conference matches.”
The following week, the Vaqueros will face Nicholls State University at the Manning Field at John L. Guidry Stadium in Thibodaux, Louisiana, the first time they experience back-to-back road games.
On Sept. 19, UTRGV will return home to play its Southland Conference opener against McNeese State University.
“These teams … they’re very fast and physical,” Bush said. “We’ve learned from last year that you’ve got to be ready to play week in and week out. Every game is going to be a battle.”
Next, the Vaqueros will face Sacramento State, a three-time Big Sky Conference champion team, on Sept. 26 at home.
The season will contain six home and six away games, with nine games being conference. Ticket pricing and time information will be announced at a later date.
Season-ticket holders have until Jan. 31 to renew or upgrade their seats through Showpass.
For more information on the game schedule, visit the UTRGV Athletics website.
While the year has only just begun, many people across the university community are excited to get back into the football spirit later this year.
Cazares said she is looking forward to the upcoming season.
“I can’t wait for football to start again,” she said. “You know, being at the basketball and soon to be baseball games, I find myself missing the feeling of being at the football games. There was just something different about them.”
Cazares said she feels like the fans’ excitement and support was the best part of the experience and encouraged the team to “be their best.”
“I never directly watched the games since I was at the entrance scanning people’s tickets,” she said. “However, I was always able to hear the crowd roar whenever we made a touchdown or a good play. I can only imagine that excitement also pushed the team to want to make everyone proud and bring in the ‘W.’”
Bush said he also believes fan support is crucial, even during the offseason.
“Their support is huge in a lot of ways,” he said. “In the offseason, it helps with recruiting. Lots of people have their eyes on our team right now. They know that we have a strong and supportive community. That alone might give recruits the push to be interested in joining us and seeing what we have to offer.”
There are seven months to go until the first football game, and the Vaqueros have a long road ahead of them, according to Bush.
“This year, we’re starting from the ground up,” he said. “Our goal is to take one week at a time and see how we can do our best to maximize our potential. Our team’s roster will be different but so will our opponents’.”
Bush said he believes the annual restart is the “unique part of sports.”
“Just because we beat a team last year, doesn’t mean we will this year,” he said. “That being said, it can also be the other way around as well. Anybody can beat anybody, any given day, any given place.”
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