Only 13 Of 138 FBS Teams Will Not Play An FCS Team In 2026

BusinessSportsMoneyOnly 13 Of 138 FBS Teams Will Not Play An FCS Team In 2026ByTom Layberger,Contributor.Forbes contributors publish independent expert analyses and insights. I write about college football and sports in the Tampa Bay region.Follow AuthorJun 14, 2026, 10:30pm EDTCOLUMBUS, OHIO - Arch Manning of the Texas Longhorns throws a fourth quarter pass at Ohio Stadium on August 30, 2025 in Columbus, Ohio. (Photo by Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)Getty ImagesThe 2026 college football season will be the 49th since Division I split into I-A and I-AA. The subdivisions were given some semblance of branding in 2006 when they became known, respectively, as the Football Bowl Subdivision and Football Championship Subdivision. Only one FBS team beginning with the 1978 season has yet to play against an FCS program. Not that USC’s exclusivity was entirely by design. After all, in 2019 it was announced that Clay Helton’s Trojans were scheduled to open the 2021 season at the Coliseum against Dan Hawkins’ UC-Davis Aggies. The USC faithful was not too thrilled by that announcement and made it known. The result was a cancellation 18 months before kickoff and at a cost of $725,000.The Trojans ultimately scheduled San Jose State as their 2021 season-opening opponent (30-7 win) and UC-Davis was able to schedule another FBS team. A trip to Tulsa resulted in the Aggies’ second win in three seasons against a higher-level program. It also came with a $400,000 guarantee. Combined with USC’s cancelation fee, UC-Davis pocketed $1.125 million for its scheduling troubles. USC is one of 13 FBS teams that will not play an FCS program in 2026. In fact, the Trojans are among six Big Ten members that will not go head-to-head with a team from the lower subdivision. Here is a glimpse of each of the teams in alphabetical order.Fresno State The Bulldogs will be the first team in the revamped Pac-12 to kick off its season when they travel to L.A. to take on the Trojans for a Friday evening encounter a...