The 2026 Big Ten Conference football season is the 131st season of college football play for the Big Ten Conference and part of the 2026 NCAA Division I FBS football season. This is the Big Ten's third season with 18 teams and its third season since 2010 with a non-divisional scheduling format.
On December 10, 2025, the University of Michigan announced head coach Sherrone Moore had been fired for cause due to "credible evidence" that Moore engaged in an inappropriate relationship with a staff member. On December 26, the school named Utah head coach Kyle Whittingham the team's 22nd head football coach, agreeing to a five-year contract.
On November 30, 2025, Michigan State announced that it had fired head coach Jonathan Smith after going 4âÂÂ15 in his two years with the program. On December 1, 2025, the Spartans announced Pat Fitzgerald as its head football coach. He was previously the head coach for Northwestern from 2006 until 2023 before he was fired admist the team's hazing scandal.
Midway through the 2025 season, on October 12, 2025, Penn State announced it had fired James Franklin after 12 seasons. He finishes with a 104âÂÂ45 overall record. Assistant coach Terry Smith was named the interim to finish out the season. On December 5, 2025, the team announced that Iowa State head coach Matt Campbell as their next head football coach.
After a 0âÂÂ3 start to 2025 season, on September 14, 2025, UCLA announced that head coach DeShaun Foster was fired. He finished his head coaching tenure with a 5âÂÂ10 record. Assistant coach Tim Skipper served as the interim head coach to finish out the season. On December 6, 2025, the Bruins announced that they had hired James Madison head coach Bob Chesney as their next head football coach.
Notes:
The Big Ten Conference has television contracts with ESPN, which allow games to be broadcast across ABC, FOX, NBC, CBS, TNT, ESPN2, ESPNU and Big Ten Network. Streaming broadcasts for games under Big Ten control are streamed on ESPN+. Games under the control of other conferences fall under the contracts of the opposing conference.