The issue might be more complicated than that. Here is why......

I assume we let go of the Wofford contract because Kent needed them and we had a plan to kick the scheduling issue that will likely eventually require playing only 5 home games or playing 2 FCS games down the road a few years. Because there are so many FBS teams that need a game it didn't sound implausible at all. What we really need is a G5 school to play at Ohio this year and the return game in 2029. Then, the way the schedule is, kicking the can all the way to 2035 might be pretty easy. I thought it might not be that hard. Play the BYE week way early on 9/12 and get the MAC to schedule us with no conference game for a specific week in October. But here is the issue I realized last night.

Labor Day 2025: 9/1 ; Labor Day 2026 9/7
Thanksgiving 2025: 11/27 ; Thanksgiving 2026: 11/26

There is one less week between labor Day weekend and Thanksgiving weekend than in 2026. The upshot of that, unless I otherwise missed something, is we have entered the stretch over the next few years where college teams only have one BYE in the regular season instead of two, unless the scheduling rules change, until Thanksgiving also jumps back a week instead of up or day or two and catches up again. Then consider one BYE week is blurbed out sometime in November when you have 10 or so days off before you play a week game then 10 days off again to play on the weekend again. This is usually true for all 12 MAC programs. So we don't have a BYE week to play with. We probably need to get UConn or an MWC or PAC team that may have less conference games and the leeway of 2 BYE weeks that may have more options to move a game and then be willing to play in Athens this year. That doesn't sound like an easy given thing to manipulate. I am guessing since Wofford is no longer on the schedule that there is something coming together however. We'll see.

Sorry about the double post, but I think I found one possible option from the FCS.

https://fbschedules.com/ncaa/chicago-state /

^ A team just getting started in FCS as an independent and looking for as much help as they can get. 9/12 is an open date for Chicago State...

IF we are going to go to Chicago invite the University of Chicago Maroons to Peden. Hey, they used to be in the Big10, and were a founding member. They are still in an acadmeic alliance with the BigTen+. Lot more prestige than Chicago State Normal College.

My guess is that since we let Wofford and Kent play the week we had a contract, that the current plan is to try not to play two FCS schools in 2026. Although, since we probably need to do that eventually and it doesn't look there is a good option that doesn't involve getting other schools to move a game, it is hard to guess exactly what the plan is.

Yeah, I get you. This is the first that I heard of them starting a football team. My guess is that NIU's athletic department didn't take this as good news.

Take UConn and Southern Miss off the list. They've inked a deal.

Ohio (would prefer a home game, I'm sure)
FIU (already plays two road games. Probably goes after FCS home game)
USC (can do pretty much whatever they want. Already has two FBS home games and could schedule FCS)
Jacksonville State (already plays at San Jose State and doesn't have a P4 school on their schedule yet)

Plus whatever the PAC 12 does

Washington State's AD confirmed they wouldn't release the PAC schedule for another couple of weeks. Looking more and more like they're going to have their 7-game round robin and then an extra flexed game at the end of season pitting the best teams against each other.

Saw this today:


NDSUBISONATION
@NDSUBISONATION8
NDSU 2026 SCHEDULE

at USC
H -Citadel (or FBS team)
H at US BANK- MEMPHIS
at Ohio
at UNLV
H -UTEP,
at-NIU
at = Air Force
H - Nevada
H - San Jose St
at- Wyoming
H - New Mexico

Well that's a wonderful situation that fell into our lap. Got our home game to keep it at 6 and not only avoided the 2nd FCS opponent but got a quality OOC opponent at home, newly minted as a member of the MWC. Only problem is we might pick up an L in the process.

It certainly helps that our AD came over from a fellow MVFC school in South Dakota State, so there must be a familiarity with the NDSU Athletic Department. Our road OOC games are filled in 27 & 28, but could make the return trip to Fargo in 29 and just ink a home and home.

NDSU's non-conference slate there is all FCS teams. I doubt they'll keep it as such. They may keep 1, but not all 4.

I'm not sure what precedent they have in that. James Madison tried the same thing and failed. The NCAA is pretty strict about the FCS to FBS transition rules.