Ranking Every Game on USF's 2026 Football Schedule By Importance

Brian Hartline is 16 days away from beginning his tenure as head coach of the South Florida Bulls.

2026 will be Hartline’s first time as a head coach. We’ve seen him develop all-world receivers, we’ve seen him call an offense, we’ve seen him secure five-star recruits, but we’ve never seen Hartline lead a team through the grueling three months that is the college football regular season.

Navigating a regular season means preparing the Bulls for all types of games. Whether it’s a pivotal game with huge implications under the lights or a sleepy noon game against a bottom-dweller, each game will either strengthen or destroy the lofty expectations around USF football this season.

People have been calling USF’s schedule “soft.” And people are probably right (even though it’s not USF’s fault that the SEC went to a nine-game conference slate).

ESPN’s FPI ranks the Bulls’ schedule as the 127th hardest in the country. There are 138 FBS teams.

Still, some games will matter more than others, and I’m going to rank which games mean the most to USF as we stand on Aug. 20.

12. Delaware State (Sept. 19)

USF will host the Hornets at Raymond James Stadium in Week 1. Delaware State is an FCS squad that plays in the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC).

The talk around the contest beforehand will likely be about the Hornets’ head coach, DeSean Jackson, who is headed into his second year as Delaware State head coach.

Jackson led the Hornets to an 8-4 record in his first year at the helm and was named the HBCU Coach of the Year. However, Jackson is more well known for his NFL playing career, where he played for 15 seasons for six different teams.

One of those teams was the Buccaneers, where he played the 2017 and 2018 seasons.

While the story of Jackson returning is fun, especially considering he’ll be across the sidelines from Hartline, who played seven years as an NFL receiver himself, USF is 29-1 against FCS opponents all time and will likely make it 30-1 on Sept. 19.

11. Kent State (Oct. 17)

Kent State has been one of the worst teams in the FBS over the course of the 2020s.

In 2023 and 2024, the Golden Flashes had a combined 1-23 record. However, last season they went 5-7 under first-year coach Mark Carney.

The Golden Flashes will be battling to become bowl eligible for the first time since 2021, but they will have to do it with an overhauled roster after they lost 26 players in the transfer portal, including their top two rushers and receivers from last season.

USF scheduled Kent State earlier this year after its game against Alabama was moved off the schedule. The biggest weight this game will hold for USF is the fact that it is homecoming weekend, and if USF gets off to a strong start, it could be a big crowd on hand at Raymond James.

The Bulls will likely roll to victory against Kent State.

10. FIU (Sept. 5)

The first game of the Brian Hartline era will be against an in-state foe.

Florida International went 7-5 last season in head coach Willie Simmons’ first season. Simmons was a name that was linked to USF’s job opening before they hired Hartline due to his ties to the state of Florida at multiple coaching stops.

Last season was FIU’s first bowl appearance since the 2019 season. There is real momentum behind the program, and that could make them a pesky opponent for USF to start the season.

However, the Bulls’ talent should prevail in a big way.

9. Bowling Green (Sept. 26)

The Bulls will hit the road for their only nonconference road game against Bowling Green.

The Falcons are coming off an abysmal 4-8 season last year. They are led by former Heisman Trophy-winning running back Eddie George, who heads into his second year with the program.

Bowling Green will host the Bulls as the final game of a stretch that includes a trip to Nebraska and Iowa State.

Likely the biggest obstacle for USF in this game will be themselves. With the team headed for an odd road trip in a less-than-glamorous city, mustering up a dominating performance could be difficult.

However, it’s safe to believe that USF will be able to take care of the rebuilding Falcons with relative ease.

8. UAB (Oct. 31)

On a day that is meant to be all about fear, I don’t think that UAB is really going to do the trick in scaring Bulls fans.

The Blazers finished last season 4-8 overall, but decided to make interim Alex Mortensen the permanent head coach after the season. UAB went 2-4 under Mortensen, but pulled a surprise upset at home against Memphis in Mortensen’s first game.

Still, UAB is widely regarded as one of the conference’s weakest teams headed into 2026.

Combine that with it being a home game for USF, and this game will likely be a treat for USF fans.

7. Temple (Oct. 3)

We’ve reached the portion of the schedule where the quality of opponent increases for USF.

Temple went 5-7 in K.C. Keeler’s first year as head coach. It was the Owls’ highest win total in any season in the 2020s.

There is optimism around the Owls’ program under Keeler. Temple’s 2026 high school class was the largest in school history and was also rated as the best class in the American.

This momentum has some people believing in the Owls taking a jump this season.

It could be a tricky “trap” game for USF, with them headed to the Alamodome the Thursday following the game.

6. FAU (Nov. 21)

The bitter rivals will face off in Boca Raton for another seismic game in November this season. (That whole sentence was a joke, by the way.)

However, FAU does profile as a dangerous team in the American Conference this season.

The Owls are led by a young and talented offensive mind in Zach Kittley. Despite going 4-8 last year, FAU led the American in passing offense. They had the most passing attempts in 2025 in the FBS.

FAU returns quarterback Caden Veltkamp, who had 3,641 passing yards and 24 passing touchdowns last season. They also return receiver Eason Messer, who led the country with 104 catches last season.

That offense is dangerous, but Kittley and the Owls have yet to prove if that can translate into true winning play.

USF will still be considerable favorites in this game, even on the road.

5. East Carolina (Nov. 6)

USF’s Friday night game at East Carolina could be the best crowd they see all season, depending on both teams’ success up to that point.

The Pirates had a strong 9-4 season under Blake Harrell in his first season as the permanent head coach.

Even with the success East Carolina had, it had to undergo a major rebuild of its roster this offseason, losing more than 50 players in the transfer portal or to graduation.

The Pirates also lost defensive coordinator Josh Aldridge, who came over to USF this offseason after running the American’s top defense at East Carolina in 2025.

This game has the potential to mean even more than what I’m giving it credit for, depending on how the Pirates’ new players gel together.

It’ll be a difficult road test for Hartline and the Bulls.

4. Tulane (Nov. 27/28)

Tulane, like USF, lost its head coach to an SEC program after 2025.

The Green Wave made the College Football Playoff and won the American Conference last season. This success led them to promoting passing game coordinator Will Hall to head coach.

Hall is hoping that his Tulane tenure goes better than his time as Southern Miss head coach, where he went 14-30 last season.

Tulane will also be replacing a plethora of players either to the transfer portal or graduation. But the Green Wave have proven to be able to succeed under multiple different head coaches with different rosters in recent memory.

This game could end up being a play-in game for the American Conference Championship Game. But with all the uncertainty around both rosters and head coaches, it doesn’t crack the top three as of right now.

3. UTSA (Oct. 8)

The Alamodome has been a house of horrors for UTSA’s opponents during the Jeff Traylor era.

Since Traylor took over for the 2020 season, the Roadrunners are 33-5 at home. They hold a whopping 25-1 record at the Alamodome against conference opponents.

The Roadrunners are poised to have their best season since entering the American Conference in 2023.

UTSA quarterback Owen McCown, son of longtime NFL backup quarterback Josh McCown, is one of the league’s best under center. He’s posted 6,861 passing yards and 59 passing touchdowns combined in the past two seasons as a starter.

The combination of UTSA’s home success and its high expectations makes this a monster game for the Bulls on a Thursday night in October.

2. Army (Sept. 12)

USF’s game against Army is a tone-setter for both the 2026 season and the Brian Hartline tenure.

The Black Knights went 7-6 last season. They are led by longtime head coach Jeff Monken, who is headed into his 13th season with the program.

Army always presents an interesting challenge with its triple-option offense. A big story will be Aldridge, who held Army to six points in East Carolina’s game against the Black Knights’ offense last season.

This will be the first time that Army and the Bulls play since the 2004 season. It’s also the first American Conference game of the 2026 season.

The early-season test could be an early make-or-break game in USF’s season. A win could set them on a path to be a contender in the American; a loss could keep them off that track.

1. Memphis (Nov. 12)

Whether it’s correct or not, the Memphis Tigers still have the perception as the class of the American Conference.

They have won multiple American Conference titles and have put together consistent winning seasons under multiple head coaches.

The Tigers will have new head coach Charles Huff leading them in 2026. Huff has a 39-25 record as a head coach over the past five seasons at Marshall and Southern Miss.

USF has struggled with Memphis, losing five games in a row to the Tigers and having a 4-10 record in the all-time series. It was the Bulls’ loss to Memphis last season that had a huge part in derailing USF’s American Conference Championship Game hopes.

Memphis is projected to be one of the many teams that can win the league this season. Combine that with its reputation amongst the American Conference, and this projects to be a signature game at Raymond James in its last season hosting the Bulls.

If both teams start out well under their new coaches, it could be the most meaningful game in the American this season.