Maryland football is about to open its 2026 season, and the calendar is already doing some of the heavy lifting. With the regular-season opener just five days away at SECU Stadium, the first game on the slate looks like the softest landing spot Maryland will get. But if this season is going to swing one way or the other, CBS Sports has identified three dates that could tell the whole story.
John Talty singled out Week 2 at UConn, Week 3 against Virginia Tech and Week 9 against Illinois as the games that matter most. And the message on the UConn trip was blunt.
"Maryland has excelled in the month of September under Mike Locksley, and will need that trend to continue in what looks like a more challenging slate," Talty wrote. "A Week 2 road trip to first-year coach Jason Candle's new-look UConn team is one that Locksley absolutely can't lose. Even if it's ugly, he needs to leave the Nutmeg State with a victory."
That second game sets the tone, but the one that really jumps off the schedule is the Virginia Tech visit to College Park in Week 3. It’s set for a 7:30 PM kickoff, and it will be the first meeting between the schools since Maryland’s 54-10 win in the Pinstripe Bowl back in 2021.
The timing makes it even bigger. James Franklin is beginning his tenure in Blacksburg this fall, while Locksley is trying to steady the program after back-to-back four-win seasons. That’s why the Week 3 matchup feels like the one Maryland can least afford to let slip.
The players know it, too.
"Especially week three, that's a big game," center Michael Hershey previously told IBG. "It's a non-conference game, but still, it's Virginia Tech.
Like it's James Franklin too. So you've gotta take it pretty seriously.
They go back years and the rivalry is there. It's real."
Talty also pointed to the Week 9 home game against Illinois, which comes right after Maryland’s bye week. That matters because Maryland has struggled in those spots lately, going 3-7 in games directly after the bye since 2021. The Illinois game also lands after road trips to Nebraska and Ohio State to open October, giving Maryland a chance to bank a crucial win in College Park.
Still, that opportunity only means much if the Terps handle the swing games around it. UConn, Virginia Tech, UCLA and Rutgers all sit there as the kind of matchups Maryland has to cash in on if it wants to build toward six wins.
ESPN’s matchup predictor gives Maryland just a 36.9% chance to beat Virginia Tech, making that Week 3 game the toughest of Talty’s three highlighted spots. And even before the season begins, Maryland has spent most of the preseason bowl chatter on the outside looking in.
The bright lights will be there in Week 3, and so will the attention. But the numbers around this program are hard to ignore: Maryland is just 2-11 as home favorites and 13-32 in conference play since 2021. If the Terps are going to change the feel of this season, they’ll have to do it by winning the kinds of games they’ve too often let get away.
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