With the College Football Playoff officially expanding to 24 teams in 2027, all Power Four programs will be required to play at least 10 games against power-conference opponents each season. The change places a greater emphasis on strength of schedule and leaves little room for schools to fill out future slates with lower-level competition.
While many programs already meet the requirement through conference scheduling and existing non-conference agreements, several schools still need to add a Power Four opponent to their 2027 schedule. Here’s a look at the teams that have work left to do.
INDIANA
Indiana, which won the national championship last season, hasn’t faced a power team in non-conference action since a 21-14 loss to Louisville in Indianapolis in 2023. The Hoosiers’ 2027 slate currently includes games against Jacksonville State (Aug. 28), Kennesaw State (Sept. 4) and Indiana State (Sept. 11), all at home. That’s two recent FCS to FBS teams and one current FCS program, one of which will be trimmed.
MISSOURI
Missouri was left without a power opponent in 2027 after Illinois canceled several future contests. The Tigers are currently slated to host Illinois State on Sept. 4, visit San Diego State on Sept. 11, and host Florida Atlantic on Oct. 2.
NEBRASKA
Nebraska was slated to face Tennessee in 2027, but the series was scrapped. The Cornhuskers are currently scheduled to open the 2027 season against Miami (Ohio) at Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City before hosting Northern Illinois and Northern Iowa on Sept. 4 and Sept. 18, respectively.
OREGON
Oregon was previously scheduled to visit Baylor in Waco in 2027, but that series was also canceled. The Ducks will have to exchange one of their three home games for a power opponent: Eastern Washington (Sept. 4), Coastal Carolina (Aug. 28 or Sept. 11), and WKU (Sept. 18).
TCU
TCU was left without a power non-conference opponent in 2027 after Stanford canceled. The Horned Frogs will have to adjust their slate that consists of Alcorn State (Sept. 4), North Texas (Sept. 11), and Sam Houston (Sept. 11), each at home.
TEXAS TECH
Texas Tech was also left without a power opponent in 2027 when NC State backed out of its scheduled visit to Lubbock. The Red Raiders added New Mexico (Sept. 18) to its schedule in May and also have a home contest against Arkansas-Pine Bluff (Sept. 4) on the docket, leaving its line opening for a power foe.
USC
The cancellation of the annual USC-Notre Dame series left a void on the Trojans’ non-league slate for the 2026 through 2029 seasons. The Trojans were not able to add a power opponent in 2026, but will have to do so in 2027. USC is currently scheduled to host UNLV on Sept. 4 and Nevada on a date to be determined (was Sept. 11). That leaves one slot for a power to team to be determined.
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Four additional power programs currently do not have a Power Four opponent on their 2027 non-conference schedules: Arizona, Kansas, Ole Miss, and Washington. However, each is slated to face either Oregon State or Washington State, the former Pac-12 members that were previously part of the autonomy, or Power Five, structure.
According to a CBS Sports report, the College Football Playoff has confirmed that Oregon State and Washington State will continue to count as power opponents for scheduling purposes next season, providing a temporary exemption for schools that have them on their schedules.
Ole Miss is scheduled to host Oregon State, while Arizona, Kansas, and Washington are each set to host Washington State.
Two other Power Four programs could also have flexibility in their future schedules, as both currently have two non-conference games against fellow power-conference opponents. Boston College is slated to visit Rutgers on Sept. 11 and host Cincinnati on Sept. 18, while Stanford is scheduled to host Vanderbilt on Sept. 11 and Notre Dame on Nov. 27. Either school could be a candidate to drop one of those matchups if scheduling changes become necessary.
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Additionally, SMU, Miami, and Georgia have openings on their schedule and could add an 11th P4 opponent to their schedule if they desired to do so as well. Stanford has an opening as well, but highly unlikely that they would play all 12 games against P4 opponents.
That's doubtful. There are plenty of G6 schools with openings that will fill in soon.
Yes, I agree. Just pointing out that somebody like SMU might want to add a challenge to their schedule. There are quite a few ACC schools that seem to have no problem with playing multiple P4 opponents.
But it's more likely that some teams will be offloaded from teams that already have 11 P4 games, dropping them down to 10 and freeing up somebody else to schedule them.
Solutions:
Notre Dame v Oregon
Mizzou v Nebraska (first meeting of these Big 8 foes since 2010)
TCU v Indiana
Stanford vs USC (might as well bring back an old rivalry temporarly)
Boston College vs Texas Tech (no other option, sorry)
Maybe the 2033 Texas Tech at Oregon game can move to 2027. Texas Tech has five Big12 away games and probably wants a home game next season but 2033 will presumably be the same situation.