Football Unveils 2026 Non-Conference Schedule
Blue Devils will take on FCS National Champion as part of the 2026 season
Central Connecticut State head football coach Adam Lechtenberg announced the non-conference portion of the 2026 schedule for the Blue Devils. The two-time defending NEC champions will play five non-conference games, with two at Arute Field.
Highlighting the Blue Devils 2026 non-conference slate will be a September 19th trip to the 2025 FCS National Champion, Montana State. That is the first time in program history that the Blue Devils will take on a national champion. It is the first-ever meeting with the Bobcats and marks the first Blue Devil football game in the mountain time zone.
The season gets underway on August 29th, when the Blue Devils travel to South Dakota for a week zero game. It marks the first meeting in program history with Coyotes. This is the first game that CCSU has played in the State of South Dakota, having visited North Dakota in 2008 to play North Dakota State.
The 2026 home opener will feature a return of Fordham to Arute Field on September 5th. Central is 3-1 all-time versus the Rams, including a 33-3 win to open the home portion of the 2024 campaign on Arute Field. CCSU has won the last three meetings with the Rams, dating back to a 24-13 win in 2018.
For the ninth consecutive year the Blue Devils will play an opponent from FBS, when they travel to Toledo on September 12th. The two programs have never met on the gridiron and marks the second trip to the State of Ohio, where the Blue Devils played Kent State in 2023.
The non-conference finale comes October 10th, at Arute Field, when AIC visits for the third time in four seasons. CCSU is 2-0 versus the Yellow Jackets, including a 34-7 win last season. The 44-0 win over AIC in 2023 marked the first head coaching win of Lechtenberg's career.
