College football has been no stranger to conference realignment over the past half-decade, and the major moves that shifted the sport's tectonic plates a few years ago are still having ripple effects today. There are now 138 teams that compete at the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) level, and a number of them will have new conference homes for the 2026 season. In fact, there's no conference that hasn't been affected by the last five years of realignment.
There are 10 FBS conferences overall, plus two schools that don't belong to a conference and play as independent teams. The Power Four conferences are made up of the ACC, the Big Ten, the Big 12, and the SEC, plus Notre Dame. That number totals 68 teams. The Group of Six conferences are made up of the American, Conference USA, the MAC, the Mountain West, the Pac-12, the Sun Belt, and UConn. That number totals 70 teams.
For the College Football Playoff this season, the third year of the 12-team version, the highest-ranked conference champion from the Group of Six will join the conference champions from each of the Power Four leagues as the five automatic-bid teams. The remainder of the CFP field will be filled out by the remaining highest-ranked teams; the seven at-large schools. Additionally, if Notre Dame is inside the top 12 on selection day, they will be guaranteed a spot in the bracket. The seeding protocol remains the same from last year.
People are also reading…
It can be difficult to keep track of all of the changing conference affiliations, so we've packaged them all in one place for the upcoming season. Without further ado, here is which conference each of the 138 FBS teams will play in for the 2026 season.
American Conference
Army Black Knights
Charlotte 49ers
East Carolina Pirates
FAU Owls
Memphis Tigers
Navy Midshipmen
North Texas Mean Green
Rice Owls
Temple Owls
Tulane Green Wave
Tulsa Golden Hurricane
UAB Blazers
USF Bulls
UTSA Roadrunners
Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC)
Boston College Eagles
Cal Golden Bears
Clemson Tigers
Duke Blue Devils
Florida State Seminoles
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
Louisville Cardinals
Miami Hurricanes
North Carolina Tar Heels
NC State Wolfpack
Pittsburgh Panthers
SMU Mustangs
Stanford Cardinal
Syracuse Orange
Virginia Cavaliers
Virginia Tech Hokies
Wake Forest Demon Deacons
Big 12 Conference
Arizona Wildcats
Arizona State Sun Devils
Baylor Bears
BYU Cougars
Cincinnati Bearcats
Colorado Buffaloes
Houston Cougars
Iowa State Cyclones
Kansas Jayhawks
Kansas State Wildcats
Oklahoma State Cowboys
TCU Horned Frogs
Texas Tech Red Raiders
UCF Knights
Utah Utes
West Virginia Mountaineers
Big Ten Conference
Illinois Fighting Illini
Indiana Hoosiers
Iowa Hawkeyes
Maryland Terrapins
Michigan Wolverines
Michigan State Spartans
Minnesota Golden Gophers
Nebraska Cornhuskers
Northwestern Wildcats
Ohio State Buckeyes
Oregon Ducks
Penn State Nittany Lions
Purdue Boilermakers
Rutgers Scarlet Knights
UCLA Bruins
USC Trojans
Washington Huskies
Wisconsin Badgers
Conference USA (CUSA)
Delaware Blue Hens
FIU Panthers
Jacksonville State Gamecocks
Kennesaw State Owls
Liberty Flames
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders
Missouri State Bears
New Mexico State Aggies
Sam Houston Bearkats
Western Kentucky Hilltoppers
Mid-American Conference (MAC)
Akron Zips
Ball State Cardinals
Bowling Green Falcons
Buffalo Bulls
Central Michigan Chippewas
Eastern Michigan Eagles
Kent State Golden Flashes
Miami (Ohio) RedHawks
Ohio Bobcats
Sacramento State Hornets
Toledo Rockets
UMass Minutemen
Western Michigan Broncos
Mountain West Conference (MWC)
Air Force Falcons
Hawaii Rainbow Warriors
Nevada Wolf Pack
New Mexico Lobos
North Dakota State Bison
Northern Illinois Huskies
San Jose State Spartans
UNLV Rebels
UTEP Miners
Wyoming Cowboys
Pac-12 Conference
Boise State Broncos
Colorado State Rams
Fresno State Bulldogs
Oregon State Beavers
San Diego State Aztecs
Texas State Bobcats
Utah State Aggies
Washington State Cougars
Southeastern Conference (SEC)
Alabama Crimson Tide
Arkansas Razorbacks
Auburn Tigers
Florida Gators
Georgia Bulldogs
Kentucky Wildcats
LSU Tigers
Mississippi State Bulldogs
Missouri Tigers
Oklahoma Sooners
Ole Miss Rebels
South Carolina Gamecocks
Tennessee Volunteers
Texas Longhorns
Texas A&M Aggies
Vanderbilt Commodores
Sun Belt Conference (SBC)
East Division
Appalachian State Mountaineers
Coastal Carolina Chanticleers
Georgia Southern Eagles
Georgia State Panthers
James Madison Dukes
Marshall Thundering Herd
Old Dominion Monarchs
West Division
Arkansas State Red Wolves
Louisiana Ragin' Cajuns
Louisiana Tech Bulldogs
South Alabama Jaguars
Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles
Troy Trojans
ULM Warhawks
FBS Independents
Notre Dame Fighting Irish
UConn Huskies
Contact/Follow us @SoonersWire on X, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Oklahoma news, notes, and opinions. You can also follow Aaron on X@AaronGelvin.
This article originally appeared on Sooners Wire: What conference will each FBS program play in for the 2026 season?
Reporting by Aaron Gelvin, Sooners Wire / Sooners Wire
Sep 5, 2015; Cincinnati, OH, USA; A detailed view of the American Athletic Conference logo on a field marker at Nippert Stadium. The Bearcats won 52-10. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports
Sep 4, 2021; Charlottesville, Virginia, USA; A detailed view of the ACC logo on the down marker used during the game between William & Mary Tribe and the Virginia Cavaliers at Scott Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Scott Taetsch-USA TODAY Sports
Dec 6, 2025; Arlington, TX, USA; A view of the Big 12 logo on a touchdown pylon during the game between the Red Raiders and the Cougars at AT&T Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jerome Miron-Imagn Images
Aug 9, 2025; A detail view of a logo for the Big Ten Conference is seen during the Hawkeyes Kids Day NCAA football open practice at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, Iowa. Mandatory Credit: Joseph Cress for the Des Moines Register
Jax State's Caden Creel tries to evade the tackle of Kennesaw State's Kody Jones during college school football action at AmFirst Stadium in Jacksonville, Alabama November 15, 2025. (Dave Hyatt / Hyatt Media LLC)
Aug 30, 2024; Madison, Wisconsin, USA; General view of the MAC Conference logo on a Western Michigan Broncos helmet during warmups prior to the game against the Wisconsin Badgers at Camp Randall Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports
A Mountain West Conference logo is displayed near the 25-yard line at Sun Bowl Stadium on Friday, June 12, 2026, in El Paso, Texas.
Oregon State Beavers quarterback Tristan Ti'A (10) gets his pass away before being sacked by Washington State Cougars defensive end Isaac Terrell (88) in the second half at Gesa Field at Martin Stadium. Washington State Cougars won 32-8.
Oct 11, 2025; College Station, Texas, USA; SEC logo seen on a chain marker during the third quarter of the game between the Texas A&M Aggies and the Florida Gators at Kyle Field. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
The Sun Belt Conference logo is seen on a pylon during a spring game at M.M. Roberts Stadium in Hattiesburg, Miss., on Saturday, April 18, 2026.
Notre Dame safety Tae Johnson celebrates after getting a stop in the first half of a NCAA football game against Texas A&M at Notre Dame Stadium on Saturday, Sept. 13, 2025, in South Bend.
Jan 9, 2026; Atlanta, GA, USA; The College Football Playoff trophy on the sideline prior to the 2025 Peach Bowl and semifinal game of the College Football Playoff between the Oregon Ducks and the Indiana Hoosiers at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brett Davis-Imagn Images
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
