If you’re standing in the middle of The Grove on a Saturday morning, the air smells like bourbon, fried chicken, and high expectations. But before you start icing the coolers or booking that condo on the Square, you need the actual dates. Honestly, keeping track of the Rebels' schedule has become a full-time job now that the SEC has ballooned and the playoff format is basically a permanent part of the conversation in Oxford.
So, when does Ole Miss play?
Whether you're looking for the kickoff in Nashville to start the 2026 season or trying to find out when the basketball team heads to Starkville, the calendar is packed. We just came off a wild 2025 run where the Rebels fought their way into the College Football Playoff semifinals at the Fiesta Bowl. That loss to Miami stung, sure, but it set a massive tone for what’s coming next.
The 2026 Ole Miss Football Schedule: Key Dates and Matchups
The 2026 season is a bit of a milestone. It’s the first year the Rebels are diving into a nine-game SEC slate while still keeping a Power Four non-conference opponent on the books. No more "cupcake" Septembers. Head coach Pete Golding (now firmly at the helm of the program's direction) has a gauntlet in front of him.
September: The Nashville Launch and SEC Openers The season kicks off with a massive neutral-site game. Ole Miss travels to Nashville to face the Louisville Cardinals on Labor Day weekend (either Sept. 5 or 6). Playing at Nissan Stadium is basically a home game for the huge alumni base in Middle Tennessee, so expect it to be a sea of powder blue.
- Sept. 5/6: vs. Louisville (Nashville, TN)
- Sept. 12: Charlotte (Home Opener)
- Sept. 19: LSU (The Magnolia Bowl comes early this year)
- Sept. 26: at Florida (Gainesville)
That LSU game in Week 3 is going to be electric. Usually, we see that later in the fall, but having the Tigers in Oxford in mid-September changes the whole energy of the early season.
October: Trials on the Road October is when the travel budget really takes a hit. After an early bye week on Oct. 3, the Rebels hit the road for three of their four games.
- Oct. 10: at Vanderbilt (Back to Nashville)
- Oct. 17: Missouri
- Oct. 24: at Texas
- Oct. 31: Auburn (Halloween in the Vaught)
The trip to Austin on Oct. 24 is the one everyone has circled. It’s the first time Ole Miss plays Texas as a fellow SEC member. Arch Manning will be the veteran presence for the Longhorns by then, adding about ten layers of drama to an already heavy matchup.
November: The Home Stretch and the Egg Bowl If the Rebels are going to make another CFP run, they have to survive a brutal November.
- Nov. 7: Georgia
- Nov. 14: at Oklahoma
- Nov. 21: Wofford
- Nov. 28: Mississippi State (The Egg Bowl)
The Egg Bowl returns to Oxford on Saturday, Nov. 28. After winning in Starkville last year (38-19), the Rebels will be looking to keep the trophy in the Manning Center for another year.
Ole Miss Basketball: SEC Play and the Beard Era
While football dominates the headlines, Chris Beard has the men's basketball program in a spot where every mid-week game feels like a tournament play-in. We are currently in the thick of the 2025-26 conference schedule.
If you're asking "when does Ole Miss play" right now for hoops, here is the immediate outlook for the rest of the winter:
The Rebels just grabbed a much-needed win against Missouri on Jan. 10 to steady the ship after a rocky 8-5 start to the season. But the road doesn't get easier. They head to Georgia on Jan. 14 and then have the big one—the trip to Mississippi State on Jan. 17.
Upcoming Men's Basketball Highlights:
- Jan. 20: vs. Auburn (8:00 PM - Oxford)
- Jan. 24: at Kentucky (11:00 AM - Rupp Arena)
- Feb. 14: vs. Mississippi State (The home return of the rivalry)
- March 11-15: SEC Tournament in Nashville
The women's team, coached by Yolett McPhee-McCuin, is having an even more impressive run. They recently knocked off a top-ranked Oklahoma team and are looking like a lock for a deep NCAA tournament seed. They play Tennessee at home on Jan. 26, which is always a sellout atmosphere.
Baseball at Swayze: 2026 Schedule Basics
You can’t talk about Ole Miss sports without mentioning the beer showers at Swayze Field. Baseball season is right around the corner, starting in mid-February.
The Rebels open the 2026 baseball season at home against Nevada with a three-game series starting Friday, Feb. 13.
Early Season Series at Swayze:
- Feb. 13-15: Nevada
- Feb. 20-22: Missouri State
- March 6-8: Evansville
SEC play for baseball starts in mid-March, and the schedule-makers did us a favor with a massive home series against Mississippi State from March 27-29. There’s nothing quite like a weekend series against the Bulldogs when the left-field lounge is roaring.
How to Watch and Plan Your Trip
Basically, if you aren't in Oxford, you're glued to the SEC Network or ESPN. For the 2026 football season, many of the kickoff times won't be set until the "12-day window" or "6-day window" during the season. However, we know the Louisville opener and the Egg Bowl are almost certainly going to be national broadcasts on ABC or ESPN.
If you're planning to attend:
- Book Hotels Now: For the Georgia (Nov. 7) and Texas (Oct. 24) games, hotels in Oxford and even Tupelo are likely already filling up.
- The Digital Ticket Shift: Ole Miss has moved almost entirely to mobile ticketing. Make sure your "Ole Miss Athletics" app is updated before you hit the gates at Vaught-Hemingway.
- Parking: It’s a mess. Use the shuttle services from Jackson Avenue Center if you don't have a season parking pass. It saves about two hours of headache.
Actionable Steps for Rebel Fans
To stay ahead of the schedule changes and ticket drops, you should take a few specific actions right now. First, sync the official Rebels calendar to your phone via the Ole Miss Athletics website; this automatically updates when TV times are announced. Second, if you're looking for football tickets, the secondary market usually dips about three weeks before the non-conference games but spikes for the SEC home games, so buy your Georgia and LSU tickets as early as possible. Finally, keep an eye on the transfer portal dates in April and December—roster moves often dictate whether those "TBD" game times turn into primetime slots or 11:00 AM kickoffs.
