Athlon Sports points to Big Ten game in 2026 prediction for Maryland football

Ahmed Ghafir
4 hours ago
2 min read

Maryland football doesn't kick off the 2026 season for another 107 days when Hampton heads to College Park for the opener, though Thursday does mark 100 days until the official start of the college football season. With several more proven pieces on the 2026 roster compared to 2025, Maryland is looking to outperform sportsbooks preseason outlooks with a 4.5 projected win total posted for the second consecutive season. Yet one outlet sees a path to a bowl game contingent on a possible Nov. matchup.

Athlon Sports pointed to the Nov. 14 meeting between Maryland and Wisconsin as a potential game to watch for both team's bowl aspirations after predicting one of the two teams will reach the postseason. "Maryland and Wisconsin won just eight games combined, but one of the teams could take a big step forward in 2026 because of the schedule. Maryland starts the season with Hampton and UConn, and Wisconsin will play Western Illinois and Eastern Michigan in the first three weeks of the year," Athlon wrote.

The two teams are set to meet in College Park with Maryland alternating home and away games through the final month of the regular season, yet it will also mark a notable game given both head coaches, Luke Fickell and Mike Locksley, also landed among ESPN's group of five Power Four coaches who are on the hot seat ahead of the 2026 season.

Last year's meeting between the Terps and Badgers proved to be Maryland's last win after Malik Washington dazzled, while the defense capitalized on Wisconsin's poor quarterback play to jump out to a 20-0 lead at halftime then 27-3 in the fourth quarter. Whether the 2026 meeting proves to be any different could be a late season storyline in the Big Ten as Maryland looks for their second win in the sixth matchup between them.

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