AVE MARIA, Fla. — The Ave Maria Football team announced their schedule for the 2026 season. For the first time since 2021, the Gyrenes will play an 11-game regular season with four non-conference games and seven Sun Conference games.

Six of the 11 games are at home at Gyrene Field. It is the first time since the shortened 2020 season that Ave Maria has had more home games than road games.

"I think the 2026 schedule provides an exciting challenge for our program. It is a great slate of teams," said head coach Joe Patterson. "I'm particularly excited about having six home games. The Gyrene fan base has always created a competitive advantage at home, and we expect 2026 to be an exciting brand of football."

Since lights were installed at Gyrene Field in 2018, Ave Maria is 20-13 at home under the lights.

The season kicks off with the second year of the Mid-South/Sun Conference Challenge. Ave Maria's first two games will be against the same two Mid-South Conference teams they played in 2025. The Gyrenes start by traveling to Columbia, Kentucky, to take on the Lindsey Wilson Blue Raiders September 5. Lindsey Wilson was ranked seventh in the NAIA's 2025 postseason poll. Then, Ave Maria opens their home schedule against the Cumberland Phoenix on September 12. The Phoenix received votes in the postseason poll and were essentially ranked 27^th.

The Gyrenes go back on the road September 19 as they travel to Fort Lauderdale for the first time in program history. The two teams had intended to play a game at the home of the Eagles in UFTL's inaugural season in 2022, but Fort Lauderdale had to forfeit the game beforehand. The Gyrenes have played the Eagles at home the last three seasons and have won all three matchups.

The non-conference schedule concludes September 26 as Ave Maria hosts the Trinity Tigers. Trinity College, which has been a common foe to Ave Maria soccer and basketball, is starting up their football program in 2026 and the Gyrenes are excited to welcome them to the Gridiron. September 26 will also be Catholic School night. All students at a K-8 Catholic School will get free admission to the game.

The Sun Conference schedule kicks off October 3 as Ave Maria hosts the St. Thomas Bobcats. St. Thomas finished 17^th in the NAIA postseason poll after a 7-4 season.

Ave Maria then goes on the road October 10 up to Babson Park to take on the Webber Warriors.

Following that, the Gyrenes are home for back-to-back games against the Thomas Night Hawks and the Warner Royals. Ave Maria beat Thomas in 2025 and are undefeated against the Night Hawks since they started football in 2023. October 17 against Thomas will also be designated as the annual Hometown Heroes and Military Appreciation Day.

Warner comes to town October 24 as the Gyrenes look to win their fifth straight game against the Royals at Gyrene Field. October 24 is also homecoming for the Gyrenes.

Ave Maria then goes on the road for two games as they travel to West Palm Beach to take on the Keiser Seahawks October 31 and then over to Miami Gardens to take on the Florida Memorial Lions November 7. Keiser was ranked second in the postseason poll after losing to Grand View in the National Championship.

The regular season concludes November 14 as the Gyrenes play host to the Southeastern Fire. Southeastern ended last season ranked 14^th in the NAIA postseason poll. It is the first time since 2022 that the Gyrenes have ended the season at home. November 14 will also be designated as Senior Day.

All home will be played under the light at Gyrene Field with 7:00 kickoff times. Times for the road games are set by the host school. All Sun Conference games and Ave Maria home games will be broadcast on the Urban Edge Network.