{
  "id": 4694491,
  "title": "Texas, Ohio State, Arkansas? Which college football teams have the most difficult schedules in 2026",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/31/texas-ohio-state-arkansas-which-college-football-teams-have-the-most",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-08-31T18:53:02.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "Associated Press",
    "slug": "associated-press",
    "url": "https://apnews.com/article/college-football-schedules-44813280fd6b0b0f6942e80e178872e1"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "In the 2026 college football season, several teams face particularly grueling schedules. Texas holds the top spot on ESPN's list of the toughest schedules, followed closely by Arkansas and Michigan.\n\nTexas' demanding path begins with a home game against Ohio State on September 12, followed by a tough SEC opener against Tennessee on September 26. The Longhorns then face Oklahoma, Ole Miss, Missouri, and Texas A&M before closing the season with a trip to No. 8 Texas A&M. Their difficulty rating of No. 3 on ESPN's list reflects the intensity of their 10-game campaign.\n\nArkansas, despite not being ranked in the preseason AP Top 25, could climb the rankings with enough wins. Their schedule includes early road games against Utah (October 3) and Texas (November 21), followed by home games against Tennessee, Missouri, and LSU. This challenging itinerary has earned them the No. 1 spot on ESPN's toughest schedules list for the 2026 season.\n\nMichigan's path is also notably difficult. They host Oklahoma in Week 2 and start Big Ten play at home against Iowa on September 26. Their schedule then includes a crucial game against No. 6 Indiana on October 24, followed by rival Michigan State. Michigan's close finish includes tough away games against Oregon (Week 14) and Ohio State (November 28).",
  "summary": "Indiana spent the past two seasons listening to how it played weak schedules as it went a combined 27-2 and won the program’s first national championship with an undefeated…",
  "key_points": [],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 2,
    "also_reported_by": [
      {
        "outlet": "Winnipeg Free Press",
        "title": "Dave Campbell’s Texas Football high school rankings for Week 2",
        "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/08/31/dave-campbells-texas-football-high-school-rankings-for-week-2",
        "published": "2026-08-31T18:00:58.000Z"
      }
    ]
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}