The 2026 University of Pikeville football team will play games in five different states with contests against two teams it has never played before.
 
The Bears will open the season on August 27 in Little Rock, Ark., when they play Arkansas Baptist College before playing three of their next four games at home.
 
The home opener is Sept. 5 against Campbellsville, which will kick off at 6 p.m. The following week, the Bears will play their first afternoon game of the season when they host Andrew College at 3 p.m.
 
Arkansas Baptist is an NAIA school that competes in the Sooner Athletic Conference, while Andrew College is located in Cuthbert, Ga., and is transitioning from two-year to four-year status.
 
UPike will be on the road on Sept. 19 when it heads to Lebanon, Tenn., to play Cumberland University. This will be the 17^th meeting between the schools and kickoff is slated for 7 p.m. Eastern time.
 
September, and the nonconference portion of the schedule, will end with a game at home against Bethel (Tenn.) University. Kickoff for this game, slated for Sept. 26, is 3 p.m.
 
The Bears will begin AAC play with a pair of October road games. Up first is the program's first visit to Rio Grande (Ohio) on Oct. 10 for a 3 p.m. kickoff against the Red Storm, followed by a trip to Valley, Ala., on Oct. 17 to play Point (Ga.). That game begins at 1:30 p.m.
 
UPike heads home on Oct. 24 to play the final night game of the season. The Bears will host Bluefield (Va.) University at 6 p.m.
 
That is followed by two more road games. On Oct. 31, the Bears will visit Union Commonwealth University, and will travel to Grayson to play Kentucky Christian University on Nov. 7. Both games kick off at 3 p.m.
 
The regular season will wrap up on No. 14 when Reinhardt (Ga.) University comes to town for a 3 p.m. kick on No. 14. The Bears and Eagles have decided the AAC championship all three seasons UPike has been in the league.