UT Rio Grande Valley Vaqueros Football TV Schedule, Channels, Times
How to watch live stream UTRGV Vaqueros football game today, tonight, or tomorrow? What channel & time?
The UTRGV Vaqueros compete in the Southland Conference, and every game on their 2026 schedule streams on ESPN+ — all nine league contests plus the three non-conference dates, including the trip to FBS member UTSA. Home games at Robert & Janet Vackar Stadium also carry on Southland International, the conference's overseas feed, with Spanish-language radio available locally on KGBT-FM 98.5 La Preferida. Travis Bush is in his second season after an inaugural campaign that went far better than anyone expected: the Vaqueros finished 9-3, went a perfect 7-0 at home, and drew an average crowd of 12,539, the 16th-best attendance figure in the entire FCS. This year brings five home games and seven on the road, with a single bye at the end of September.
| UTRGV Vaqueros TV Schedule 2026 | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Game | Time ET | TV |
| Week 1 (Sat, Aug. 29) | vs UT Permian Basin (Stripe Out Night) | 8:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 2 (Sat, Sept. 5) | @ UTSA | 3:30 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 3 (Sat, Sept. 12) | @ Nicholls * | 7:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 4 (Sat, Sept. 19) | vs McNeese * (Hispanic Heritage Night) | 8:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 5 (Sat, Sept. 26) | BYE WEEK | — | — |
| Week 6 (Sat, Oct. 3) | @ East Texas A&M * | 7:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 7 (Sat, Oct. 10) | vs Southeastern Louisiana * | 8:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 8 (Sat, Oct. 17) | @ Incarnate Word * | 7:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 9 (Sat, Oct. 24) | @ Central Arkansas | 5:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 10 (Sat, Oct. 31) | vs Lamar * (Homecoming) | 8:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 11 (Sat, Nov. 7) | @ Northwestern State * | 2:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 12 (Sat, Nov. 14) | vs Stephen F. Austin * (Senior Day) | 6:00 PM | ESPN+ |
| Week 13 (Sat, Nov. 21) | @ Houston Christian * | 5:00 PM | ESPN+ |
* Southland Conference game. Home games are played at Robert & Janet Vackar Stadium in Edinburg, Texas.
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Which UTRGV Vaqueros games are worth watching in 2026?
The September 5 trip to the Alamodome is a genuine milestone. UTSA becomes the first FBS opponent in UTRGV history, and the two Texas schools meet barely two hundred miles apart in a venue that seats more than 60,000 — an outsized stage for a program playing only its second season. The home schedule opens a week earlier under the lights against Division II UT Permian Basin for Stripe Out Night, continuing a run at Vackar Stadium where the Vaqueros have never lost. Every home kickoff except the finale is set for 8:00 PM ET, which suits both the South Texas heat and a fan base that filled the place all last fall.
The Southland home slate is built around revenge. UTRGV hosts the four league opponents it visited during the inaugural season, three of which reached the FCS playoffs. McNeese arrives September 19 for Hispanic Heritage Night, Southeastern Louisiana on October 10, and Lamar on Halloween for Homecoming. The one that matters most comes last: defending Southland champion Stephen F. Austin visits on November 14 for Senior Day, a game that could decide the conference race and give the Vaqueros their first shot at knocking off the league's standard-bearer in Edinburg.
