Multiple CIAA programs from North Carolina have begun releasing their 2026 football schedules, including defending champion Johnson C. Smith, Fayetteville State, Winston-Salem State and Shaw. We’ll update this page as official schedules are announced across the league and link to each school’s full schedule page once available.
Read below for 2026 CIAA schedule highlights and to find links to each school’s individual schedule page.
CIAA football schedules officially released
Click team name to view schedule page
Fayetteville State Broncos – Full schedule released
Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls – Full schedule released
Shaw Bears – Full schedule released
Winston-Salem State Rams – Full schedule released
Elizabeth City State Vikings– Schedule coming soon
Livingstone College Blue Bears – Schedule coming soon
🏠 Home, sweet home for Fayetteville State in first month of season
Fayetteville State football fans will get plenty of chances to see their Broncos play on home turf during the first month of the season.
FSU will play four of its first five games at Luther “Nick” Jeralds Stadium – all before the calendar rolls into October. A formidable group of teams will roll into Fayetteville during that stretch:
- Aug. 29 – Shaw
- Sept. 5 – UNC Pembroke
- Sept. 12 – Valdosta State
- Sept. 26 – Virginia Union (2025 CIAA runner-up)
In between Valdosta and VUU, the Broncos will visit defending conference champion Johnson C. Smith. If coach Richard Hayes Jr. and company come through that gauntlet in good shape, there is a good chance we’re talking about Fayetteville State as a conference and D2 contender.
Homecoming will be Oct. 17 against Elizabeth City State. The home finale will come gainst Bowie State on Oct. 31, with the final regular season contest coming at archrival Winston-Salem State the following week.
Fayetteville State currently lists its first four games with 6 p.m. kickoffs.
👉 View Fayetteville State’s full 2026 football schedule
🐏 WSSU will open against Michael Vick, Norfolk State
Winston-Salem State and new coach Tory Woodbury will open the season against an FCS opponent, traveling to Norfolk State for a Week 0 matchup (Aug. 29).
Woodbury, a Hall of Fame quarterback at WSSU from 1997-2000, most recently served as special teams coordinator at Norfolk State in 2025. The Spartans are coached by Michael Vick, who will be entering his second season at the helm after a 1-11 debut.
Winston-Salem State is no stranger to playing FCS opponents in recent years. The Rams took North Carolina A&T to the wire in 2024 before losing in overtime and travelled to North Carolina Central in 2023. WSSU played Norfolk State in 2007, 2008 and 2009 during the Rams’ foray into the FCS ranks, losing three narrow battles in a row.
Winston-Salem State’s 2026 schedule also includes a return game with Mars Hill at Bowman Gray Stadium (WSSU won 28-25 at Mars Hill in 2025) and eight games against CIAA opponents.
WSSU will face in-state rivals Johnson C. Smith and Livingstone in mid-September before a run of five games against former North Division foes. Homecoming will be Nov. 7 – the day of the regular season – against archrival Fayetteville State.
👉 View Winston-Salem State’s full 2026 football schedule
🔍 Schedule Spotlight: Johnson C. Smith 2026
The defending CIAA champion Golden Bulls, who posted a school-record 10 wins in 2025, aren’t slowing down heading into 2026. JCSU will face two of the SIAC’s top teams away from home to start the season, including an appearance in an HBCU showcase event over Labor Day weekend.
Some highlights of the Johnson C. Smith 2026 schedule:
Elite non-conference opening stretch
- Aug. 29: at Benedict (SIAC champion, Battle of the Border Classic)
- Sept. 6: vs. Albany State (SIAC champion, a Sunday game in the Black College Football Hall of Fame Classic in Canton, Ohio)
→ Two straight games against recent NCAA Division II playoff teams before CIAA play even begins
In-state rivalries hit early
- Sept. 12: at Winston-Salem State (CIAA opener, Bowman Gray Stadium)
- Sept. 19: vs. Fayetteville State (home opener)
→ Two of JCSU’s biggest North Carolina conference foes show up in mid-September
Balanced home slate
- Four home games, including Shaw, Fayetteville State and Homecoming vs. Lincoln (Pa.) on Oct. 17
No Virginia Union matchup
JCSU will not face Virginia Union in the regular season after meeting the Panthers twice in 2025, including a win in the CIAA championship game in Durham.
Season-ending tradition
- Nov. 7: vs. Livingstone in the Commemorative Classic, literally the oldest rivalry in all of HBCU football
👉 View Johnson C. Smith’s full 2026 football schedule
🧭 A Shift in CIAA Football Scheduling Philosophy
For several seasons, CIAA football operated with 12 teams split into two six-team divisions, a format that created a clear geographic split.
- The South Division was made up entirely of North Carolina programs: Shaw, St. Augustine’s, Fayetteville State, Winston-Salem State, Livingstone and Johnson C. Smith.
- The North Division included Elizabeth City State along with five out-of-state programs: Bowie State, Virginia State, Virginia Union, Lincoln (Pa.) and Bluefield State (Chowan prior to 2023)
That structure changed after St. Augustine’s discontinued football following the 2023 season, reducing the league to 11 teams. Beginning in 2024, the CIAA officially eliminated divisions, though scheduling in 2024 and 2025 largely mirrored the old format, with former “South” teams still playing one another and former “North” teams doing the same, along with several crossover games.
Early 2026 schedules, however, suggest a different approach.
For example, Shaw’s 2026 schedule does not include Winston-Salem State, a longtime North Carolina conference matchup, but does feature games against all five former North Division opponents from out of state. That departure from recent patterns will be interesting to watch as other CIAA schools release their schedules in the coming weeks.
Shaw University — 2026 Schedule Notes
Shaw’s 2026 football schedule is highlighted by an early-season home stretch and a conference slate that leans heavily toward teams from the former CIAA North Division.
- Season opener: Aug. 29 at Fayetteville State
- Early home stand: Three straight home games (Ferrum, Lincoln PA and Livingstone from Sept. 12-26
- Heavy road stretch: October trips to Bowie State, Johnson C. Smith, Virginia State and Virginia Union
- Homecoming finale: Oct. 31 vs Bluefield State at Durham County Memorial Stadium
- Notable absence: No scheduled matchup with Winston-Salem State in 2026. The Bears and Rams have played every year since 2010, minus the COVID year in 2020.
👉 View Shaw’s full 2026 football schedule
Other CIAA Matchups Confirmed
While not all CIAA schedules have been released yet, here are other matchups involving North Carolina schools that we have confirmed from other schools’ own schedule postings:
- Virginia State at Elizabeth City State – Sept. 19
- Bowie State at Elizabeth City State – Sept. 26
- Fayetteville State at Livingstone – Oct. 3
- Lincoln (PA) at Elizabeth City State (homecoming) – Oct. 10
- Livingstone at Virginia State – Oct. 10
🏆 CIAA Championship Game Date Is Set
The CIAA Football Championship Game will return to Durham County Memorial Stadium for the second straight season in 2026. The title game is scheduled for Saturday, Nov. 14, with kickoff time to be announced.
The Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls captured the 2025 conference title with a 45-21 victory over Virginia Union Panthers.
Visit North Carolina CIAA team schedule pages
- Elizabeth City State Vikings
- Fayetteville State Broncos
- Johnson C. Smith Golden Bulls
- Livingstone College Blue Bears
- Shaw Bears
- Winston-Salem State Rams
👉 Visit the CIAA’s official football web page
