Bad news for JMU Football, which is losing a marquee game from its 2026 schedule, with the news on Wednesday that the Sept. 26 game at Virginia Tech has now been canceled.
A press release from Tech Athletics attributed the cancellation to the decision of the ACC to move to a nine-game conference schedule beginning in 2026, “which reduced available nonconference scheduling opportunities for league members.”
Per reporting from David Teel at The Virginian-Pilot, “Tech owes JMU $800,000 in liquidated damages, which corresponds to the guarantee the Dukes were to receive from the game.”
“We appreciate the timely, transparent communication from Whit Babcock and Virginia Tech regarding our game in 2026 following the ACC’s move to a nine-game conference schedule, and we remain hopeful that we’re able to schedule a future game between our two programs down the road,” JMU Athletics Director Matt Roan said, per JMUSports.com.
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Madison wasted no time in finding a new dance partner, announcing Wednesday that it added a date with San Diego State.
JMU will travel out to the Left Coast on Sept. 19.
San Diego State is no pushover – the Aztecs finished with a 9-4 record in 2025, with a 34-0 win over Cal, a 17-7 win over Boise State and a 49-47 New Mexico Bowl loss to Top 25 North Texas among its results from the past season.
“We’re especially appreciative to JD Wicker and his San Diego State staff for stepping forward and being willing to play us. We’re excited to take the Dukes to Southern California to face a new team in what will be one of the best Group of 6 matchups next fall,” Roan said.
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Not bad for having to pivot, but still, it ain’t Tech, in Lane Stadium, in Year 1 of James Franklin.
Notable: Tech kept its game with VMI on Sept. 5, in addition to hosting ODU on Sept. 12, and a road game at Maryland on Sept. 19.
ODU, yes, won at Virginia Tech in 2025, and the 45-26 drubbing was the final straw for Brent Pry, who was fired after that L dropped his Hokies to an 0-3 start.
Pry wasn’t gone for long: the guy who replaced him, James Franklin, hired Pry to be his defensive coordinator, reuniting the two from their days at Penn State and Vanderbilt.
That having been noted about ODU, JMU was the one of those four on the nonconference schedule that would have gotten your attention.
Not casting aspersions on the decision to keep VMI on the schedule here, either. Everybody is keeping that level of guarantee game.
But, Maryland?
Prioritizing that one over JMU is prioritizing the dub.