The short version: Murray State locked in kickoff times and promotional themes for all six 2026 home football games, real planning information for anybody mapping out fall Saturdays in Murray. But there's a catch: the school's own schedule page and its own promotions release name two different Homecoming opponents for October 17. Here's the full home slate, and the discrepancy worth knowing before you book the weekend.
Murray State put out its home-game promotions and kickoff times, and it is genuinely useful. Six home dates, each with a start time and a theme, the kind of grid a family or a booster plans a fall around. The home opener is a Thursday night, August 27, against Eastern Illinois at 6 p.m. From today, that is 46 days out.
The full home slate
Date | Opponent | Kickoff | Promotion |
|---|---|---|---|
Thu. Aug. 27 | Eastern Illinois | 6 p.m. | Home Opener |
Sept. 12 | Valparaiso | 6 p.m. | Family Weekend, Salute to Service |
Sept. 26 | Southern Illinois | 6 p.m. | Conference opener; Faculty/Staff Appreciation |
Oct. 17 | Homecoming (see below) | 4 p.m. | Homecoming |
Nov. 7 | Youngstown State | 1 p.m. | Junior Racer Day, Youth Sports Day |
Nov. 21 | Northern Iowa | 1 p.m. | Senior Day, High School Band Day |
The catch on Homecoming
Here is the part worth flagging, because people are already booking that weekend. Murray State's own two pages do not agree on who the Homecoming opponent is on October 17. The schedule page lists it as South Dakota. The promotions release names South Dakota State. And South Dakota State also shows up separately as a road game the following week, on October 24.
So one of the school's own documents has it wrong, and we are not going to guess which. If you are planning around Homecoming, hold off on assuming the opponent until Murray State cleans up the mismatch. We have asked.
The season it sets up
Some honest context for the promotions season: Murray State went 1-11 last fall in Jody Wright's second year, and the lone win, at Indiana State to close the regular season, snapped a 20-game winless streak. So this is a program selling a fall of family weekends and youth days while trying to climb out of a deep hole on the field. Both things are true, and Racer fans know it. The home schedule is the invitation; the season is the test.
Quick questions
When is Murray State's home football opener? Thursday, August 27, against Eastern Illinois at 6 p.m.
When is Homecoming? October 17, with a 4 p.m. kickoff, though the school's own pages currently disagree on the opponent.
How many home games does Murray State have in 2026? Six.
