There has been a ton of Michigan State football scheduling news this week, primarily for upcoming seasons as new non-conference opponents have been revealed (Cincinnati, Oklahoma State), but the Spartans also updated the 2026 schedule with two new dates for games.
Michigan State announced that the first Friday night game of the season will be none other than the home opener against Toledo. This comes as no surprise seeing as Michigan State has been opening the season on the Friday before Labor Day for years. The tradition continues this season with a battle against MAC foe Toledo.
There was another Friday game announced by Michigan State, however.
According to the official X account, Michigan State will open the home season on Friday and then end the home season on the same day of the week against Oregon.
The home schedule is officially bookended with Friday night games. The news has come with mixed reviews with some fans just wanting a normal 2026 schedule with no Friday Big Ten games and no Ford Field meetups, but a Friday night game under the lights against one of the best teams in the Big Ten at Spartan Stadium to end the year is going to be electric, in my opinion.
I don’t love the Friday games either, but it’s a good way to get more eyeballs on the program as one of the only Power Four games on Friday that weekend.
As of right now, the rest of the schedule is set to be played on Saturday.
Michigan State could have Oregon on upset alert
If this late-November game against Oregon was a Saturday afternoon contest, I would have guaranateed a win for the Ducks in East Lansing.
Things have changed.
Michigan State will be hosting Oregon under the lights and this could very well be a bowl berth opportunity for the Spartans. A potential five-win Michigan State team fighting to make its first bowl in five years under a brand-new coaching staff under the lights could conjure up some upset vibes. I know Oregon would probably rather have a Saturday afternoon game, but now the Ducks will be forced to head to East Lansing for a potential hostile Friday night showdown.
This game is going to have some “Pac-12 After Dark” vibes to it.
Oregon is going to be one of the best teams in the country once again under Dan Lanning with Dante Moore back and Dylan Raiola as his backup (crazy, I know) while Michigan State will be in year one of a rebuild — or rebirth as Pat Fitzgerald put it. On paper, this game shouldn’t be close. The Friday night under-the-lights vibe changes things.
Purdue and Iowa have been spoilers at home under the lights as massive underdogs over the years, and it’s time Michigan State joins that mix with a huge upset this year.
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