They’ve been hashed out, they’ve been voted on, and now, high school football schedules for the 2026 season — for 11-man, at least — have been approved.

Although the games are still five months away, the release of the schedule has never failed to get people talking. Here are five takeaways from the 11-man release, with the eight-man schedule expected later this week.

State game rematches and other big-time battles

Two state championship game rematches from 2025 are on the schedule this fall. Those will take place in Week 2, when Greely hosts Leavitt in a rematch of the Class C title game, and in Week 5, Thornton hosts Portland in a redux of the past three Class A games.

Thornton plays another intriguing matchup in Week 4 when it travels to face Westbrook, which claimed the Class B championship last season. The Trojans’ daunting schedule also includes a Week 8 home game against fellow A South power Bonny Eagle.

Other marquee games include Falmouth at Kennebunk in Week 1, Noble at Bonny Eagle in Week 2, Cony at Lawrence in Week 5 and Kennebunk against Marshwood in Week 8.

Three A North teams get midseason byes

The latest shuffling has left an odd number of teams (55) in 11-man football. Even with multiple Maine teams playing New Hampshire foes again this year, that odd number has created a scheduling conundrum that’s left three teams — Oxford Hills, Bangor and Lewiston — with regular-season byes.

Oxford Hills will have a bye in Week 4, followed by Bangor in Week 5 and Lewiston in Week 6. Lewiston athletic director Jason Fuller said those teams, which will play eight regular-season games instead of nine, were among others in Class A that offered to be idle for a week to help manage the numbers incongruity.

“It just makes sense that, if you have nine games, someone in Class A takes a bye because we have an extra game,” Fuller said. “The scheduling committee didn’t feel comfortable with Class B and D taking a bye with only an eight-game schedule, and when we initially did the schedule, Class C also had eight games.”

Five Maine-New Hampshire games on tap

Speaking of Maine-New Hampshire battles, Maine got the best of New Hampshire last fall, winning four of the six regular-season games between the two. This year features five more battles between Maine and New Hampshire teams, all in the Pine Tree State.

No Maine-New Hampshire conversation starts without the ongoing series between Thornton Academy and Bedford. The two teams are the juggernauts of their respective states and will meet again when the Trojans host the Bulldogs — who are 4-0 in the matchup — in Week 3.

Elsewhere, Noble hosts the first Maine-New Hampshire showdown in Week 1 as Dover makes the short trip to North Berwick. Edward Little vs. Salem (Week 2), Bonny Eagle vs. Exeter (Week 7) and South Portland vs. Winnacunnet (Week 8) round out the matchups.

Rivalry games load the schedule again

Although each game is worth the same in the win column, some mean more than others. Rivalry games put trophies and bragging rights on the line, and there are a host of them in 2026.

After Portland and Deering played a rare regular-season game against one another last year, the Bulldogs and Rams will meet again this year when they face off in Week 8 at Fitzpatrick Stadium. Portland has another rivalry battle the following week when it concludes the regular season at South Portland.

Although Cony (Class B) and Gardiner (C) are in different classes, the Tigers and Rams will meet in the regular season once again. Cony, which has won 12 of the past 13 games in the series, will travel to Gardiner for the 148th installment of the rivalry in Week 7.

Other rivalry games include Lawrence at Skowhegan in Week 3, Noble at Marshwood in Week 4, Greely at Falmouth in Week 8 and Lewiston at Edward Little in Week 9.

Big-time showdowns abound in Class D

Although it’s early to project, one of the most loaded regions in the state could be Class D South. Winthrop is fresh off an undefeated season and state title, while Dirigo, Freeport and region runner-up Morse should all return significant production from a year ago.

Week 2 will provide an early look at how those teams stack up with Dirigo hosting Morse and Winthrop traveling to Freeport. Freeport will then host the Shipbuilders in Week 5 before Dirigo hits the road to battle Winthrop in Week 6 and hosts the Falcons in Week 7.

In crossover action, Freeport plays at reigning D North champ Winslow in Week 4, while Week 5 features Dirigo hosting Class C Leavitt and Winthrop playing at ex-South foe Oak Hill, now in D North. The Ramblers then play at D North John Bapst, which went 9-1 last season, in Week 8.

2026 11-Man Football Schedules by Maine Trust For Local News