We packed orders for seven straight days through August — every SEC team, every Big Ten blue-blood, the usual independents. By the time you read this, Week 0 is in the books and the main event is four days out: Labor Day weekend, Sep 4-7, 2026, when every Power-4 conference opens against somebody it has actually circled on the calendar. This is our 2026-27 season preview — written from the warehouse, between label printers, for the people who have to wear the jerseys.

The Fanatics Sportsbook opening line from July 2026 has Ohio State at +600 to win the national title, with Notre Dame +700, Texas +775, Oregon +800, Georgia and Indiana tied at +900, and Miami +1100. Three of the four favorites bring their starting quarterback back: Arch Manning at Texas (Heisman favorite at +850), Julian Sayin at Ohio State, and CJ Carr at Notre Dame. That is the new QB trinity, and we expect all three names to do serious retail damage between now and December.

Storyline 1 — The Pac-12 Returns From the Dead

Two seasons ago the Pac-12 was a punchline on every sports podcast in the country. Today it is back, and we are stocking every member's Fan Edition for the first time in three years. Eight schools will play a 2026 football schedule: Oregon State and Washington State — the two holdouts who kept the legal name and the TV money alive through the dark years — joined by Boise State, San Diego State, Texas State, Fresno State, Utah State, and Colorado State. Gonzaga signed on for basketball only and does not count toward the football standings.

The early Pac-12 title odds are wild: Boise State +150 to win the league in year one (the Broncos enter as the betting favorite because of their Group of Five pedigree), Oregon State +3000 as the sentimental pick, and the rest of the field crammed in between. The revival is fragile, the schedule is uneven, and the TV contract is not yet the equal of what the old conference had. But the schools exist, the games will be played, and for the first time in three Augusts we are packing a row of orange-and-black that actually means something again.

Storyline 2 — Indiana's Repeat Attempt

The Hoosiers won the 2025-26 national title 27-21 over Miami, finishing Curt Cignetti's tenure at 26-2. Then the offseason ate the depth chart. Fernando Mendoza — the Heisman winner and the projected No. 1 pick in the 2026 NFL Draft — is gone. So are most of the secondary and the entire starting defensive line. The new quarterback is Josh Hoover, the TCU transfer who left Fort Worth already north of 9,000 career passing yards. He opens at +1600 to win the Heisman.

The question we keep asking in the warehouse is the same one: do you trust the system, or do you trust the man? Cignetti has earned the benefit of the doubt. He has also never had to replace a Heisman winner before. Our deeper read on what Indiana actually has to do this fall is in the Indiana repeat-attempt piece we published on September 1.

Storyline 3 — Lane Kiffin Jumps Ship

This is the actual chaos moment of the offseason. Lane Kiffin accepted the LSU job while his Ole Miss team was still in the College Football Playoff. He left Oxford mid-flight, dragged most of his offensive staff with him, and then ran a high-school-speed recruiting blitz through Louisiana. The Tigers' new QB1 is Sam Leavitt, transferring in from Arizona State. The new WR1 is Jayce Brown, a Kansas State transfer.

Kiffin's first game in purple and gold is September 5, hosting Clemson in Baton Rouge — that is a top-15 Week 1 matchup at home. Then on September 19 he walks back into Vaught-Hemingway Stadium as the visiting coach. We expect that to be the loudest, meanest, and most personal regular-season game of the entire calendar.

Storyline 4 — The Arch Manning Verdict

Arch Manning's first year as the Texas starter was, generously, lackluster. The arm is real. The deep ball still has that absurd zip that made him the No. 1 recruit in the country. But the reads lag, the consistency is not there, and the highlight tape still leans too heavily on third-and-shorts that were designed to be hand-offs. Steve Sarkisian is still the play-caller, so the offensive ceiling is unchanged. Colin Simmons returns at defensive end to anchor a defense that should finish top-10 nationally. Texas is still a real title contender at +775, but the verdict on Arch is coming due: if he does not deliver in 2026, the next name at quarterback is already in the building, and Sarkisian has never been afraid to flip the room.

Storyline 5 — Ohio State Reloads

Ohio State is not rebuilding. They are reloading. Jeremiah Smith — the No. 1 player on USA Today's Top 100 — is back at receiver. Julian Sayin is back at quarterback. Eleven new starters will take the field in Week 1, and every one of them was a five-star recruit. The defense allowed fewer than 16 points a game last season, the front seven is mostly intact, and the back end just added two more top-50 corners through the portal. At +600, they are the chalk — bet them, fade them, argue about them — but they will be in the playoff bracket on Selection Sunday.

Where to Get the Jerseys

Shop the 2026-27 Season

Ohio State Buckeyes · Camo

Storyline 5 — the reload

Football

Indiana Hoosiers · Replica Crimson

Storyline 2 — the repeat bid

Football

Texas Longhorns · Pick-A-Player

Storyline 4 — Arch Manning

Football

Notre Dame · Irish Wear Green

The independent

Football

Oregon Ducks · Pick-A-Player

Storyline 1 — Pac-12 returns

Football

Indiana · National Champions Commemorative

The title jersey

Commemorative

Every team mentioned in this article is in our warehouse, in Fan Edition and Replica cuts, men's and youth sizing. Browse the full NCAA collection for the conference-wide range, or jump straight to the team pages:

If you are picking up a new conference this year — Boise State, San Diego State, Fresno State — every Pac-12 revival school is live in the NCAA catalog. Before you click "add to cart," run through our NCAA jersey sizing guide so the first wear is not the first return.

Questions Everyone Is Asking