A Kansas lineman works against an upright pad prior to kickoff against Missouri on Friday, Sept. 11, 2026 at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium.

The Kansas football team now knows exactly when it will begin its challenging stretch of nine straight games without a bye week to conclude the season.

After their upcoming open date, the Jayhawks will host Middle Tennessee at David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium at 11 a.m. on Oct. 3. The game will be televised on ESPNU, the Big 12 Conference announced on Monday.

The nonconference game, part of KU’s family weekend, will be the third of six total on-campus home games, with KU set to welcome Baylor, UCF and BYU later in the year.

The Jayhawks will look to respond after Saturday’s 24-17 loss to Arizona State, which dropped KU to 1-2 on the season entering its open date. It will be the first matchup between KU and MTSU and the last nonleague game of the year for the Jayhawks.

The Blue Raiders are 2-1 with wins over FCS Murray State and Nevada and a two-point loss to Marshall. They will enter a road game against Jacksonville State on Saturday at 6 p.m. with a chance to match their win total from the entirety of last season, when they went 3-9.

Quarterback Roman Gagliano has thrown for 616 yards this season with six scores and one interception, including three touchdowns to veteran wideout Cam’ron Lacy. Kansas State transfer Antonio Martin Jr. has already turned in a pair of 100-yard rushing performances.

KU wideout Nahzae Cox will meet his former team. He has four catches for 125 yards and a touchdown for the Jayhawks this year.