VERMILLION, S.D. — South Dakota's kickoff times for the six-home regular season football games have been announced by the athletic department on Thursday afternoon, May 28, with five games set to kickoff at 1 p.m. from the DakotaDome this season.
 
The season will commence with a 1 p.m. kickoff against Central Connecticut State on August 29 for the first-ever meeting between the two teams. Meanwhile, in USD's Division I FCS era, South Dakota is 3-3 in August games.
 
The Missouri Valley Football Conference (MVFC) home opener is slated for October 3 against Indiana State on what is also 2026 Dakota Days on the campus of the University of South Dakota. Kickoff is slated for 2 p.m. with South Dakota looking to remain perfect against the Sycamores on Dakota Days (2-0 entering 2026) and continuing the nine-game Dakota Days win streak for the program.
 
The rest of the Valley games the rest of the season – Oct. 10, Oct. 24, Nov. 14 – are all slated for a 1 p.m. kickoff from the DakotaDome.
 
2026 HOME GAME SCHEDULE
(Aug. 29) vs. Central Connecticut State – 1 p.m.
(Sept. 12) vs. Eastern Washington – 1 p.m.
(Oct. 3) vs. Indiana State – 2 p.m.*
(Oct. 10) vs. Southern Illinois – 1 p.m.
(Oct. 24) vs. North Dakota – 1 p.m.
(Nov. 14) vs. Northern Iowa – 1 p.m.
*Dakota Days
 
As announced yesterday by the Pac-12 and Boise State Athletics, the September 19 game at Boise State will be a 9 p.m. (CT) kick from the blue turf on CBS Sports Network.
 
ESPN also announced that the South Dakota-South Dakota State Interstate Series game on October 31 will be picked up by the network for linear distribution. Game time and official channel will be announced at a later date.
 
2026 SEASON TICKETS
Season tickets for the 2026 season are available now! Visit GoYotes.com/Tickets to secure your seats in the DakotaDome to support the Yotes!