RIO GRANDE VALLEY – The University of Texas Rio Grande Valley (UTRGV) Department of Intercollegiate Athletics released the complete 2026 schedule for the men's soccer team on Thursday, which includes six regular season home matches.
 
"The non-conference schedule has a good balance of different playing styles with a high level of competition," head men's soccer coach Bryheem Hancock said. "With many similar styles to our conference opponents, the non-conference schedule will give us a little familiarity going into the first OVC season."
 
The Vaqueros will open their schedule with an exhibition match against Tec de Monterrey on Aug. 9 at the UTRGV Soccer and Track & Field Complex before heading to Laredo to take on Texas A&M International in another exhibition match on Aug. 15.
 
The regular season will begin on Aug. 20 as the Vaqueros head to Pensacola, Fla. To face the West Florida (UWF) Argonauts in their first season in the Atlantic Sun Conference. This match represents the first contest as an NCAA Div. I institution for UWF Athletics.
 
The Vaqueros home opener is scheduled for Aug. 23 against Stetson. The Hatters are making the return trip to the Valley after the squads battled to a 1-1 draw in Deland, Fla. last season. UTRGV is 1-0-1 all-time against Stetson.
 
UTRGV will wrap up non-conference play with a three-match road swing, the longest of the season. The Vaqueros will make their second trip to the Sunshine State as they visit South Florida on Sept. 6.
 
UTRGV will return to the central time zone as they visit Oral Roberts on Sept. 15 then head to Air Force for a match against a former conference foe on Sept. 18.
 
Then, the Vaqueros will begin their first conference slate as members of the Ohio Valley Conference (OVC). UTRGV joins Eastern Illinois (EIU), Houston Christian University (HCU), Lindenwood, SIUE, Southern Indiana (USI), Western Illinois (WIU), and UIW for the 2026 season.
 
UTRGV will face EIU, SIUE, USI, and WIU for the first time in program history this season.
 
"There are some familiar faces and some new faces as we go through our first season of OVC conference play," Hancock said. "The conference is strong and is home to some really competitive teams, top to bottom. We look forward to just getting started in our new league."
 
The Vaqueros will open OVC play with a home match against the reigning tournament and regular season champion, Lindenwood. Last season, UTRGV hosted (RV) Lindenwood in a game that ended 0-0 and is 1-0-1 all-time against the Lions.
 
UTRGV will host the other two Texas programs in the OVC the following weekend, starting with HCU on Oct. 1 and ending with UIW on Oct. 4. UTRGV holds an all-time record of 10-11-1 against HCU and 11-7-1 record against UIW.
 
Then, the Vaqueros will head out for their first conference road game, visiting Lindenwood on Oct. 8 before returning home for their match with EIU on Oct. 11.
 
UTRGV will then head back to the Midwest for road dates against USI and SIUE on Oct. 15 and Oct. 18, respectively.
 
The Vaqueros will return for their home finale against WIU on Oct. 24.
 
The final weekend of the regular season will see UTRGV travel to the two Texas schools, facing UIW on Oct. 29 and HCU on Nov. 1.
 
The OVC conference tournament will be held from Nov. 8-14 at Lindenwood's Hunter Stadium in St. Charles, Mo. The top six teams from the regular season will qualify for the conference tournament with the top two seed receiving a bye into the semifinals.
 
The champion of the OVC tournament will receive an automatic bid into the NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament which will start on Nov. 19.

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