Northwestern Wildcats Playoffs 2026: Seed, Record & Path

Updated Nov 8, 8:45 AM EST

Northwestern Wildcats 2026 playoff page. The Wildcats are 2-2, 66th in the with a +9 point differential and a 2-game losing streak.

Last time out they lost to the Iowa Hawkeyes 10-24 at home. Next up: away at the Ohio State Buckeyes (1-2) on Saturday, November 14, 2026 at 12:00 PM EST. Their remaining opponents have a combined 0.500 record, including 0 games against teams currently in playoff position.

2026 College Football playoffs · · 66th in division

Season in progress

2-2Record– seed1-1Home1-1Away2-2Division+9Point diffL2Streak8Games left

Wildcats Playoff Outlook

Last game

L 10-24 vs Iowa Hawkeyes
Sat, Nov 7 · Week 1

Next game

at Ohio State Buckeyes (1-2)
Sat, Nov 14 · 12:00 PM EST · Week 1

Remaining schedule

3 games left · opponents’ record 0.500 · 0 vs current playoff teams

Standings

#	Team	W-L	Div	Diff	Strk
1	Louisiana Tech Bulldogs	4-0	4-0	+89	W4
2	Liberty Flames	3-0	3-0	+83	W3
3	Wake Forest Demon Deacons	2-0	2-0	+78	W2
4	UCLA Bruins	4-0	4-0	+69	W4
5	Louisville Cardinals	3-0	3-0	+63	W3
6	Jacksonville State Gamecocks	3-0	3-0	+60	W3
7	Utah Utes	5-0	5-0	+60	W5
8	Boise State Broncos	4-0	4-0	+55	W4
9	Ohio Bobcats	3-0	3-0	+53	W3
10	New Mexico Lobos	4-0	4-0	+49	W4
11	North Texas Mean Green	3-0	3-0	+46	W3
12	Wyoming Cowboys	3-0	3-0	+38	W3
13	Toledo Rockets	3-0	3-0	+30	W3
14	South Carolina Gamecocks	3-0	3-0	+28	W3
15	Illinois Fighting Illini	3-0	3-0	+25	W3
16	Buffalo Bulls	3-0	3-0	+17	W3
17	Wheaton Thunder	1-0	1-0	+3	W1
18	Duke Blue Devils	3-1	3-1	+82	W3
19	Southern Methodist Mustangs	3-1	3-1	+69	W1
20	Texas State Bobcats	3-1	3-1	+62	W1
21	Georgia Southern Eagles	3-1	3-1	+57	W3
22	Georgia Bulldogs	3-1	3-1	+54	W2
23	Texas Longhorns	3-1	3-1	+46	W3
24	Miami Hurricanes	3-1	3-1	+33	L1
25	Texas Tech Red Raiders	3-1	3-1	+28	W2
26	Oregon Ducks	3-1	3-1	+13	W2
27	Air Force Falcons	3-1	3-1	+8	W2
28	Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders	3-1	3-1	-7	W1
29	Tulsa Golden Hurricane	2-1	2-1	+68	W1
30	South Florida Bulls	2-1	2-1	+44	L1
31	Tennessee Volunteers	2-1	2-1	+41	W1
32	Iowa Hawkeyes	2-1	2-1	+41	W2
33	LSU Tigers	2-1	2-1	+34	L1
34	North Dakota State Bison	2-1	2-1	+33	W1
35	Arizona Wildcats	2-1	2-1	+29	W1
36	Louisiana Ragin Cajuns	2-1	2-1	+25	W1
37	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	2-1	2-1	+25	W2
38	Utah State Aggies	2-1	2-1	+21	W2
39	Memphis Tigers	2-1	2-1	+20	W2
40	Miami (Oh) Red Hawks	2-1	2-1	+18	L1
41	Ball State Cardinals	2-1	2-1	+17	L1
42	Washington Huskies	2-1	2-1	+16	L1
43	Arkansas State Red Wolves	2-1	2-1	+14	L1
44	Clemson Tigers	2-1	2-1	+13	W2
45	Western Michigan Broncos	2-1	2-1	+13	W1
46	Indiana Hoosiers	2-1	2-1	+10	W2
47	UAB Blazers	2-1	2-1	+4	W1
48	USC Trojans	2-1	2-1	+3	W1
49	Houston Cougars	2-1	2-1	+2	W1
50	West Virginia Mountaineers	2-1	2-1	+2	L1
51	San Diego State Aztecs	2-1	2-1	+2	W1
52	Kentucky Wildcats	2-1	2-1	-3	L1
53	UTSA Roadrunners	2-1	2-1	-4	L1
54	Virginia Tech Hokies	2-1	2-1	-9	L1
55	Marshall Thundering Herd	2-1	2-1	-16	L1
56	UCF Knights	2-1	2-1	-23	W1
57	James Madison Dukes	3-2	3-2	+55	W1
58	Arizona State Sun Devils	3-2	3-2	+4	W1
59	Oklahoma State Cowboys	2-2	2-2	+66	W1
60	Delaware Blue Hens	2-2	2-2	+32	L1
61	North Carolina Tar Heels	2-2	2-2	+17	W1
62	TCU Horned Frogs	2-2	2-2	+12	L1
63	Baylor Bears	2-2	2-2	+31	W2
64	Ole Miss Rebels	2-2	2-2	+16	L1
65	Alabama Crimson Tide	2-2	2-2	+10	W2
66	Northwestern Wildcats	2-2	2-2	+9	L2
67	Hawaii Rainbow Warriors	2-2	2-2	+9	W2
68	Penn State Nittany Lions	2-2	2-2	+6	W2
69	Army Knights	2-2	2-2	+5	L2
70	San Jose State Spartans	2-2	2-2	+4	W1
71	Oklahoma Sooners	2-2	2-2	-1	W1
72	Missouri State Bears	2-2	2-2	-2	L1
73	Wisconsin Badgers	2-2	2-2	-2	W1
74	Brigham Young Cougars	2-2	2-2	-5	L1
75	Michigan Wolverines	2-2	2-2	-6	L1
76	Florida Atlantic Owls	2-2	2-2	-6	W1
77	East Carolina Pirates	2-2	2-2	-9	W2
78	Syracuse Orange	2-2	2-2	-9	L1
79	Kennesaw State Owls	2-2	2-2	-13	W2
80	Southern Mississippi Golden Eagles	2-2	2-2	-23	L1
81	Boston College Eagles	2-2	2-2	-24	L2
82	Stanford Cardinal	1-1	1-1	-25	L1
83	Appalachian State Mountaineers	2-2	2-2	-26	L2
84	Louisiana-Monroe Warhawks	2-2	2-2	-29	W1
85	Auburn Tigers	2-2	2-2	-45	W1
86	Tulane Green Wave	2-2	2-2	-52	L1
87	Central Michigan Chippewas	1-2	1-2	+20	W1
88	Western Kentucky Hilltoppers	1-2	1-2	-4	L2
89	Maryland Terrapins	1-2	1-2	-5	W1
90	Coastal Carolina Chanticleers	1-2	1-2	-5	L1
91	Connecticut Huskies	1-2	1-2	-7	L2
92	UNLV Rebels	1-2	1-2	-9	L1
93	Charlotte 49ers	1-2	1-2	-11	L2
94	Michigan State Spartans	1-2	1-2	-12	W1
95	Pittsburgh Panthers	1-2	1-2	-12	W1
96	Florida State Seminoles	1-2	1-2	-13	W1
97	Missouri Tigers	1-2	1-2	-18	L1
98	Arkansas Razorbacks	1-2	1-2	-17	L2
99	Oregon State Beavers	1-2	1-2	-19	L2
100	North Carolina State Wolfpack	1-2	1-2	-20	L1
101	Ohio State Buckeyes	1-2	1-2	-21	L2
102	Vanderbilt Commodores	1-2	1-2	-25	W1
103	Massachusetts Minutemen	1-2	1-2	-25	W1
104	Florida Gators	1-2	1-2	-32	L2
105	Kent State Golden Flashes	1-2	1-2	-33	L1
106	New Mexico State Aggies	1-2	1-2	-34	L2
107	Iowa State Cyclones	1-2	1-2	-45	L1
108	Fresno State Bulldogs	1-3	1-3	-1	L1
109	Purdue Boilermakers	1-3	1-3	-3	L3
110	Cincinnati Bearcats	1-3	1-3	-21	L2
111	Georgia State Panthers	1-3	1-3	-28	W1
112	Navy Midshipmen	1-3	1-3	-29	W1
113	Old Dominion Monarchs	1-3	1-3	-34	W1
114	Sacramento State Hornets	1-3	1-3	-40	L1
115	Kansas State Wildcats	1-3	1-3	-41	L3
116	Florida Intl Golden Panthers	1-3	1-3	-42	W1
117	Colorado Buffaloes	1-3	1-3	-43	L1
118	Minnesota Golden Gophers	1-3	1-3	-46	L2
119	Rutgers Scarlet Knights	1-3	1-3	-49	L3
120	Nevada Wolf Pack	1-3	1-3	-54	L2
121	Troy Trojans	1-3	1-3	-55	L1
122	Colorado State Rams	1-3	1-3	-75	L2
123	Kansas Jayhawks	1-4	1-4	-34	L2
124	UW Stout Blue Devils	0-1	0-1	-3	L1
125	Texas A&M Aggies	0-2	0-2	-19	L2
126	Nebraska Cornhuskers	0-3	0-3	-21	L3
127	Bowling Green Falcons	0-3	0-3	-21	L3
128	Temple Owls	0-3	0-3	-22	L3
129	South Alabama Jaguars	0-3	0-3	-24	L3
130	UTEP Miners	0-3	0-3	-40	L3
131	Akron Zips	0-3	0-3	-43	L3
132	Washington State Cougars	0-3	0-3	-45	L3
133	Rice Owls	0-3	0-3	-52	L3
134	Eastern Michigan Eagles	0-3	0-3	-52	L3
135	Virginia Cavaliers	0-3	0-3	-57	L3
136	Mississippi State Bulldogs	0-4	0-4	-69	L4
137	Northern Illinois Huskies	0-4	0-4	-71	L4
138	Sam Houston State Bearkats	0-4	0-4	-73	L4
139	Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets	0-4	0-4	-82	L4
140	California Golden Bears	0-3	0-3	-94	L3

Season Trend

Wildcats: games over .500 through the season

Points per game vs average

Wildcats Playoff Push: 2026 Schedule and Results

Wk	Date	Opponent	Opp. record	Result
1	Oct 17	at Spartans	1-2	W 24-21
1	Oct 24	vs Scarlet Knights	1-3	W 42-14
1	Oct 31	at Ducks	3-1	L 26-34
1	Nov 7	vs Hawkeyes	2-1	L 10-24
1	Nov 14	at Buckeyes	1-2	12:00 PM
1	Nov 21	at Golden Gophers	1-3	1:00 PM
1	Nov 28	vs Fighting Illini	3-0	1:00 PM

This Northwestern Wildcats playoffs page refreshes after every Wildcats game: record, seed, magic number and remaining schedule. Compare them with the rest of the playoff picture, or see their projected route on the bracket.

Northwestern Wildcats playoffs FAQ

Are the Northwestern Wildcats in the 2026 playoffs?

No, they have been eliminated from the 2026 playoffs.

What seed would the Wildcats be?

They are outside the six playoff spots in the today.

Who leads the ?

Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (4-0); the Wildcats are 66th.

When is the next Wildcats game?

Saturday, November 14, 2026 at 12:00 PM EST, away at the Ohio State Buckeyes.

How hard is the Wildcats remaining schedule?

3 games left against opponents with a combined 0.500 record; 0 against teams currently in playoff position.

How can the Wildcats clinch a playoff spot?

Win the , or finish with one of the five best records among non-division-winners. A magic number appears here once a berth is within reach.

What is the Wildcats record at home and on the road?

1-1 at home, 1-1 away; 2-2 in the division and 2-2 in the half.