Hoosiers will play three neutral, and one home game including opponents from the other three P4 conferences in extended exhibition match-ups
By Carl James @jovian34 August 23rd, 2026
Due to relaxed NCAA rules, Indiana has announced four games against outside opponents for fall of 2026. The slate includes two games in Northern Indiana played at minor league stadiums and a surprising home game against the University of Kentucky. The slate will open on September 27th against a West Virginia team coming off a College World Series run in Mason, OH.
“I wanted a challenging fall schedule that mirrored our spring schedule,” is what head coach Jeff Mercer told iubase.com was the driver of this slate of games. Sources within the program have indicated the games will run extended innings as the main point is to get multiple players action with extended reps.
Sunday, September 27th: vs. West Virginia in Mason, OH
The Hoosiers and Mountaineers will meet half-way to open the fall slate. West Virgina has become a force in the Big XII Conference, winning a Super Regional in June. The two teams last faced off in the opener of the 2023 Lexington Regional, a game won by the Hoosiers. No start time has been announced
Sunday, October 4th 2:05pm: vs. Huntington (NAIA) in Fort Wayne, IN
The only non D1 (or even P4) opponent in this slate is against the Huntington Foresters at Parkview Field in downtown Fort Wayne. Coach Mercer highlighted this event. “The Fort Wayne event… ….really cool to go into the community and we have several players from there, several players we are recruiting from there, and its a great park. So we thought that would be a really fun experience. Junior lefty starting pitcher Brayton Thomas and sophomore second baseman Landen Fry both hail from the area.
This will be a big opportunity to see the future of the Hoosier program on display. Coach Mercer said, “we’ll play some of our starters there and probably get a lot of our young guys in that game especially.”
First pitch will be at 2:05pm and general admission tickets will cost $12. There are some luxury suites available. Inquires should go to the Parkview Field Ticket Office (260) 482-6400 or email tickets@tincaps.com.
Friday, October 9th: vs. Notre Dame at Four Winds Field in South Bend, IN
For the second time the Hoosiers will get to play on a minor league field, this time the home of the South Bend Cubs, facing neighboring ACC foe Notre Dame. The Hoosiers and Fighting Irish last battled in a February tournament in Florida where Notre Dame came back on Indiana to win in 11 innings.
Friday, October 16th: vs. Kentucky at the Bart
The most surprising opponent on the slate is rival Kentucky returning to the Bart for the first time in over 4 years. The Wildcats used to make it to Bloomington for a Spring midweek every other year, but that home and home arrangement ended in 2023, discussed in a very contentious Lexington Regional where the Wildcats had to beat Indiana twice to climb out of the loser’s bracket to advance to a Super. It will be the programs first meetings since that regional, with both Mercer and Nick Mingione still at the helm of their respective programs.