Every offseason we get predicted order of finishes from conferences that project potential champions, but there’s always a team or two that surprises and makes a run at their conference title. Here’s a look at a dark horse conference title contender for every FBS conference.

ACC — Virginia

Virginia finished last season with an 11-3 record after going on a seven-game win streak in the middle of the season. Yet, the Cavaliers were only sixth in the preseason ACC voting without any first place votes.

UVA is in a great position to rise up the ACC standings this fall after adding two transfer quarterbacks with FBS experience in Beau Pribula and Eli Holstein. Pribula, a Missouri transfer, won the starting job entering camp — a sign of an early command of the offense. More reps as the starter should allow Pribula and Virginia to hit the ground running with a favorable schedule.

The Cavaliers no longer have to play in Brazil as NC State instead visits Charlottesville in the season opener. UVA also avoids playing Miami, Louisville, Clemson and Georgia Tech this fall. There is a road trip to SMU that won’t be easy, but otherwise the schedule lines up for a run at the ACC title.

American — East Carolina

The American sent a team to the College Football Playoff last year, so the winner of this conference could be in a great position to do so again. The dark horse team here is East Carolina under head coach Blake Harrell.

Harrell is 14-5 since taking over as head coach, including a 6-1 run to close last season. While Harrell will have a lot of pieces to replace in 2026, he did grab the offensive coordinator from the conference’s top scoring and total offense last year, Jordan Davis from North Texas. Davis, Harrell and impact transfers like quarterbacks Mitch Griffis and Emory Williams should keep the Pirates near the top of the American.

ECU does open with Alabama, so things could look shaky after the first game. However, a deeper look into the schedule shows that in conference play, only the Memphis and South Florida games — both teams feature first-year head coaches — look intimidating. East Carolina could be a team we’re talking about in playoff conversations come November.

Big 12 — Oklahoma State

Oklahoma State’s contention as a Big 12 dark horse relies solely on the shoulder of star quarterback Drew Mestemaker. Mestemaker was the FBS leader in passing yards last season at North Texas and followed his head coach Eric Morris to the Cowboys in the offseason.

Mestemaker is extremely talented beyond just last season’s accomplishments. Bleacher Report has him as a first round pick in 2027, and plenty of draft analysts have him as a top-five quarterback in a loaded draft class. He’s talented enough to be a Heisman trophy contender.

If Mestemaker lives up to the hype, Oklahoma State could go from winless in the Big 12 last year to the top of the conference.

Big Ten — Maryland

Maryland? As a Big Ten title contender? Yes, you read that right. The Maryland Terrapins could contend for a conference title this year in the darkest of dark horse fashion.

It starts at quarterback, where Malik Washington looks to take the next step after a freshman season where he started September on fire before cooling down in Big Ten play. Washington building off of a season finale where he threw for 459 yards and three touchdowns against Michigan State will be the first step to Maryland’s emergence as a dark horse this fall.

On defense, the Terrapins have a pass rush that can contend with the conference’s best, led by 2025 Freshman All-American Sidney Stewart, plus fellow standout sophomores Zahir Mathis and Nahsir Taylor. The trio combined for 15 sacks in their rookie seasons. They’ll be joined by the No. 10 high school recruit in all of college football, five-star edge rusher Zion Elee. This is a pass rush that could carry this defense.

Then comes the schedule. The Terrapins play just one of the eight Big Ten teams ranked in the preseason AP Poll through mid-November. The nonconference slate is manageable as well, and there’s a realistic shot that Maryland is 5-0 and ranked entering an Oct. 10 contest with preseason No. 1 Ohio State. Illinois on Halloween could be a tough, but winnable contest at home, meaning Maryland could surprise and be 9-1 by mid-November.

The close to the season won’t be easy with a trip to Southern California and a visit from Penn State in the final two games. However, by that point who knows what could happen with this youthful Maryland squad full of potential.

Conference USA — Delaware

Delaware made the move to the FBS last year and was ineligible to compete for the CUSA Championship Game. The Blue Hens still finished with a winning record and won a bowl game in their inaugural FBS year.

In 2026, Delaware could contend for a true conference title. Head coach Ryan Carty returns quarterback Nick Minicucci after he threw for more than 3,600 yards, plus the defense should improve with another year of FBS experience. 

Meanwhile, some of the other teams that finished above Delaware last season could take a step back. Conference champion Kennesaw State lost plenty of starters like quarterback Amari Odom, FIU lost most of its offense and Louisiana Tech is now in the Sun Belt. 

It could all come down to a season-ending contest at home against Jacksonville State, but that game is at home so the Blue Hens can’t be counted out against a preseason conference favorite.

MAC — Bowling Green

If defense wins championships, it’ll be why Bowling Green is contending for a MAC title come November. The Falcons have All-MAC-worthy players at every level of their defense with cornerback JoJo Johnson, safety Kal-El Pascal, linebacker Dorian Pringle and defensive lineman Eriq George to name a few. Eriq is the son of head coach Eddie George, who finally has a full offseason as head coach after being a late hire in the spring of 2025.

The defense should keep Bowling Green in every game after not allowing more than 28 points after October. If an offense that features Oregon transfer Austin Novosad — a former four-star recruit — can hold its own, the Falcons could surprise in the MAC.

Mountain West — North Dakota State

North Dakota State was the top dynasty in the FCS and it now joins the FBS for its first year in 2026. This is a program that FBS teams were scared to schedule for years during its FCS reign at the top. The Bison should be able to compete from day one in the Mountain West.

The Bison faithful have been high on 2026 starting quarterback Nathan Hayes after he was the backup in years past, and if there’s anything we know about NDSU, it’s that it will have a strong ground game to support the quarterback. The NDSU defense will have some of last season’s FCS stars on defense, highlighted by defensive tackle Keenan Wilson, an All-American.

Don’t expect North Dakota State to fall off from its winning ways now that it’s in the FBS. It’ll all start with a huge nonconference opener against Jacksonville State.

SEC — South Carolina

To be a dark horse for an SEC championship, you can’t be ranked in the preseason poll. That cancels out nine teams and leaves me with a group of schools like Florida, South Carolina and Auburn. Of those three, South Carolina is the only school returning its head coach, making the Gamecocks the pick.

South Carolina was a popular College Football Playoff pick last preseason before a disappointing 4-8 finish. I expect the Gamecocks to be much improved this fall. Quarterback LaNorris Sellers should bounce back, and this could finally be the year where wide receiver Nyck Harbor lives up to the hype. Offensive lineman Jacarrius Peak also transfers in from NC State to boost the offensive line. With a true game-changer on defense in edge rusher Dylan Stewart facing big-time matchups, South Carolina could make last season look like a fluke.

Sun Belt — Louisiana Tech

The newest Sun Belt team is Louisiana Tech in the West Division, where the Bulldogs were predicted to finish only fourth in their new divisional home. Louisiana Tech could quickly emerge as a new contender in its new conference after an 8-5 finish last year that saw wins over Sun Belt teams Southern Miss and Coastal Carolina.

The Bulldogs return two capable quarterbacks in Blake Baker (back from an ACL injury) and Trey Kukuk, plus preseason first team all-conference linebacker Kolbe Fields. Louisiana Tech brings back the most returning production of any team in the Sun Belt with 64 percent of its offensive starters and 48 percent of its defensive starters back in the fold.

Louisiana Tech had to pay to get into the Sun Belt this year, and the Bulldogs could quickly get their money’s worth.

Pac-12 — Texas State

The Pac-12 is back in 2026! The favorite in the conference is Boise State, but it could be Texas State that surprises atop the conference.

Head coach GJ Kinne is a good one that could be on Power Four radars by the end of this season. He’s known for leading great offenses, and 2026 should see the same again thanks to dynamic quarterback Brad Jackson, plus wide receivers Beau Sparks and Chris Dawn Jr.

Defense will be a question mark for Texas State this fall, especially with a defensive line that will be heavily on transfers. Only 43 percent of Texas State’s defense returned from last year, much lower than the 70 percent of offensive returning talent.

However, Texas State could be a team that outscores teams in the Pac-12 this year.