The 2026 Sun Belt football season will officially begin with Media Days on July 15‑16 in New Orleans, where coaches, players and administrators will gather to preview the upcoming campaign.
Media Days Set the Stage
The events will take place at the New Orleans Marriott Warehouse Arts District and will be streamed live on ESPN+, giving fans across the country a front‑row view of the league’s preparations.
Each of the Sun Belt’s West Division programs will be represented by its head coach and two student‑athletes, while East Division schools will meet a day earlier on July 15.
Among the standout attendees is Troy senior punter Evan Crenshaw, a Ray Guy Award finalist whose performance helped anchor the team’s special‑teams unit.
The Sun Belt Conference enters the 2026 season riding a historic milestone: for the first time ever, the league secured a berth in the College Football Playoff following a dominant 2025 campaign.
New Coaches and New Frontiers
Three first‑year head coaches — Ryan Beard, Billy Napier and Blake Anderson — will be on hand, alongside the arrival of Louisiana Tech, which officially joined the conference on July 1 and will make its debut at Media Days.
Conference Commissioner Keith Gill will open the festivities with a State of the Conference address on July 15, outlining the league’s ambitions and the impact of its expanding footprint.
The schedule will separate East and West Division sessions, allowing each group to showcase its roster and strategy before the full league reconvenes.
Beyond the on‑field storylines, the Sun Belt boasts the best bowl‑win percentage among non‑autonomy conferences during the College Football Playoff era, underscoring the competitive parity that has defined recent years.