![Florida head coach Tim Walton comes on field before an NCAA softball game against St. Leo at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Thursday, November 13, 2025. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]](https://images2.minutemediacdn.com/image/upload/c_crop,x_0,y_0,w_2610,h_1468/c_fill,w_720,ar_16:9,f_auto,q_auto,g_auto/images/ImagnImages/mmsport/213/01kgja3mmh1rpgd390c5.jpg "Florida head coach Tim Walton comes on field before an NCAA softball game against St. Leo at Katie Seashole Pressly Stadium in Gainesville, FL on Thursday, November 13, 2025. [Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun]")
Florida Softball will get its 2026 campaign underway this Friday when it travels to Tampa to take part in the USF-Rawlings Invitational. As is tradition at this point, Florida will open against Illinois State before taking on Michigan, Bethune-Cookman, Kansas, and USF before the weekend is over.
Florida wound up with the No. 1 strength of schedule in 2025. Their 2026 schedule as a whole shouldn’t be as daunting, but there will still be plenty of tests along the way as Florida tries to make it back to Oklahoma City for the 3rd year in a row.
Using the final RPI ranking from 2025 for every team on Florida’s schedule, this is their 2026 schedule ranked from the worst 2025 RPI to the strongest.
Florida Softball 2026 Schedule By RPI
Run Rule Contenders
East Texas A&M Lions — RPI 276
Bethune–Cookman Wildcats — RPI 215
Lindenwood Lions — RPI 211
Longwood Lancers — RPI 166
Oregon State Beavers — RPI 157
Jacksonville Dolphins — RPI 153
Illinois State Redbirds — RPI 148
Loyola Marymount Lions — RPI 119
FGCU Eagles — RPI 113
Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders — RPI 106
FIU Panthers — RPI 90
Kansas Jayhawks — RPI 83
Marshall Thundering Herd — RPI 76
Stetson Hatters — RPI 68
No one from this set of teams should cause any significant trouble for Florida. One of the hallmarks of the Gators has been their tendency to run rule over anyone outside the top 50 of RPI. Even Stetson, who finished with a respectable RPI of 68 last season, has been run-ruled by the Gators in the last five meetings in a row and seven of the last ten meetings overall.
A Worthy Challenge
Missouri Tigers — RPI 42
Michigan Wolverines — RPI 41
Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets — RPI 40
Kentucky Wildcats — RPI 37
North Florida Ospreys — RPI 35
UCF Knights — RPI 32
South Florida Bulls — RPI 30
California Golden Bears — RPI 28
Georgia Bulldogs — RPI 26
Mississippi State Bulldogs — RPI 21
Auburn Tigers — RPI 20
There are some sneaky opponents on Florida’s non-conference slate who could steal a game or two if Florida isn’t careful. UCF snatched a 4-0 win over the Gators last year, and teams like Michigan and USF are usually tough outs for Florida.Â
Even the matchup with Cal out west could be a sneaky one for Florida to get past.
The SEC slates against Missouri, Kentucky, Georgia, Mississippi State, and Auburn will all be series that Florida expects to win, but there is no guarantee of a sweep in any of those.
Cream Of The Crop
South Carolina Gamecocks — RPI 9
UCLA Bruins — RPI 8
Florida State Seminoles — RPI 7
Arkansas Razorbacks — RPI 6
Tennessee Volunteers — RPI 5
Florida’s SEC slate is interesting because the Gators avoid Oklahoma, Texas, LSU, Ole Miss, and Alabama this season. The only team Florida will face in SEC play that was voted ahead of them in the SEC Preseason poll is Tennessee.
The UCLA game is going to be the first major test for the Gators in 2026. The two midweek games against FSU should also provide a solid test, but add it all up and Florida only has 15 regular-season games this year against teams that were in the top 20 for RPI in 2025.
Last year, Florida had 24 regular-season games against teams that finished in the top 20 of RPI.