Updates for JMU Football Game Days in 2026

Following its first Sun Belt Championship and appearance in the College Football Playoff, James Madison football is counting down the days to its Sept. 5 season opener against Liberty at noon in Bridgeforth Stadium. Each new season brings new things so here's a rundown of what's new for 2026. We're excited to see you in Bridgeforth soon for JMU football!

What's new for 2026 JMU football game days?

New Coaches
We're excited to usher in the Billy Napier era to JMU football. Please help us welcome Coach Napier and staff to JMU Nation!

General Admission Seating
In 2025, JMU Athletics initiated crowd safety protocol to enforce capacity limits in seating sections within the general admission seating areas. New in 2026, we are taking our safety protocols one step further that ONLY guests with a general admission ticket will be allowed into the general admission seating areas. This includes student tickets. As sellouts become more routine, we've observed increasing behavior of purchasing reserved tickets but then sitting in general admission areas. This creates an unsafe environment and impacts the game experience of those who purchased general admission seating.

New General Admission Seating Policy 2026

New General Admission Seating Policy 2026

Parking Updates
Several changes have occurred impacting game day parking:

C5 – The paved lot between Bluestone Drive and Godwin Hall, formerly known as F lot, has been renamed as C5 due to campus parking allocation changes impacting commuter parking.
Charlie Obaugh Auto Group Parking Deck – The parking deck immediately adjacent to Bridgeforth Stadium, formerly known as Champions Deck, has been renamed thanks to a generous gift from Charlie Obaugh Auto Group.
Convo – Construction continues along University Blvd with minor impact to the layout of the Convo parking lots, but access to Convo lots will now be easier thanks to changes to University Blvd.

Interstate Construction
While game day impact should be minimal, fans should be aware of a VDOT project underway to widen Interstate 81 through Harrisonburg, impacting speed limits and travel safety.

Closing of the Fan Zone
As game day habits and the overall pregame tailgating environment evolve, usage of the pregame Fan Zone hosted by JMU Athletics has decreased. The Fan Zone located on the Godwin Hall patio has been discontinued for the 2026 season.

CFP Signage
Bridgeforth got a new look to add recognition of the 2025 CFP appearance. Find new signage on the large exterior scoreboard, interior scoreboard speaker cover, interior APC brick bowl recognition, Concourse recognition graphic (Gate A) and exterior APC main entrance.

New Concessions Offerings
Bridgeforth Stadium has the following new concessions:

Tacos4Life – East Side at the Sideline Sizzles stand.
Kona Ice – East Side behind section 8.
Hot Dog Carts – East Side behind section 7 and North End Zone behind Section 216. Offering footlong hot dogs with flavors varying by game. $1 of each sale supports JMU Athletics.

Cashless Operations
Bridgeforth Stadium previously went majority cashless with a few premium areas still accepting cash. Beginning in 2026 all stadium operations will be no cash.

Heat Safety
While not a new policy, fans are reminded that empty refillable water bottles or unopened/sealed water bottles, one per patron, may be brought into Bridgeforth Stadium. With a noon kickoff for the Sept. 5 opener we anticipate offering increased water filling stations inside the stadium. Fans are reminded that heat safety begins with healthy pregame water consumption.

GoDukesTravel.com
JMU Athletics recently partnered with Score More to launch GoDukesTravel.com. Plan your JMU football weekend in Harrisonburg, or your away game road trip, by booking your hotel stay on GoDukesTravel.com with a portion of the proceeds benefitting JMU student-athletes.

General Reminders:

After the first few games of the season, all game times are announced by the Sun Belt and ESPN on Mondays, 12 days prior to game day.
General information and reminders specific to JMU students will be sent via email prior to the first ticket reservation on Aug. 25. A reminder that Student Duke Club members get early access to ticket reservations one day in advance (Aug. 24). Check your email!
Stadium gates open 90 minutes before kickoff.
Stadium gates open 90 minutes before kickoff.
Access to reserved parking lots begins at 8 a.m. for most games. If kickoff occurs AFTER 6 p.m. then lots open at noon.
JMU Athletics uses mobile ticketing. Please download tickets in advance to your phone's mobile wallet. We recommend downloading the JMU Athletics app for easiest ticket access.
Reserved parking passes should be printed in advance and presented for lot entry.
Bridgeforth Stadium has a clear bag policy and requires metal detection for entry.
A game day hotline is available beginning at 8 a.m. by calling 540-568-4381 or texting
Visit JMUSports.com > Game Day for more game day information and policies.

JMU opens the 2026 season, presented by CarMax, on Saturday, Sept. 5 when it hosts in-state foe Liberty in the Battle of the Blue Ridge in a noon kickoff on ESPNU at Bridgeforth Stadium. Limited tickets remain for all home games, except the Oct. 3 Family Weekend matchup with Marshall. JMU also partners with SeatGeek as the authorized secondary ticket marketplace for JMU football.