The Florida State women's basketball team recently released its 2026 non-conference schedule, highlighted by a series of intriguing matchups.
The Seminoles finished last season 10-21 with a 5-13 conference record. The ACC portion of the schedule will be released at a later date.
There is nowhere to go but up for head coach Brooke Wyckoff and the Seminoles. Senior guard Sole Williams led Florida State with 15.1 points per game last year and returns to a roster with three fifth-year seniors and four true seniors.
It’s worth looking deeper into who the Seminoles will test themselves against and the pedigree of the ACC in the first two months of the season.
Florida State opens the season against the Merrimack Warriors on Nov. 2, who were one of the best teams in the Metro Conference with a 19-13 record. The Warriors return the duo of Mia Fiore and Madison Roman, who each averaged over 13 points per game last season.
The Seminoles will host three clear tuneup games against North Florida on Nov. 5, Florida A&M on Nov. 8, and West Florida on Nov. 11. The Ospreys struggled in the Atlantic Sun with a 9-21 record, while seven of the Rattlers’ nine wins last season came in the Southwestern Athletic Conference.
Those games serve as rehearsals for the main event which is against the Florida Gators on Nov. 15. The Gators beat the Seminoles 89-67 in their last meeting in 2025. Liv McGill scored 27 points for the Gators and finished her freshman season averaging 22.5 points, 6.3 assists and 6.1 rebounds per game. The Gators finished last season 18-15 despite struggling to a 5-11 conference slate.
The Seminoles have a fairly winnable matchup against Purdue of the Big Ten in the WBCA Showcase on Nov. 19, in Orlando. The Boilermakers struggled to a 13-17 record and a 5-13 conference slate. Purdue will be led by Tara Daye, who averaged 12.4 points and 6.5 rebounds per game last season.
The Seminoles conclude the WBCA Showcase on Nov. 21 against the hosting Central Florida Knights, who finished 11-20 including 3-15 in the Big 12 last year.
Missouri looked impressive at the start of last season with a 13-5 non-conference record, but finishing 4-12 in the SEC brought the Tigers down to 17-17. The Tigers went 4-7 on the road last year, which bodes well for the Seminoles, who host Mizzou on Dec. 3.
Florida State’s final home non-conference game will be on Dec. 13, against a South Alabama team that went 17-19 last year but finished near the bottom of the Sun Belt with a 5-13 conference showing.
The Seminoles close out the non-conference slate with another winnable matchup against a Big Ten opponent on Dec. 20. Indiana (18-14) finished slightly better than Purdue in the conference last season. Struggling against the Big Ten doomed the Hoosiers last season. What makes this matchup tricky is that Florida State will have to go to Indiana, which was 12-5 at home last year.
Given the number of high-profile, but winnable matchups, if Florida State proves to be a different team compared to last season, the Seminoles could be set up for a breakout campaign.