FORT MYERS, Fla. – The Fort Myers Tip-Off will once again be prominently featured on this year’s Thanksgiving Week menu as Purdue, Oklahoma, DePaul and Pitt participate in the Beach Division of the ninth-annual event taking place Nov. 24 and 26 at Florida SouthWestern State College in Fort Myers, Fla.
Final game times and television designations will be announced in the coming weeks, but the Thanksgiving Day tilt between Purdue and Oklahoma is anticipated to air on network television.
The Beach Division schedule gets underway on Nov. 24 when Purdue faces DePaul and Pitt takes on Oklahoma. The Thanksgiving Day slate will include the Boilermakers facing the Sooners and the Blue Demons taking on the Panthers. It will be the second time Pitt has appeared in the Fort Myers Tip-Off, having won the event in 2019, while the Boilermakers, Blue Demons and Sooners will be making their first all-time appearance in the event.
John Purdue Club Travel Information: The John Purdue Club will offer official land-only travel packages and event-only packages for Purdue Men’s Basketball’s trip to Fort Myers. Travel packages will include hotel accommodations, transportation to and from the arena, preferred seating for Purdue’s tournament games, and all event package experiences, including a welcome event with the team and two pregame parties alongside fellow Boilermakers.
The official team hotel will serve as the central gathering point for John Purdue Club members and Purdue fans throughout the tournament experience. Event-only packages will be available in limited quantities for members making separate hotel arrangements.
Official John Purdue Club packages will offer the best available seating for Boilermaker fans. Invitations and access information will be distributed to eligible John Purdue Club members through a tiered process based on membership level. Additional package details, pricing, and timeline information will be shared once finalized.
At this time, the only way to guarantee tickets for the 2026 Fort Myers Tip-Off is through official fan travel packages. Fan travel packages for the event will be available on June 3, but fans can immediately register to express interest in a travel package and to receive priority access to the event by logging on to www.fortmyerstipoff.com/travel. Base packages include hotel accommodations, game tickets to each selected team’s games in the official fan section and VIP parking at the arena.
The Purdue-Oklahoma matchup will mark the fourth-straight season that a game from the Fort Myers Tip-Off (2025) or the Elevance Health Women’s Fort Myers Tip-Off (2023 and 2024) will air on network television on Thanksgiving Day.
- 2025: Michigan State vs. North Carolina
- 2024: South Carolina vs. Iowa State
- 2023: Indiana vs. Tennessee
The Fort Myers Tip-Off has established itself as one of college basketball’s premier early season events, having featured some of college basketball’s top programs in recent years, including 2026 national champion Michigan, 2025 national champion Florida, 2022 national champion Kansas, Michigan State, North Carolina, Gonzaga, Wisconsin, Virginia, Ohio State and Auburn in recent years.
Matt Painter Quote on the Fort Myers Tip-Off : “We are excited to spend our Thanksgiving in Fort Myers, competing in an outstanding event against DePaul and Oklahoma. We take great pride in making our non-conference schedule one of the best in the country and playing in this event will definitely help prepare us for Big Ten play. Both of these teams are led by outstanding coaches and will provide a big opportunity for our program. Our fans have consistently traveled in large numbers for all of our neutral-site games and we expect a great contingent on the Florida Gulf Coast during Thanksgiving Week.”