The Big 12 rolled out its 2026 football schedule on Wednesday, and while there weren’t many shockers - most of the matchups were already teased last year or locked in via a 2023 scheduling matrix - there’s still plenty to unpack.
Let’s start with what we already knew. Texas Tech won’t face Utah.
Notre Dame is heading to Provo to take on BYU, a marquee matchup made possible by the Irish’s now-defunct rivalry with USC. TCU will kick things off early in Week 0 with a trip to Dublin to face North Carolina, while Arizona State and Kansas will meet in London in Week 3 - part of the Big 12’s continued push to take its product global.
But the biggest shift isn’t about who’s playing who - it’s when. The Big 12 Championship Game is moving from its traditional Saturday morning (Pacific Time) slot to Friday night, December 4.
That’s a strategic pivot, not a permanent one. The conference plans to alternate between Friday and Saturday kickoffs in future years.
The move mirrors what the Pac-12 did for years: sidestep the Saturday logjam created by the SEC and Big Ten title games and grab a primetime window with less competition. It’s all part of a broader strategy - one that Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark has made no secret of - to chase visibility and value. Or, as Yormark put it, “My job is to create more value, to amplify the schools in an effort to make them more national.”
That strategy has taken shape in a number of ways. Yormark helped bring ESPN’s College GameDay back to a Big 12 campus after a long absence.
He also struck a deal to get Big 12 football and men’s hoops onto TNT via sub-licensing agreements. And the overseas games in Dublin and London?
That’s part of the same playbook.
But gaining national traction becomes tougher without a ratings juggernaut. Colorado was that team in 2024, thanks to the star power of Shedeur Sanders and Travis Hunter under head coach Deion Sanders.
The Buffaloes pulled in 3 million or more viewers 10 times that season. Fast forward to 2025, and with those stars gone to the NFL, both Colorado’s performance and its TV draw took a hit.
Only one CU game cracked the 3 million mark.
Without that kind of built-in audience magnet, the Big 12 has to get creative. That’s why Arizona-BYU is set for Week 2 - a time when most teams are still in non-conference mode. Houston-Texas Tech lands in Week 3, also designed to maximize exposure while the national spotlight isn’t yet dominated by conference races.
The Friday night slate is another lever being pulled. While the full list of Friday games will be announced later this spring, expect to see more Big 12 matchups under the lights - again, all in the name of grabbing attention in less crowded windows.
That same logic applies to how the Big 12 is spacing out its rivalry games. Instead of stacking them all on Thanksgiving weekend - when they’d be forced to compete with high-profile matchups from other conferences - the Big 12 is spreading the love.
Baylor-TCU and Kansas-Kansas State are set for Week 7. BYU-Utah will go down in Week 10.
The idea is to avoid cannibalizing viewership and instead give each rivalry a clearer runway.
Once the Friday games are locked in, the Big 12 schedule will look noticeably different from the Big Ten or SEC - and that’s no accident. The conference is leaning into its identity, not trying to mimic the powerhouses.
Now, let’s dig into the details that could shape how the season plays out.
Texas Tech’s Title Defense Comes with a Twist
The defending Big 12 champs won’t face either of the teams that finished right behind them last season - BYU or Utah. That’s not a snub; it’s a quirk baked into the 2023 scheduling matrix, which set certain matchups on three- and four-year cycles. The 2026 season wraps up the three-year cycle, and it sounds like the conference is open to shaking things up after that.
A Shorter Season, Fewer Byes
Thanks to Labor Day falling on September 7 - the latest possible date - the regular season spans just 13 weeks. That means every team gets just one bye week, with the exception of TCU, which opens early in Week 0.
Most teams will have used their bye by mid-October. The lone exceptions? Houston and West Virginia, who both get a late break on October 31.
Uneven Rest Could Be a Factor
Eight teams will head into road games after a normal week of prep, while their opponents will be coming off a bye - essentially giving those home teams a two-week head start. That includes BYU, which hosts Notre Dame in Week 7, then travels to face a well-rested UCF in Week 8.
Nine teams will play back-to-back conference road games without a break in between - always a tough stretch in any league.
Four Teams Get the Gauntlet
Baylor, Houston, Kansas, and Utah drew a particularly rough hand. Each will face both a pair of back-to-back conference road games and a separate matchup against a home team coming off a bye. That’s a double whammy that could influence how their seasons unfold.
On the flip side, four teams avoid both scenarios entirely: Arizona, Colorado, Iowa State, and TCU.
UCF’s Uphill Climb
If there’s one team that might have a legitimate gripe with the schedule, it’s UCF. The Knights go on the road to face Houston in Week 5, then travel again in Week 6 to Oklahoma State - a team that will have been idle for nearly two full weeks. That’s a brutal turnaround, especially in the middle of conference play.
Bottom line: The Big 12 isn’t just playing football - it’s playing chess. With fewer built-in blue bloods and without the gravitational pull of the SEC or Big Ten, the conference is leaning into innovation, flexibility, and smart scheduling to stay in the national conversation.
And if the 2026 schedule is any indication, the Big 12 is more than willing to take the road less traveled - especially if it leads to more eyeballs.