BYU Football 2026: A Schedule Full of Opportunity - and a Few Land Mines
The confetti had barely settled on Indiana’s historic 16-0 national championship season - the first perfect run since Yale in 1896 - when the Big 12 turned its attention toward 2026. And for BYU, coming off its first 12-win season in nearly a quarter century and a final AP ranking of No. 11, the question now becomes: can the Cougars keep climbing?
We’re about to find out.
BYU’s 2026 schedule offers a mix of opportunity and challenge, with the path back to the Big 12 title game - now set for Friday, Dec. 4 at 6 p.m. MST at AT&T Stadium in Arlington - looking a little different than last year.
Notably, the Cougars won’t face Texas Tech in the regular season, the only team to beat them in 2025 (and they did it twice). If there's going to be a rematch, it’ll have to come under the bright lights in Arlington.
The Cougars also avoid matchups with Colorado, Kansas State, Houston, Oklahoma State, and West Virginia. Only three of BYU’s 2026 opponents finished last season ranked in the final AP Top 25: No.
10 Notre Dame, No. 14 Utah, and No.
25 TCU. Arizona, another opponent, received votes.
But don’t mistake that for an easy road.
BYU’s third season in the Big 12 brings its own set of tests, starting with a cross-country trip to UCF on Oct. 24.
The Knights have become a familiar face for the Cougars since both joined the Big 12, and this year’s meeting at the newly renamed Acrisure Bounce House in Orlando will be the third in as many seasons. BYU won the last two - a 37-24 road win in 2024 and a 41-21 victory in Provo to close out the 2025 regular season - but UCF always brings speed and energy, especially at home.
The season kicks off Sept. 5 at home against Utah Tech, a new FCS program, before things get real in a hurry. BYU opens Big 12 play the following week against Arizona, then hits the road Sept. 19 to face Colorado State, which is entering its first year in the restructured Pac-12. That trip to Fort Collins clears the way for a marquee home date: Notre Dame comes to LaVell Edwards Stadium on Oct. 17, marking the Irish’s first visit to Provo since 2004.
The Cougars only have one stretch of back-to-back road games - a manageable two-week swing that includes the Oct. 3 showdown at TCU followed by the nonconference trip to Colorado State. A well-placed bye week in Week 4 breaks up the travel and gives BYU a chance to reset before the heart of conference play.
This year’s schedule also tilts in BYU’s favor when it comes to home cooking. The Cougars play seven games in Provo and only five true road games, including just four in-conference away tilts - a reversal from last year’s nine-game Big 12 grind.
The toughest road tests? Circle Oct. 3 at TCU and Nov. 21 at Kansas. Both teams are physical, fast, and well-coached - and both will be looking to make statements in 2026.
And then there’s the game. The one that defines the season in Utah, no matter the records.
BYU heads north to Rice-Eccles Stadium on Nov. 7 to renew its rivalry with Utah. Last year’s 3-point win in Provo was a turning point in the Cougars’ run to the Big 12 title game.
This year, the stakes could be just as high - and the setting even more electric, with Morgan Scalley taking over the Utes in his first season as head coach.
As always, expect it to be close. Twelve of the last 21 meetings have been decided by seven points or fewer. This one rarely disappoints.
What gives BYU fans reason for optimism is what’s coming back. Every eligible starter from last year’s 12-2 squad returns - a rarity in today’s transfer-heavy college football landscape. That includes quarterback Bear Bachmeier, who steadied the offense down the stretch, and Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year LJ Martin, who emerged as one of the most dynamic backs in the country.
Defensively, linebacker Isaiah Glasker leads a unit that also features returning cornerbacks Tre Alexander and Evan Johnson - both of whom played key roles in BYU’s late-season surge.
And the reinforcements are coming. Among the Cougars’ transfer additions are former Cal linebacker Cade Uluave, a Utah native and the top-rated linebacker in the portal according to 247Sports, and former USC tight end Walker Lyons, a four-star talent with big-play ability.
So yes, the road back to Arlington won’t be easy. But with a veteran roster, a favorable home-heavy schedule, and key playmakers on both sides of the ball, BYU has every reason to believe it can run it back - and maybe even take it a step further.