Gonzaga’s move to the Pac-12 may change the conference backdrop, but it hasn’t softened the Bulldogs’ non-conference grind one bit.
Andy Katz recently slotted Gonzaga at No. 6 on his list of the 10 toughest non-conference schedules for the 2025-26 season, putting Mark Few’s team behind UConn, Duke, Michigan State, Illinois, and Arkansas. Arizona, Kansas, Kentucky, and Texas Tech filled out the rest of the top 10.
That ranking fits the way Gonzaga has operated for years. Even before it became a national mainstay, the program consistently stacked its schedule with heavyweight opponents to get ready for March. That approach is still very much alive, even with a new league home that should offer more Quad 1 and Quad 2 chances during conference play.
The problem for Gonzaga right now is simple: the roster still isn’t fully settled. Returning pieces Davis Fogle and Braden Huff are back, and they’ll be joined by Arizona State transfer Massamba Diop, Houston transfer Isiah Harwell, and freshmen Luca Foster and Sam Funches. But five players remain in eligibility limbo with the NCAA - Xaivian Lee, Chauncey Wiggins, Javon Bennett, Izan Almansa, and Nathan de Sousa.
So even if everything breaks the Bulldogs’ way by opening night, they won’t have much time to get everyone on the same page before the schedule starts throwing punches.
And it starts fast.
Gonzaga opens against Purdue on Monday, Nov. 2, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, then gets LSU on Nov. 14 at the Spokane Arena. After that comes a loaded stretch at the Player’s Era Festival back in Vegas, beginning with Kansas State on Nov.
- The Zags will then face Baylor or Alabama on Nov. 26, followed by one of Creighton, TCU, Miami, or defending champion Michigan on Nov.
December keeps the pressure on. Gonzaga will face UCLA for the seventh straight season on Dec. 5 at the Honda Center in Anaheim. The Bulldogs’ only true road game comes Dec. 12 in Omaha against Creighton, and they’ll close the month with another trip to California to play Michigan State on Dec. 19 at the Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs.
The schedule even stretches into 2027, with a Battle in Seattle matchup against Oregon on Jan. 30 and a major showdown with Duke on Feb. 20 in Detroit.
That Duke game carries extra weight on Katz’s list, since Duke and Michigan State are two of the teams ranked ahead of Gonzaga. Arkansas is also part of the picture, since it will host Gonzaga in an exhibition on Oct. 25 at Bud Walton Arena.
Gonzaga has long leaned on a brutal non-conference slate to make up for the thinner top-end competition in the WCC. The new Pac-12 should help with that, especially with programs like Utah State and San Diego State in the mix. And with fewer speed bumps than the Zags faced in the WCC, the overall path should still give Few’s team the kind of preparation it wants before March.
In Other News...
Gonzaga Has A New EuroLeague Name Fans Will Want To Track
Mario Saint-Superys move to Valencia Basket gives Gonzaga another name to follow overseas after the guard left Spokane following one season in the program. He joins a long list of former Bulldogs building careers abroad, with 18 other ex-Gonzaga players set to compete professionally outside the United States in 2025-26, a reminder of how far the programs reach now extends beyond the college game.
Among the most notable familiar faces in Europe are Nigel Williams-Goss and Filip Petrusev, both part of the EuroLeague landscape for 2026-27. Williams-Goss is running the show as algiris Kaunas lead guard, while Petrusev has settled in as a frontcourt piece for Dubai Basketball, giving Gonzaga fans a pair of high-level watches as the new season unfolds. [Read more 🡒]