Big 12 Football Media Days arrive this week in Frisco, Texas, and with them comes the first real checkpoint of the college football season. All 16 teams will spend two days talking through offseason changes, roster upgrades and what they expect when the fall kicks off. The schedule is packed, but a few storylines stand above the rest.
At the top of the list is Texas Tech, and that’s not going away anytime soon. Joey McGuire and the Red Raiders are the center of attention for plenty of reasons: they won the Big 12 last year, reached the College Football Playoff and keep recruiting at an elite level.
But the Brendan Sorsby saga, which wrapped up in the last couple of weeks, only adds more heat to the room. McGuire is going to get the toughest questions of the week, from how firmly he defends Tech’s handling of the situation to what he says about the future of sports gambling in college athletics.
How he navigates all of that will be one of the defining scenes in Frisco.
The spotlight will also be bright on the conference’s four new head coaches making their media days debut: K-State’s Collin Klein, Iowa State’s Jimmy Rogers, Oklahoma State’s Eric Morris and Utah’s Morgan Scalley. Two have already been head coaches, two have worked as top-level coordinators, but all four are stepping into a new level of scrutiny.
This is the first time they’ll face the full media crush that comes with the job, and there’s usually at least one awkward moment when a first-time podium appearance gets rolling. The bigger question is which of them will end up having the best first season on the sideline.
There’s another layer of intrigue around the coaches in Waco and Cincinnati. Dave Aranda and Scott Satterfield are sitting on what look like the two hottest seats in the league.
Aranda is back for 2026, and the Mack Rhoades resignation likely helped keep him in place. Still, both coaches need a strong season - and probably a few eye-catching upsets - if they want to feel good about their chances of being back in 2027.
That pressure will be obvious this week, especially in The Star.
Quarterback buzz is always a major part of media days, and this year’s group of returning passers should be worth watching closely. BYU’s Bear Bachmeier, Colorado’s Julian Lewis, Houston’s Conner Weigman, Arizona’s Noah Fifita, K-State’s Avery Johnson and Utah’s Devon Dampier are all set to be in Frisco.
Some are established veterans, including Dampier, Weigman and Fifita, while others like Bachmeier and Lewis are still building off their freshman seasons. The way they carry themselves, and the way they look physically and emotionally, can tell you plenty about what might be coming this fall.
Then there’s Brett Yormark, who steps into the middle of one of the most unsettled stretches in college sports history. The Big 12 commissioner is expected to address the Protect College Sports Act pending in Congress, the NCAA’s power, the future of college sports on television, the NCAA Tournament’s upcoming expansion and the ongoing debate over whether the College Football Playoff should grow to 16 or 24 teams.
He’ll also have to deal with the Brendan Sorsby drama. Whatever Yormark says in Frisco could shape conversations around college sports for weeks.
In Other News...
Avery Johnson, Wesley Fair, Mikey Bergeron Embody What Keeps K-State Dangerous
Kansas States roster building has always leaned on more than just star power, and the 2026 group is shaping up that way again with 22 players from Kansas expected to be on hand. That local backbone matters because it feeds into the Wildcats identity: a team that can win with familiar faces, developed depth and players who understand what the program asks of them. Avery Johnson, Wesley Fair and Mikey Bergeron each fit that mold in a different way, giving K-State a presence on offense, defense and special teams as the new season approaches.
Johnson is the obvious headliner, but the Wildcats edge also depends on the kind of support that doesnt always grab the spotlight. Fairs role on defense and Bergerons value on special teams both point to a roster that has room for impact beyond the marquee names, and both players are positioned to matter in ways that could shape how steady this team looks week to week. For a program that expects to stay dangerous, the question is not just what Johnson does with the ball, but how much help he gets from the players around him. [Read more 🡒]
Avery Johnson Enters A Defining Kansas State Season Under Heavy Pressure
Avery Johnson is stepping into his final season as Kansas States starting quarterback with the sort of pressure that usually comes with a program trying to prove it belongs in the upper tier again. The Wildcats have a new head coach in Collin Klein, whose arrival adds another layer of intrigue to a season already centered on whether Johnson can take the next step as a dual-threat playmaker after showing plenty of talent and experience.
For Kansas State, this is about more than just steady quarterback play. Johnsons last run as the starter carries real weight for a team hoping to climb into the Big 12 race, and the expectations around him stretch beyond Manhattan, too. If he can elevate his game under Klein, the Wildcats could have a very different kind of season, one that changes how both the program and Johnson are viewed heading into the future. [Read more 🡒]