2026 Big 12 Football Schedule Winners and Losers

The 2026 Big 12 Football Schedule dropped on Wednesday, with fans across the league starting to fill up their calendars for tailgates, watch parties and road trips. But now, with a 16-team league, and the round robin schedule a distant memories, how these schedules break down, what the road trips look like, and when they’re scheduled, suddenly makes a huge difference. So with that, here are the winners and losers from the Big 12 football schedule release.

Big 12 Schedule Winners

BYU

Having a bye week after three games isn’t ideal but I do like certain parts of the BYU schedule. A non-conference matchup with Notre Dame in the middle of the year is certainly a choice. There is a four-game stretch against Notre Dame, UCF, Arizona State, and Utah which I believe will make or break this team. But after that, they get Baylor, Kansas, and Cincy to close out the year, which is a plus.  

Iowa State

For a team that is having to replace literally everyone, I like Iowa State’s schedule. The first half of the year will be interesting with games against Iowa, Utah, and BYU but at least they get the Utes at home. However what I really like is the second half where they play Arizona, Oklahoma State, Baylor, Cincy, UCF, and Kansas State.

Kansas State

No BYU or Texas Tech? Kansas State got one heck of a break with avoiding those two schools. Plus, they get some of their toughest games at home against Houston and Arizona. Trips to Tempe and Ames are tough, but still a very friendly schedule for the Wildcats in year one under Collin Klein.

Texas Tech

I know Texas Tech is the clear favorite, but is there anyone out there that sees a loss on their schedule? Their non-conference schedule is easy, and they only leave the state of Texas three times in their first nine games and just four times in twelve games. They don’t have to play BYU and the toughest game on their schedule is against Arizona State which they play at home.

UCF

For a team that struggled last season, I think UCF got a bit of a break here this year. Their first six games aren’t bad at all and their toughest road game in the early stretch is at Houston. Stillwater will be interesting but winnable but still, not bad.

The schedule half is tougher, but they get BYU, Baylor, Arizona State, and Iowa State all at home and just two road games in Lawrence and Boulder. Not many teams get all their toughest games at home, but it sure seems like UCF did.

Utah

Much like Collin Klein at Kansas State, first year Utah head coach Morgan Scalley should be thankful. Their non-conference is light, and their first three games of Big 12 play are against Iowa State, Kansas, and Colorado. Plus, two of their toughest games are at home when they host BYU and Houston. Trips to Tucson and Fort Worth will be interesting, but they catch both Arizona and TCU during tough stretches. The Utes definitely have one of the easier road schedules out there.

Big 12 Schedule Losers

Arizona

I don’t mind the first half of their schedule but a trip to Provo in week two will not be easy. Their non-conference slate is fairly easy, and they do get three games against Cincinnati, West Virginia, and Iowa State but the back half of their schedule is brutal. In fact, it starts on Halloween and the only thing spookier than that is having to play Texas Tech in Lubbock. They follow that up with games against TCU, Utah, Kansas State and Arizona State. Ouch.

Arizona State

Trips to College Station and London will be interesting and tough for travel but it doesn’t get any easier when October rolls around. The Sun Devils host Baylor and Hawaii before going to Lubbock on the 18^th. Then they are back home against Kansas State before heading to Provo. November is a lot friendlier, but Arizona State has one of the tougher first eight games out of anyone.  

Baylor

When I opened their schedule, I was in a bit of shock due to how tough it looked. The Bears have to play Auburn again but this time it’s in Atlanta, which should be interesting. But what gets me are simply the teams on their schedule. Baylor has to play Arizona State, TCU, UCF on the road, and then end the year against BYU, Texas Tech, and Houston. Good luck Dave Aranda, you’ll need it.

Cincinnati

The Bearcats don’t have a bad schedule but it’s not great either. They do have an easy non-conference, but they open Big 12 play against Kansas State and Arizona before the bye week. Then things start to really pick up with trips to Morgantown, Houston, Ames, and Provo. Plus, they host Texas Tech and Utah which is not ideal.

Colorado

The road games for Colorado aren’t awful with trips to Waco, Stillwater, Tempe, and Cincinnati. However, having to play Texas Tech, Kansas State, Utah, and Houston won’t be easy even at home. Outside of BYU, Colorado had to play all the big boys in the conference.

Houston

Willie Fritz has done a fantastic job in Houston but boy oh boy they didn’t get any favors with their schedule. The Cougars have to play Texas Tech, Kansas State, Utah, Colorado, and West Virginia on the road which may be the toughest road slate out of anyone in the Big 12.

Kansas

The good news is that Kansas doesn’t have to play Texas Tech, but the bad news is that they must go to London to play Arizona State and then three weeks later have to go to Utah and Kansas State back-to-back weeks.  And their last three games of the season are against Oklahoma State and West Virginia on the road with a home game against BYU in-between.  

Oklahoma State

The first year for new head coach Eric Morris is going to be tough because their schedule doesn’t do them any favors. Two of their first four games are at home against Oregon and on the road against West Virginia. But the schedule picks up even more with trips to Houston, Ames, Manhattan, and Tempe. They also host Texas Tech as well. Yikes.

TCU

I know Oklahoma State’s schedule was one of the toughest out there, but TCU will give anyone a run for their money. The non-conference is easy but after that’s it’s going to be a battle. A road game to UCF kicks off the year before they return to Fort Worth to host BYU. The rest of October is fine, but the month of November is the toughest by far. TCU will have to play Arizona, Kansas State, Utah, and Texas Tech to close the regular season. That is what I like to call murderer’s row.

West Virginia

Let me start with the fact that I like the early part of their schedule. Their non-conference is more than manageable, and their first four Big 12 games are against Oklahoma State, Iowa State, Arizona, and Cincinnati. They only have one true road game in their first seven games of the year. However, three out of their last four games are against Texas Tech, Houston, and Utah and outside of the Houston game, the other two are on the road.