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It’s time for the Utah Utes’ second season in the Big 12.
After the Utes’ inaugural season in their new conference went south in 2024 — the Utes finished 2-7 in Big 12 play without starting quarterback Cam Rising — the slate doesn’t get much easier this season for Utah.
Phil Steele ranks the Utes’ schedule as the 38th-toughest in the nation, while ESPN ranks it No. 44.
Utah plays nearly all of the projected Big 12 title favorites this season except for Iowa State, so it will once again be facing a daunting conference schedule.
But before conference play begins, the Utes open the season with a Power Four road game against UCLA before heading home to take on Cal Poly of the FCS ranks. They then finish off their nonconference slate at Wyoming.
Below is my attempt to rank Utah’s schedule from toughest game to easiest. Predicting sports — especially at the start of the season before there’s any real data on the 2025 iteration of teams — is tough. There’s a reason why the vast, vast majority of sports bettors lose in the long run.
Last year, nearly every game turned out to be difficult for the Utes after losing Rising and a host of other players. Utah, picked by the media to win the Big 12 in the preseason, instead finished third from last.
Meanwhile, Arizona State, picked to finish last, won the conference.
In last year’s version of this article, I was right in some areas (Arizona, Iowa State and BYU were three of the top five toughest games for the Utes, and they lost all three of them), but in others, I was dead wrong.
I picked Oklahoma State as the toughest game for the Utes. Utah beat the Cowboys, who ended up the worst team in the conference, on the road.
Penciling in Arizona State as the No. 9 toughest game on the schedule (Utah lost 27-19) and UCF at No. 3 (one of only two Big 12 wins for the Utes) turned out to be incorrect, so take these rankings with a grain of salt.
These rankings take into consideration the context of the game — its place in the schedule, home games vs. road games, etc. — so a road game against a team projected to be lower in the standings could be ranked higher than a team Utah plays at home that’s projected to finish higher in the standings.
1. Arizona State, Oct. 11
Last year’s Big 12 champs make the trip up north to Rice-Eccles Stadium, and unlike last season, the Sun Devils have all the national respect, as they were the highest-ranked Big 12 team by a good margin in the preseason AP Top 25 poll, checking in at No. 11.
While there’s a chance Arizona State could take a step back offensively without star running back Cam Skattebo, quarterback Sam Leavitt’s passing ability will shine more in the Sun Devils’ offense and receiver Jordyn Tyson is one of the best at his position in the conference, if not the country.
ASU’s defense returns nine starters — including star safety Xavion Alford — from a unit that was one of the best in the conference last year.
Head coach Kenny Dillingham is a rising star in the coaching world, and it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Sun Devils repeat as conference champs.
The Utes are fortunate to play the Sun Devils at Rice-Eccles Stadium and have a bye after visiting West Virginia on Sept. 27. Arizona State, however, also has a bye, and gains an extra day of rest after hosting TCU on Sept. 26.
This will likely be a tough game for the Utes.
2. at Baylor, Nov. 15
Utah’s 20-13 win at Baylor in 2023 was Utah’s unofficial “welcome to the Big 12” moment.
During Utah’s last season in the Pac-12, the trip to Waco was a sneak peek at what life could be like in its new conference. With Nate Johnson and Bryson Barnes alternating time at quarterback, the Utes eked past the Bears on a sweltering September day where field temperatures soared past 100 degrees.
This November’s contest won’t be as hot, but it’ll be tough.
Baylor is led by quarterback Sawyer Robertson, who is projected to be one of the Big 12’s best signal-callers, and the Bears went hard in the transfer portal to shore up their defensive deficiencies from last year.
The Bears also enter 2025 with some serious momentum after winning six straight Big 12 games to end the 2024 season.
Like the Arizona State contest, both teams will enter off bye weeks, and depending on how the season unfolds, this could be a key contest in the Big 12 title race.
3. Texas Tech, Sept. 20
There’s no easing into Big 12 play for the Utes, as they’ll face a tough first opponent in Texas Tech at Rice-Eccles Stadium to open up league play.
The Red Raiders, of course, went on a spending spree in the transfer portal this offseason. Texas Tech spent big on their offensive and defensive lines and shored up the secondary and running back rooms.
Behren Morton, the Red Raiders’ quarterback, will be at the helm of the offense again after throwing for 3,335 yards and 27 touchdowns with eight interceptions last year.
Will all the talent gel and lead the Red Raiders to their first-ever Big 12 championship game? Time will tell.
“They’ve built the best team money can buy. But if they don’t win the Big 12, holy cow,” an anonymous Big 12 coach told The Athletic at Big 12 media days.
There’s a lot on the line early in the season. Whoever emerges victorious will have made a statement to the rest of the Big 12.
4. Kansas State, Nov. 22
Kansas State didn’t look great in its season-opening loss against Iowa State last weekend, but don’t write the Wildcats off just yet.
Both teams struggled offensively in a wet, rainy game in Dublin, Ireland, especially in a turnover-filled 7-7 first half.
Quarterback Avery Johnson found his footing a little too late, but finished with 273 yards and two touchdowns through the air on 70% accuracy. Kansas State’s defense, though, couldn’t stop the Cyclones when it mattered.
There’s no question the Wildcats can right the ship, however, and if they do, one of the expected contenders for the Big 12 title could be hard for the Utes to knock off in what could be a crucial late-season game.
5. at BYU, Oct. 18
Utah returns to Provo for the first time since BYU’s 26-17 win over the Charlie Brewer-led Utes in 2021, which halted Utah’s rivalry win streak at nine.
No doubt, Utah will be hungry to snap BYU’s two-game win streak after last year’s 22-21 loss at Rice-Eccles Stadium, where Will Ferrin’s last-second 44-yard field goal gave BYU a shocking win after a fourth-down defensive holding call kept the Cougars’ drive alive.
If Jake Retzlaff was at quarterback for the Cougars, this game would have been ranked higher — likely in the top three — but there’s a lot of unknowns about how BYU’s offense will fare with true freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier leading the charge.
Returners Chase Roberts (WR) and LJ Martin (RB) will help shoulder the load on offense, and the Cougars’ defense, called by former Ute Jay Hill, should be good once again, led by linebackers Jack Kelly and Isaiah Glasker.
The rivalry game is always emotionally charged, and the transfer of former Ute defensive tackle Keanu Tanuvasa to BYU adds another layer. It should be a great atmosphere at LaVell Edwards Stadium.
The contest versus the Cougars is the second leg of a tough two-game stretch for the Utes, who will be coming off perhaps their hardest game of the season against Arizona State a week prior.
6. at Kansas, Nov. 28
For the second straight year, the Utes fly out of Salt Lake City on Thanksgiving for a Black Friday road showdown.
The Utes will take on Kansas at newly-renovated David Booth Kansas Memorial Stadium at 10 a.m. in the final regular-season game of the season.
Again, depending on how things shake out, this could be a pivotal game.
Kansas is projected to be improved from last season’s 5-7 record, and the timing of the game after a trip to Baylor and hosting Kansas State makes this one a little tougher than it would be if it were at the beginning of Utah’s schedule.
7. at UCLA, Aug. 30
The Utes open the season with a road Power Four contest — something of a rarity for the program.
Utah last opened the season on the road against a power opponent in 2022 — a 29-26 loss to Florida. Before then, though, you have to go back to 2008 — a 25-23 victory against Michigan at the Big House to kick off Utah’s 13-0 undefeated season.
Without opening against an FCS or lower-tier FBS school, there’s a real possibility that Utah starts the season with a loss. The Bruins feature former Tennessee quarterback Nico Iamaleava, who helped the Volunteers to the College Football Playoff, and Indiana offensive coordinator Tino Sunseri, who guided Indiana’s No. 2 scoring offense last season (41.3 points per game).
How much will the Bruins be improved over last year’s 5-7 campaign? Time will tell, but the experts in Las Vegas are expecting a close game, with Utah a 6.5-point favorite.
8. at West Virginia, Sept. 27
With Rich Rodriguez back in charge of West Virginia, questions abound in Morgantown.
The Mountaineers have completely revamped the roster under Rodriguez, bringing in more than 50 transfer players. West Virginia hasn’t publicly named a starting quarterback and the Mountaineers will have new starters at nearly every position on offense and defense.
There’s a lot of unknowns, and most projections have West Virginia finishing near the bottom of the conference, but the late September trip to Morgantown is no gimme for the Utes, especially if the Mountaineers surprise people this season.
9. Colorado, Oct. 25
Colorado blew Utah out last season, 49-24, at Folsom Field.
The Buffaloes make the trip to Salt Lake City this season without star QB Shedeur Sanders and two-way phenom Travis Hunter.
Once again, Colorado has had immense turnover in the transfer portal, with the majority of the projected starters on both sides of the ball new to the program.
The Buffaloes have overachieved under head coach Deion Sanders, and could once again, but ESPN’s matchup predictor gives the Utes a 56.4% chance of winning the game — their second-highest of the Big 12 schedule.
10. Cincinnati, Nov. 1
ESPN’s FPI gives the Utes a 65.5% chance of winning the first-ever matchup between the two teams, the highest of any game of Utah’s Big 12 schedule.
The Bearcats have posted two straight losing seasons in their transition from the American Athletic Conference (now called just the American Conference as of last month) to the Big 12, but with some key returning starters, including defensive tackle Dontay Corleone, the Bearcats should reverse that this season.
Much of Cincinnati’s success will depend on if quarterback Brendan Sorsby can take the next step forward. If he can, the Bearcats should go bowling.
11. at Wyoming, Sept. 13
Even though this game is ranked No. 11, it still carries plenty of intrigue.
While the Utes should handle the Cowboys, every so often there’s a Power Four team that rolls into Laramie and leaves with a loss.
The 7,200-foot elevation isn’t as big a deal for a team used to playing at a high elevation like Utah, but could be a factor. The crowd should be amped up as well.
Ultimately, Utah should take care of business against a Wyoming team picked to finish 10th in the Mountain West Conference.
12. Cal Poly, Sept. 6
Utah scheduled this game against FCS Cal Poly for a reason. It’ll be a chance to retool and give the starters some rest after a marquee Week 1 game at UCLA.
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