Though it’s a power conference league, the Big 12 has a perception issue.
The conference needs a program or two to break through and earn a College Football Playoff win, and the sooner the better.
Will the 2026 season be the year that happens?
The race to the CFP is built first with a strong regular season, and whether it’s defending champion Texas Tech, upstart BYU or dark horse contenders such as Houston, Utah or Arizona State, there are a handful of teams who appear ready to take the reins on being the Big 12’s best hope at making noise in the playoffs.
Here are the five biggest games of the 2026 for the Big 12 — and what they could mean for their schools.
Week 3: Sept. 18, Houston at Texas Tech
The Big 12 opener for both schools will get its own spotlight on a Friday night, even if Red Raiders coach Joey McGuire isn’t a big fan of playing this game on a Friday.
The Cougars are viewed as a Big 12 dark horse contender after a 10-win season in 2025 under head coach Willie Fritz, and this would give them a signature victory early in the year if they can pull it off.
For Texas Teh, after starting the year with a home opener against Abilene Christian and a road matchup at Oregon State, this will be the first major test of the season for the defending Big 12 champion Red Raiders.
They reloaded again through the transfer portal, and while they had to replace a wide array of defensive talent they lost to the pros, the cupboard is stocked again on that side.
The biggest question is who will be playing quarterback for Texas Tech in Week 3? Brendan Sorsby’s battle to regain his eligibility after admitting his gambling addiction is still in question — though it’s looking unlikely at this point — and Will Hammond, coming off a torn ACL in late October 2025, might not be available for the contest against Houston.
That could leave Texas Tech with a third option at QB, either Lloyd Jones Jr. or Tulsa transfer Kirk Francis, in this mid-September clash.
Week 7: Oct. 17, Notre Dame at BYU
This is the game of the year for the league — the premier nonconference matchup, one that came together less than a year ago — even if it won’t impact the conference chase.
It pits two programs aiming to make a statement in 2026 after being denied a spot in the College Football Playoff last season. Notre Dame and BYU were the first and second ranked teams, respectively, on the outside who missed the playoff field cut.
Notre Dame is among the top contenders for the national title this year, and Marcus Freeman’s squad, with CJ Carr returning at quarterback, is expected to be one of the best teams in the country on both sides of the ball.
BYU has twice hosted a No. 1 team — beating Miami in 1990 and losing to USC 2004 — and Notre Dame will likely be a top 5 or higher team when this matchup happens.
The Cougars hosted then-No. 3 Notre Dame in 1993, and the Fighting Irish rolled to a 45-20 win. That BYU team went 6-6, though, and there are a lot higher expectations for the Cougars this season.
If BYU earns a victory, that would be the kind of resume-defining victory the Cougars have lacked the past two years when they went 11-2 and 12-2 but still missed the playoff.
The game should also pay off for Notre Dame in providing another solid data point for its resume if BYU ultimately finishes as a top 15 program.
Week 7: Oct. 17, Arizona State at Texas Tech
Last year during the Red Raiders’ run to the playoff, Arizona State was the only Big 12 team to beat them.
Even in an 8-5 season a year ago, Kenny Dillingham had his squad in contention for a conference championship game berth going into the final week of the regular season.
Could this end up being a blowout? Sure, that’s always a possibility.
This is a matchup between the last two Big 12 champions, though, and before the year begins and adjusts expectations, it’s easy to believe that the Sun Devils and Red Raiders will put on a show in Lubbock.
Arizona State is trying to bounce back from a year that fell short of expectations, while Texas Tech is trying to build on a successful Big 12 title run that ended with a frustrating shutout loss to Oregon in the CFP.
Both squads will be plenty motivated in this game, and either way, it’s likely to impact the Big 12 race come late November.
Week 10: Nov. 7, BYU at Utah
With the trajectory of both programs right now, this game is often going to be one of the best ones to watch every year from a Big 12 standpoint.
Since Utah joined the league two years ago and became conference mates again with BYU, the matchup has certainly lived up to the hype. Two years ago, the Cougars needed a last-second field goal to maintain their then-perfect record. Last season, both teams were ranked and BYU held on to beat Utah in Provo after going up 10 with four-plus minutes to play.
There’s always a lot riding on this rivalry game, and it’s likely to play a major factor in the conference race yet again.
BYU is viewed as one of the top Big 12 contenders this year, while the Utes, under new head coach Morgan Scalley, may be a bit unknown — though 10-plus wins and a run to the conference title is completely possible.
Week 14: Dec. 4, Big 12 championship game
College Football Playoff implications will be riding on the league championship game.
Since the CFP expanded to 12 teams, the Big 12 has gotten its conference champion in the playoff field, but they’ve been the only league representatives.
On top of that, both Arizona State and Texas Tech lost in their quarterfinal CFP games, giving the Big 12 an 0-2 mark since playoff expansion.
In order for the Big 12 to avoid falling even further behind the other power conference leagues in terms of national perception, the conference desperately needs a breakthrough team in the playoff — and the postseason starts with the conference championship game.
The past three years, the Big 12 championship game has been a blowout, from Texas rolling past Oklahoma State in 2023, Arizona State beating Iowa State in 2024 and Texas Tech pounding BYU last season.
The only likely way for the league to get two teams in the CFP right now is to have an undefeated regular-season champion — and Texas Tech is the most likely candidate in 2026 — then have that team upset in the Big 12 championship by another program with at most two losses (maybe only one).
At the very least, it would benefit the league for the Big 12 championship game to be a closely contested contest this year.
Other Big 12 games to watch in 2026
While Texas Tech, BYU, Arizona State and Utah are among the programs projected to be Big 12 contenders this season, others such as TCU and Arizona could also surprise and make a run at the crown.
Here’s a look at a handful of nonconference games and several other Big 12 contests that could play a major role in the league chase and how the conference is perceived on a national scale this year.
- Week 2: Sept 12, Arizona at BYU
- Week 2: Sept. 12, Arkansas at Utah
- Week 2: Sept. 12, Arizona State at Texas A&M
- Week 5: Oct. 3, BYU at TCU
- Week 8: Oct. 24, Houston at Utah
- Week 9: Oct. 31, Arizona at Texas Tech
- Week 9: Oct. 31, Arizona State at BYU
- Week 10: Nov. 6, TCU at Arizona
- Week 11: Nov. 14, Utah at Arizona
- Week 12: Nov. 21, Utah at TCU
- Week 12: Nov. 21, Oklahoma State at Arizona State
- Week 13: Nov. 26, TCU at Texas Tech
- Week 13: Nov. 28, Arizona State at Arizona