The 2026 college football season is right around the corner, and it’s one of my favorite columns of the off-season when I share with you my dream Big 12 football road trip for the upcoming season.
To be clear, this is not a road trip I am taking. I have three little kids, and my wife would kill me. But if I could do a dream Big 12 road trip, here is what it would look like. But there is a catch: I can’t go to a stadium more than once. So this isn’t as simple as, “pick the best game of the week”. There is strategy behind it, knowing I can’t be at a stadium more than once in a season.
Week 1: Houston vs. Oregon State
OK, so my thinking here is that Oregon State starts its season with two Big 12 teams, so why not get a look at the Beavers in Week 1? Houston is a Big 12 contender, so let’s get a feel for how they stack up early in the season in a game they should not struggle with, if they truly are going to contend.
Week 2: Kansas vs. Missouri
The Border War. It’s one of the best rivalries in college sports, and we get it on a Friday night in Lawrence. I’m not sure how good KU will be this season, so this could be the highlight of the season. Plus, the Big 12 vs. SEC is always big time. This would go a long way for the league.
Week 3: Texas Tech vs. Houston
This is a no-brainer, even though it’s on a Friday night. I don’t love that, but this game will set the tone for the 2026 Big 12 season. The winner will be the early Big 12 frontrunner with a great league win under their belt, while the loser will already be behind the 8-ball before the end of September.
Week 4: Baylor vs. Colorado
There isn’t a great time to see either of these two teams; however, the winner of this game might just feel like the surprise team in the league. It’s not ideal to be in Waco in September, but I can’t have it all!
Week 5: TCU vs. BYU
The Horned Frogs and Cougars square off in a matchup between two teams with Big 12 Title Game aspirations. TCU hasn’t had a season-defining win since the 2022 campaign when they reached the National Championship. And with BYU one of the Big 12 favorites, this is the kind of game the Cougars need to win, but the Horned Frogs will have great motivation to pull off the possible upset.
Week 6: Kansas State vs. Houston
Kansas State vs. Houston is the best game of the weekend in a week that doesn’t have an obvious must-attend game, at least not as of now. Manhattan is always a tough place to play, and for Houston, either way, if they beat Texas Tech in Week 3, they’ll have a lot on the line here with big expectations; if they lose to Tech, this becomes a likely must-win game.
Week 7: BYU vs. Notre Dame
This is the game of the year in the Big 12 Conference. It means so much, not just for BYU, but for the entire Big 12. Notre Dame is expected to be in the mix for a College Football Playoff appearance, and if BYU wins this game, it could change the league and the possibility of two teams in the CFP. There’s nothing bigger this fall in the conference.
Week 8: Cincinnati v. Texas Tech
I mean, was there ever a doubt? Brendan Sorsby. Joey McGuire. Cody Campbell. Brett Yormark. Scott Satterfield. The characters and storylines around this game are endless. It will be the game with the most drama leading up to it in the Big 12 Conference.
Week 9: Iowa State vs. Oklahoma State
It’s an old-school Big 12 matchup between these two games, and being in Ames on Halloween just seems like a fun time in general. The Cyclones might be out of the mix by then, but the Pokes could be surprising some folks, and I can’t go to Texas Tech, BYU or Cincinnati, since I will have already been there.
Week 10: Utah vs. BYU
There was never a doubt, right? I have to be at what is the best rivalry in the Big 12, and has provided incredible games since this became a conference showdown. There are some games I just have to have on the schedule, and with only one trip allowed per stadium, I knew that this would be the weekend I’d be in Salt Lake City.
Week 11: Oklahoma State vs. Texas Tech
I see two scenarios here. First, this game becomes a sneaky-important one in the Big 12 race as Oklahoma State exceeds expectations in a big way and becomes a surprise team in college football under first-year head coach Eric Morris. Or, if Oklahoma State improves but isn’t a competitor in the Big 12, this is one of those games that could be an upset special and define coach Morris’s future in Stillwater. Either way, I think Texas Tech will have to be careful here.
Week 12: West Virginia vs. Houston
Last year, WVU shocked Houston on the road. This year, the Mountaineers will play Houston at home. I expect the Cougars to still be mathematically in the Big 12 race, and who knows? I know WVU fans believe this team can shock the league, so maybe there’s reason, from the WVU perspective, to think this game has more on the line than we might think right now.
Week 13: Arizona vs. Arizona State
The Big 12 doesn’t save its rivalry weekend for Week 13, but the Territorial Cup is a rivalry that the Big 12 would be wise to really highlight and promote in a big way. It feels like this matchup was buried a bit in the Pac-12, but in a Big 12 that is still working to find its rivalries, it makes sense to push this one as much as possible. In an effort to support that movement, I want to make sure this game makes my road trip.
