During BYU’s and Utah’s joint 12-season tenure in the Mountain West Conference between 1999-2010, the Cougars and Utes battled in the regular-season finale every year except for 2001 and 2007.

On Wednesday, the Big 12 unveiled the 2026 football schedule. The Cougars will kickoff 2026 conference play a few weeks earlier than normal in a week two matchu

The 2026 Big 12 Conference football schedule released Wednesday includes all 16 programs playing nine conference games apiece, with a collective 13 nonconference games against Power Four opponents and Notre Dame.

While the 2025-26 college football season just ended on Monday night, the Big 12 will release the conference schedule for the 2026-27 campaign on Wednesday morning. On Tuesday evening ahead of its release, ESPN’s Pete Thamel reported a few tidbits that could be of interest to fans of the conference in general and of the BYU Cougars specifically.

A major shift is coming to the Big 12 as the conference will play its championship game on Friday night in 2026, signaling a bigger trend in college football.

BYU will ride into Lubbock having won 13 straight games, but has never defeated the Raiders since joining the Big 12. Young’s lads haven’t left a locker room with sad faces since Nov. 15 in TD Garden after losing by two points to then-No. 2 UConn, right around the corner from their home campus.