The Big 12 is a quirky conference. It does things that are a little odd here and there. It gets sponsorships in ways that are sometimes eyebrow raising because they’re a little quirky. There’s been some unique and odd brand partnerships at times.
And that still doesn’t touch on how odd the conference can be with what actually happens on the field. Because what the Big 12 brings to the table in terms of football that is played is some of the most chaotic and bizarre and quirky football in the country.
There is so much parity in this particular conference and it’s long been a hotbed of innovation and schematic creativity.
And with the release of the 2026 Big 12 college football schedule, I think we’re going to see some games that will require some creative football schemes and also happen to yield a fair bit of chaos. There are some fascinating games on the horizon, Big 12 football fans. Here are three you should know about (that don’t involve Texas Tech).
No. 1: TCU Horned Frogs vs. North Carolina Tar Heels in Dublin, Ireland
I’m not exactly a huge fan of playing international football games for a few logistics and fan attendance related reasons, but I’m intrigued by this game largely because we got to see Sonny Dykes and the TCU Horned Frogs absolutely handle the North Carolina Tar Heels in Bill Belichick’s first game as a head coach at the college level.
A lot of folks were expecting the Tar Heels to just thrive this past season because they had Belichick as their head coach and those folks were certainly, 100 percent wrong. He lost 48-14 and it probably could have been a little worse if Dykes had wanted to put up a few more points. Now that matchup heads on over to Ireland. I’m curious as to what that will end up yielding.
No. 2: Arizona State vs. Texas A&M in College Station, Texas
Kenny Dillingham and the Arizona State Sun Devils will be heading to Aggieland to meet up with Mike Elko and the Texas A&M Aggies. I have no clue what to expect out of this one, but I just feel like the Sun Devils are going to be a bit outmatched here. Maybe?
Because I’m so uncertain about what this game might turn into, I’m fascinated by it. I also love that Dillingham and the Sun Devils aren’t afraid to go on the road to play a team like Texas A&M in the nonconference slate of games.
No. 3: Oklahoma State vs Oregon Ducks in Stillwater
I don’t think Eric Morris and the Oklahoma State Cowboys are going to come away from this one with a win, but I do think the Cowboys could make things a little interesting given the fact that they did just import a ton of talent that is familiar with Morris and the offense that he runs.
I expect Oregon to take this game seriously. Seemingly everything Dan Lanning does is a serious affair. I don’t think the Ducks will lose this one. But in what will be Morris’ first true test with Oklahoma State, I’m intrigued by what he does in this game to keep Lanning and Oregon on their toes.