The NFL is over, but college football is back. Spring practices are beginning around the country as March begins. With the return of the CFB, the new Pac-12 is here, and a bunch of teams are trying to make an immediate impact. As the emergence of “Superconferences” continues to dominate the sport, the new Pac feels like a throwback. There are only eight teams, it’s regional, and most of these squads have reasonable NIL markets. There shouldn’t be too many teenage multi-millionaires in this league. But how is the Pac-12 handling their scheduling operations for 2026, and what’s this flex week thing? This article will look at everything regarding the Pac’s schedule for the upcoming year and what it means for each program.
The Basics:
Before we dive deeper, let’s break down the basics.
Each team will play a four-game non-conference schedule. For teams in this league, it’s an opportunity to bolster their resume. The Pac-12 may be considered a power conference, but it’s not; it’s a step below the Power Four leagues and a step up from mid-majors. That’s reality.
Either way, this league still offers teams a direct path to the College Football Playoff.
This year’s non-conference slate feels vital to the Pac’s growth because it’s the first impression. If teams like Fresno State, Washington State, and Boise State all get blown out in week one, it’ll be hard to recover. The Bulldogs, Cougars, and Broncos can prove their worth from the jump, as they face three OG Pac-12 teams: USC, Washington, and Oregon.
But let’s triangulate back.
Weeks 1-4 will be the non-conference games, 5-12 the seven conference matchups with one bye week, and week 13 will be flexing. More on that to come.
For this inaugural season, five of the league’s 12 matchups against Power Four opponents will take place in week one.
Along with the three previously listed, Texas State is on the road against Texas, and Oregon State travels to Houston.
Toughest Schedules:
Even though it’s early, two teams have the toughest slates this season. The lucky two are Oregon State and Utah State. Both teams face some difficult non-conference opponents and untimely scheduling during conference play.
The Beavers travel to Houston in the opener and then host Texas Tech the following week. They should be able to pick up some wins against Montana and UTEP before the Pac-12 kicks off. And then they get a winnable contest against Colorado State, but then things get tough again.
They play four of the projected top teams in the conference over six weeks. They get San Diego State, WSU, Fresno State, and Boise during this stretch.
The other team, who’s playing their tiny violins, is Utah State. The Aggies travel to Washington and Utah in the non-conference. This doesn’t give them much time to replace Bryson Barnes; Barnes did everything on offense for USU last year.
They open their season against Idaho State, which is a must-win, and host Troy three weeks later.
In Pac-12 play, they start in Boise, which is a worst-case scenario, and at the host Washington State, which has made some recruiting noise in the off-season.
The schedule lightens a bit over the next two weeks.
But then they host Fresno State and travel to San Diego for back-to-back matchups.
Flex Week:
The flex week might prove a revolutionary concept in college football.
The gist is that the Pac-12 has the opportunity to change matchups that benefit the conference in week 13.
For this season, here’s what we know so far.
Utah State, Colorado State, Fresno State, and Washington State will host a matchup this week. This ensures that every team in the conference gets four home games against Pac-12 opponents as well as six total home contests.
If these games were to be played today, the matchups would be Boise State vs. Utah State, Texas State vs. Colorado State, San Diego State vs. Fresno State, and Oregon State vs. Washington.
The other rule within this concept is that no team can play at the same venue twice during the regular season.
This flex model should create rivalries akin to the old days of college football. New times with an old school feel, the new Pac-12 could prove special.
Sources:
https://pac-12.com/news/2026/2/9/general-the-new-pac-12-announces-its-2026-football-schedule.aspx
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