Baylor Remains OOC Opponent In 2024 For Utah As Big 12 Releases Scheduling Matrix

SALT LAKE CITY – Utah football (along with the rest of the athletics department) will be embarking on a new adventure in the Big 12 as the conference just released its four-year scheduling matrix.

Perhaps of most note for the Utes is that Baylor will remain an out of conference game in 2024 despite the two teams being conference-mates.

Utah and Baylor scheduled a home and home before conference realignment brought the two together in the same conference. The Utes played the Bears earlier this season in their final year with the Pac-12. Utah and BYU were also going to meet in 2024 as out of conference foes, but that game is now an in-conference matchup.

The future is set.

Our 2024-2027 schedule matrix is here ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/lXFEvAsVUh

— Utah Football (@Utah_Football) November 1, 2023

Along with Baylor, the Utes are set to host Southern Utah in OOC play, but with the Cougars being moved to their in-conference schedule, they still have one open spot left to fill.

How Utah Football’s First Four Years In The Big 12 Shape Up

Here is what Utah football’s first four years in the Big 12 will look like minus out of conference.

BOLD = home, Italics = away

2024

• Arizona
• BYU
• TCU
• Iowa State
• Arizona State
• Colorado
• Houston 
• Oklahoma State
• UCF

2025

• Arizona State
• Colorado
• Texas Tech
• Kansas State
• Cincinnati
• BYU
• Baylor
• Kansas
• West Virginia

2026

• BYU
• Houston
• Kansas
• West Virginia
• Arizona
• Colorado
• TCU
• Iowa State
• Cincinnati

2027

• Arizona
• TCU
• Baylor
• Oklahoma State
• UCF
• Arizona State
• BYU
• Texas Tech
• Kansas State

Here are Utah’s Home and Away opponents in the @Big12Conference for the next four years.#GoUtes @KSLSports pic.twitter.com/QW9dfWnCbn

— Sam Farnsworth (@Samsworth_TV) November 1, 2023

How Utah Ended Up In The Big 12

There were a lot of points along the way that can be attributed to the Pac-12’s failure to survive.

Hiring Larry Scott as the conference commissioner and retaining him for too long is a big fault on the part of the now former Conference of Champions.

Being innovative (Pac-12 Network) but not understanding the undertaking or distributing the product properly was another failure. Add in having opportunities to remedy the situation and not checking them off the list.

 

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The Pac-12 also miserably failed at keeping pulse of where their teams were at, not only with the SoCal schools, but with Colorado, Oregon, and Washington as well. Arizona could be considered one more failure as it was alleged they were out the door as late as Thursday night before things lightened up a tad Friday morning.

Utah and ASU held out the longest and were some of the remaining Pac’s staunchest supporters, but a lack of a T.V. deal and trust ultimately tipped the tide in the Big 12’s favor.

Michelle Bodkin is the Utah Utes Insider for KSLsports.com and host of both the Crimson Corner Podcast (SUBSCRIBE) and The Saturday Show (Saturday from 10 a.m.–12 p.m.) on The KSL Sports Zone. Follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Threads: @BodkinKSLsports

 

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