Pac-12’s 2026 football broadcast schedule and kickoff times announced

The new league will see 100% of its home slate featured across national linear television in partnership with CBS Sports, USA Sports and The CW

5/27/2026 12:00:00 PM

By: Pac-12 Conference


All kickoff times across all Pac-12 home games through the penultimate week of the regular season have been set and announced, leading up to the league’s home-and-home flex week


The new Pac-12 launches this fall and has announced its broadcast schedule for the 2026 football season in partnership with CBS Sports, USA Sports and The CW. The confirmed schedule features games to air nationally across linear television by the league’s media partners. In addition and also in partnership with its media partners, kickoff times for each of the Pac-12’s home football games have been announced, including non-conference over the first four weeks and the league’s intraconference schedule through the penultimate week of the regular season.
 
The Pac-12 and CBS Sports also announced today that the league’s football championship game, featured on CBS and Paramount+, will take place at 5 p.m. PT / 6 p.m. MT / 7 p.m. CT on Friday, Dec. 4. 
 
Pac-12 games on CBS, broadcast nationally over-the-air, will also be streamed live via Paramount+, including the league’s title game and three regular season matchups. Games broadcast nationally over-the-air on The CW will also be streamed live on the ESPN App as part of the ESPN Unlimited plan. 
 
Pac-12 road non-conference games will also be featured across the Big Ten Network, CBS Sports, ESPN Platforms, FOX, FS1, NBC and TNT and HBO Max as part of other conferences’ television agreements. Additional games will continue to be added to the schedule this fall as part of these agreements across other networks.
 
All kick times are subject to change.

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2026 Pac-12 Football Championship Game
 
The 2026 Pac-12 Championship Game on Friday, Dec. 4, will air on CBS and be streamed live on Paramount+ with a kick-off at 5 p.m. PT. For the first season of the new league, the Pac-12’s title game will be hosted at the home venue of the highest seed. Following its seven-game slate of conference-play, where each team will face every other team once, the Pac-12’s title matchup will be determined upon the conclusion of Week 12 (Nov. 21), two weeks ahead of the championship game, barring any potential tiebreaker considerations.
 
New Pac-12 Media Partnerships
 
The new Pac-12 will launch with CBS Sports, USA Sports and CW Sports as its media partners for all league-controlled football broadcasts. Across the three partnerships, the Pac-12 will see 100% of its football slate featured across national linear television, including national over-the-air broadcasts and wide-reach cable television, culminating with the Pac-12 championship game on CBS and Paramount+.
 
As part of the partnerships, Pac-12 Enterprises, the broadcast production arm of the conference, will be heavily involved in the production and presentation of the Pac-12’s football slate in collaboration with each partner.
 

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Home-and-Home Flex Matchup
 
For the final week of the regular season, Week 13, the Pac-12 will feature a first-of-its-kind flex scheduling model in which the league retains the right to adjust matchups based on the best interests of the conference, including College Football Playoff (CFP) considerations at that time. 
 
Projected matchups for the final week, with all four games to take place on Saturday, Nov. 28 and not to be confirmed until six days prior at the latest, include:
  • Boise State at Utah State
  • Texas State at Colorado State
  • San Diego State at Fresno State
  • Oregon State at Washington State
In any flexed format for Week 13 matchups, home teams will include Colorado State, Fresno State, Utah State and Washington State. The format ensures a minimum of six home games for each Pac-12 member as well as four home games each against fellow Pac-12 opponents. Further considerations will be taken into account should any flex occur among the stated projected matchups.

 

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Opening a New Era
 
The 2026 season kicks off with an exciting Week 1 slate with all eight schools in action, including five games against teams that won 9-or-more games last season.  Fresno State is the first Pac-12 school to kickoff the season with a special Friday night tilt with USC at The Coliseum on September 4 (6pm PT on FOX).  
 
Saturday’s schedule includes three strong non-conference road games with Oregon State, in JaMarcus Shephard’s head coaching debut, visiting Houston (9am PT on ESPN), Boise State heading back to Eugene for a rematch of their 2024 thriller with Oregon (12:30pm PT on CBS), and Texas State looking to herd the Texas Longhorns in Austin (12:30pm PT on ESPN).  
 
Three more schools play their first ever games as Pac-12 members at home with Head Coach Jim Mora’s first game with Colorado State hosting rival Wyoming in the Border War (3pm PT on USA Network), Utah State welcoming Idaho State (4pm PT on CBS Sports Network) and San Diego State hosting Portland State (6:30pm PT on USA Network).
 
Then on Sunday to close out the opening weekend, the first ever season-opening Apple Cup pits Washington State, and the debut of Head Coach Kirby Moore, against rival Washington in Seattle at 1pm PT on NBC.   
 
Special Date Games
 
While Fresno State (Friday) and Washington State (Sunday) open up the season on special dates, the 2026 campaign will feature two more weekday special date games during conference play, including:

  • Friday, October 9:  Washington State at Utah State (6pm PT on The CW)
  • Thursday, October 15:  Colorado State at Texas State (5pm PT on CBS Sports Net)
2026 Pac-12 Football Schedule Strength
 
Across the 13-week season, the Pac-12’s 2026 football schedule includes a number of notable highlights, including:
  • Of the Pac-12’s 24 non-conference games vs. FBS opponents, 20 are against teams that were bowl eligible in 2025, with 17 teams going to postseason games (Pac-12 schools have two games each against Washington and UTSA while Kansas State opted out of the postseason). The only four FBS opponents in 2026 that were not bowl eligible in 2025 are San Jose State (3-9), UCLA (3-9), UTEP (2-10) and Wyoming (4-8).
  • Pac-12 teams will face six teams that played in their FBS conference championship game last season, including three who won their conference:
    • Texas Tech (Big 12 champ) at Oregon State (Sat., Sept. 12, 4:30pm PT on CBS)
    • North Texas (American runner-up) at Texas State (Sat., Sept. 19, 9am PT on USA Network)
    • BYU (Big 12 runner-up) at Colorado State (Sat., Sept. 19, 4:30pm PT on CBS)
    • James Madison (Sun Belt champ) at San Diego State (Sat., Sept. 19, 7pm PT on The CW)
    • Troy (Sun Belt runner-up) at Utah State (Sat., Sept. 26, 4:30pm PT on The CW)
    • Western Michigan (MAC champ) hosts Boise State (Sat., Sept. 26, time/network TBD)
  • The Pac-12 will face three teams that competed in the 2025 College Football Playoff (CFP) including Texas Tech and James Madison matchups as well as Boise State visiting Oregon (Sat., Sept. 5, 12:30pm PT on CBS)
  • Of the Pac-12’s eight non-conference games against FCS opponents (one per school), six of those games are against teams that went .500-or-better last season, including two games against teams that competed in the 2025 FCS Playoffs:
    • South Dakota (FCS quarterfinalist) at Boise State (Sat., Sept. 19, 7pm PT on CBS Sports Network)
    • Montana (FCS semifinalist) at Oregon State (Sat., Sept. 19, 8pm PT on USA Network)
  • Overall for the league’s 32 total non-conference games:
    • 12 games vs. teams from the Big 12 (6), Big Ten (5) and SEC (1)
    • 11 games vs teams that won 10+ games in 2025
    • 15 games vs teams that won 9+ games
    • 23 games vs teams that won 7+ games
    • 25 games vs teams that were .500 or better
Top Five Football League
 
Over the last five seasons since 2021, and considering future conference compositions beginning with the 2026 season (as of date of this release), the new Pac-12 has stacked up competitively as a Top 5 conference across a number of notable datapoints, including:
  • The fourth-best overall winning percentage (.537) for any league behind only the SEC (.612), Big Ten (.591) and Big 12 (.554).
    • Six of the Pac-12 eight schools have a .500 or better record over that span, tied with the Big 12 for highest percentage (75%)
  • The fifth-best average FPI ranking (78) behind the SEC (28), Big Ten (40), Big 12 (46) and ACC (52).
  • The fifth-best average SP+ ranking (74) behind the SEC (29), Big Ten (44), Big 12 (52) and ACC (58)
  • The fifth-best SportSource Analytics Team Success average rating and ranking (42.9, 74) behind the SEC (65.6, 33), Big Ten (60.1, 43), Big 12 (55.3, 48) and ACC (49.8, 59).
  • One of only five conferences to have seen more than half their football membership ranked at some point in the AP Top 25 poll over the last five seasons (75%, 6 of 8), including the SEC (100%, 16 of 16), Big 12 (94%, 15 of 16), ACC (88%, 15 of 17) and Big Ten (83%, 15 of 18).
  • One of only five conferences to have seen more than half their football membership ranked at some point in the CFP Top 25 over the last five seasons (63%, 5 of 8), including the SEC (94%, 15 of 16), Big 12 (94%, 15 of 16), Big Ten (78%, 14 of 18) and ACC (71%, 12 of 17).

In addition, the new Pac-12 saw 75% of its collective future membership (6 of 8) reach bowl eligibility and participate in the postseason in 2025, the highest percentage of membership for any conference last season.

Full 2026 Broadcast Schedule
 

Day Date Time (PT) Game Network
 WEEK 1 (NO BYES)
Friday Sept. 4 6:00 PM Fresno State at USC FOX
Saturday Sept. 5 9:00 AM Oregon State at Houston ESPN
Saturday Sept. 5 12:30 PM Texas State at Texas ESPN
Saturday Sept. 5 12:30 PM Boise State at Oregon CBS/Paramount+
Saturday Sept. 5 3:00 PM Wyoming at Colorado State USA
Saturday Sept. 5 4:00 PM Idaho State at Utah State CBSSN
Saturday Sept. 5 6:30 PM Portland State at San Diego State USA
Sunday Sept. 6 1:00 PM Washington State at Washington NBC
 WEEK 2 (NO BYES)
Saturday Sept. 12 9:00 AM Washington State at Kansas State TNT/HBO MAX
Saturday Sept. 12 12:30 PM Utah State at Washington BTN
Saturday Sept. 12 12:30 PM UTSA at Texas State CW
Saturday Sept. 12 3:00 PM Memphis at Boise State USA
Saturday Sept. 12 4:00 PM Southern Utah at Colorado State CBSSN
Saturday Sept. 12 4:15 PM San Diego State at UCLA BTN
Saturday Sept. 12 4:30 PM Texas Tech at Oregon State CBS/Paramount+
Saturday Sept. 12 7:30 PM Sacramento State at Fresno State CBSSN
 WEEK 3 (NO BYES)
Saturday Sept. 19 9:00 AM North Texas at Texas State USA
Saturday Sept. 19 12:30 PM Utah State at Utah FOX
Saturday Sept. 19 12:30 PM Duquesne at Washington State USA
Saturday Sept. 19 4:30 PM BYU at Colorado State CBS/Paramount+
Saturday Sept. 19 7:00 PM South Dakota at Boise State CBSSN
Saturday Sept. 19 7:00 PM James Madison at San Diego State CW
Saturday Sept. 19 8:00 PM Montana at Oregon State USA
Saturday Sept. 19 8:00 PM Fresno State at San Jose State FS1
 WEEK 4 (NO BYES)
Saturday Sept. 26 TBD Colorado State at UTSA ESPN Platforms
Saturday Sept. 26 TBD Boise State at Western Michigan TBD
Saturday Sept. 26 TBD San Diego State at Toledo TBD
Saturday Sept. 26 3:00 PM Incarnate Word at Texas State USA
Saturday Sept. 26 4:30 PM Arizona at Washington State CBS/Paramount+
Saturday Sept. 26 4:30 PM Troy at Utah State CBSSN
Saturday Sept. 26 6:00 PM Oregon State at UTEP MW+
Saturday Sept. 26 7:00 PM Rice at Fresno State CW
 WEEK 5 (NO BYES)
Saturday Oct. 3 3:00 PM Oregon State at Colorado State USA
Saturday Oct. 3 4:30 PM Utah State at Boise State CBSSN
Saturday Oct. 3 6:30 PM Fresno State at Washington State USA
Saturday Oct. 3 7:30 PM Texas State at San Diego State CW
 WEEK 6 (BYES: COLORADO STATE, TEXAS STATE)
Friday Oct. 9 6:00 PM Washington State at Utah State CW
Saturday Oct. 10 3:00 PM San Diego State at Oregon State USA
Saturday Oct. 10 7:30 PM Boise State at Fresno State CW
 WEEK 7 (BYES: BOISE STATE, UTAH STATE)
Thursday Oct. 15 5:00 PM Colorado State at Texas State CBSSN
Saturday Oct. 17 3:00 PM Washington State at Oregon State USA
Saturday Oct. 17 7:30 PM Fresno State at San Diego State CBSSN
 WEEK 8 (BYES: FRESNO STATE, OREGON STATE)
Saturday Oct. 24 3:00 PM Boise State at Washington State USA
Saturday Oct. 24 4:30 PM Utah State at Texas State CBSSN
Saturday Oct. 24 6:30 PM San Diego State at Colorado State CW
 WEEK 9 (NO BYES)
Saturday Oct. 31 12:30 PM Colorado State at Utah State USA
Saturday Oct. 31 4:00 PM Washington State at San Diego State CBSSN
Saturday Oct. 31 7:00 PM Texas State at Boise State CW
Saturday Oct. 31 4:00 OR 8:00 PM Oregon State at Fresno State USA
 WEEK 10 (BYES: SAN DIEGO STATE, WASHINGTON STATE)
Saturday Nov. 7 3:00 PM Boise State at Colorado State USA
Saturday Nov. 7 6:30 PM Fresno State at Utah State USA
Saturday Nov. 7 7:30 PM Texas State at Oregon State CW
 WEEK 11 (NO BYES)
Saturday Nov. 14 1:00 PM Fresno State at Texas State CW
Saturday Nov. 14 3:00 PM Oregon State at Boise State USA
Saturday Nov. 14 6:30 PM Utah State at San Diego State USA
Saturday Nov. 14 7:30 PM Colorado State at Washington State CBSSN
 WEEK 12 (NO BYES)
Saturday Nov. 21 3:00 PM Washington State at Texas State USA
Saturday Nov. 21 4:30 PM Colorado State at Fresno State CW
Saturday Nov. 21 6:30 PM San Diego State at Boise State USA
Saturday Nov. 21 7:30 PM Utah State at Oregon State CBSSN
 WEEK 13 (FLEX) (ROAD: BOISE ST., OREGON ST., SAN DIEGO ST., TEXAS ST.)
Saturday Nov. 28 TBD TBD at Colorado State TBD
Saturday Nov. 28 TBD TBD at Fresno State TBD
Saturday Nov. 28 TBD TBD at Utah State TBD
Saturday Nov. 28 TBD TBD at Washington State TBD
 WEEK 14
Friday Dec. 4 5:00 PM Pac-12 Championship Game (TBD vs. TBD) CBS/Paramount+