By Marissa Essenburg | Sports Writer
Just 13 days after adding former five-star quarterback and Florida transfer DJ Lagway, Baylor football took another step toward the future Wednesday morning when the Big 12 unveiled the Bears’ 2026 schedule.
The Bears will host six of their 12 regular-season games at McLane Stadium during the 2026 campaign.
The Bears will begin the year in familiar fashion, taking on Auburn on Sept. 5 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, marking an early Power Four test. The Tigers beat Baylor in the 2025 season opener in Waco, 38-24; the Bears will have a chance to respond in kind to open next season.
Baylor returns to Waco for a three-game home stand beginning Sept. 12 against Prairie View A&M, marking the first-ever meeting between the two programs. The Bears will close out non-conference play Sept. 19 against Louisiana Tech.
Big 12 play opens Sept. 26, as Baylor hosts Colorado and welcomes head coach Deion Sanders to Waco for the first time since he took over the program in 2023. The meeting renews a series that last delivered a dramatic finish in 2024, when the Buffaloes escaped with a 38–31 overtime win in Boulder after a Hail Mary forced extra time and a goal-line fumble sealed the outcome.
Conference play then carries Baylor west, sending the team to Tempe, Ariz., on Oct. 3 for its first Big 12 road test against Arizona State.
The Sun Devils knocked off the Bears in Waco 27-24 this fall, led by quarterback Sam Leavitt, running back Raleek Brown and wide receiver Jordyn Tyson. None are expected to return for 2026, and Kentucky transfer Cutter Boley is the early favorite to take over at quarterback.
After a bye week, Baylor returns home Oct. 17 to host Big 12 foe TCU in a series the Horned Frogs narrowly lead 60-54-7. The matchup brings the rivalry back to Waco for the first time since the Bears hit a walk-off field goal to win 37-34 in the teams’ last meeting at McLane Stadium.
A return to the road awaits Baylor on Oct. 24, sending the Bears to Lawrence, Kan., for a meeting with the Jayhawks. Baylor has won 14 straight games in the series.
The road swing continues against UCF on Oct. 31 in Orlando, Fla., marking the fourth all-time meeting between the programs. Baylor leads the series 2–1, highlighted by a 36–35 comeback win in 2023 — the largest in program history — and a 30–3 victory in Waco in 2025.
Baylor opens November in Waco, hosting Iowa State on Nov. 7 during Homecoming week. The Cyclones return to McLane Stadium after spoiling Baylor’s momentum in 2024, erasing a second-half lead in a 43–21 win and adding another chapter to a series shaped by dramatic in-game swings.
The Bears then head back on the road Nov. 14 to face BYU, continuing a series that has produced tight finishes since BYU’s addition to the Big 12. It will be the sixth meeting between the programs, with BYU winning the last two, including a double-overtime contest in Provo, Utah, in 2022.
The home slate wraps up Nov. 21, as Baylor hosts College Football Playoff quarterfinalist and reigning Big 12 Champion Texas Tech in the final regular-season game in Waco.
The season closes Nov. 28 in Houston. The Cougars ended the Bears’ 2025 campaign with a 31–24 heartbreaker in Waco.
