Dave Wilson is an editor for ESPN.com since 2010. He previously worked at The Dallas Morning News, San Diego Union-Tribune and Las Vegas Sun.
A new era began in the Big 12 on Wednesday with the unveiling of the 2024-2027 conference football matchups for its 16 teams.Here’s the new-look Big 12 matrix: Nine conference games, with annual rivalry games between Utah-BYU and Arizona-Arizona statue added to the current slate.The Big 12 said this schedule, featuring nine conference games, prioritizes geography, historic matchups and rivalries as well as competitive balance.
Utah’s arrival means the Big 12 reunites a heated rivalry with BYU, marking the first time since 2010 that it’s a conference matchup for a game that has been played 101 times, last in 2021 as an early season matchup. headtopics.com
Arizona and Arizona State also import their Territorial Cup rivalry that dates to 1899, with those marking the only recurring game on each team’s league schedule for all four years of this slate.The Big 12 will compete as a 16-team conference for the first time in 2024.
Colorado, the Big 12’s prodigal son, was a charter member of the original league before helping to set off the first round of the league’s realignment, when the Buffaloes departed for the Pac-12 following the 2010 season. headtopics.com