Now that we’ve had a few days to look over the 2025 Big 12 football schedule, I’m always interested to see how each team’s schedule breaks down. Who has long stretches? Who doesn’t? Who has a couple of tough road games in a row? Who has a well-timed or poorly-timed bye week?
All those things make a difference. Now in the Big 12, I think it’s genuinely too early to talk about contenders when breaking down the schedules. Yes, we have an idea who is going to be better than other teams. But this conference will still be the most wide-open of the Power 4. Just look at last year, when Arizona State was picked last and then made the College Football Playoff.
So right now, I’m looking at schedule set up, and these two teams stood out as having the best schedule set up.
Related: Ranking the Best Big 12 Football Game in Every Week of the 2025 Schedule
Iowa State Cyclones
Iowa State plays in Week 0 in Ireland against Kansas State. So while they have to start the season early, they end up getting three bye weeks.
They never play more than four games in a row. But their break down is four games in a row to start the season, bye week, three games in a row, bye week, and two games to wrap the season. Could you ask for a better-timed bye week schedule than that?
Iowa State will be coming off its second bye week playing a BYU team that will be on its sixth-straight game. That game could end up with major Big 12 implications. And right away, given those circumstances, which team would you take? Oh, and the game is in Ames.
- Saturday, Aug. 23: Kansas State (in Dublin, Ireland)
- Saturday, Aug. 30: South Dakota
- Saturday, Sept. 6: Iowa
- Saturday, Sept. 13: At Arkansas State
- Saturday, Sept. 27: Arizona
- Saturday, Oct. 4: At Cincinnati
- Saturday, Oct. 11: At Colorado
- Saturday, Oct. 25: BYU
- Saturday, Nov. 1: Arizona State
- Saturday, Nov. 8: At TCU
- Saturday, Nov. 22: Kansas
- Saturday, Nov. 29: At Oklahoma State
Cincinnati Bearcats
Cincinnati’s schedule is the other one that stands out to me with a great set up. First off, they get to kick off their season with a fun Thursday night match up inside iconic Arrowhead Stadium on a Thursday night vs. Nebraska. Then, they get a mini bye week before playing two home games.
Their bye week follows their three non-conference games to prepare for Kansas and try and get conference play off on a high note. Cincinnati plays six conference games in a row, before a perfectly-timed early November bye week, followed by three games to wrap up the 2025 college football season.
The only downside to this schedule is traveling to Utah at the end of six-straight games. That is a long trip for what will be a tired team. But three games, bye week, six games, bye week and three games is a great balance for a schedule. And Cincinnati only has that one really long road trip to Utah, otherwise they don’t have to travel to any of the teams out west, with nothing else further than Fort Worth to wrap the season.
- Thursday, August 28th: Nebraska (Arrowhead Stadium, Kansas City)
- Saturday, Sept. 6: Bowling Green
- Saturday, Sept. 13: Northwestern State
- Saturday, Sept. 27: at Kansas
- Saturday, Oct. 4: Iowa State
- Saturday, Oct. 11: UCF
- Saturday, Oct. 18: at Oklahoma State
- Saturday, Oct. 25: Baylor
- Saturday, Nov. 1: at Utah
- Saturday, Nov. 15: Arizona
- Saturday, Nov. 22: BYU
- Saturday, Nov. 29: at TCU
