Baylor vs. Utah is not a Big 12 conference game: Here’s why

Baylor and Utah are both in the Big 12 Conference this year. But Saturday's matchup between the Bears and Utes won't be tallied in the conference win-loss column.

That's because the game was agreed to back in 2015 as part of a non-conference home-and-home series.

Why is Baylor v. No. 11 Utah a non-conference game?

Baylor and Utah will play Saturday's game as part of their non-conference schedules because at the time of the agreement, Baylor was a member of the Big 12 and Utah was a member of the now-essentially defunct Pac-12.

The two played the first game in the series last season in Waco, Texas with the Utes coming out on top 20-13. It was the first-ever meeting between the two programs.

So, fans should be prepared to see the 2-0 or 1-1 record of the winner and loser in the overall win-loss column and not the conference win-loss column in the Big 12 standings.

Is the Big 12 the only conference with this problem?

This season, yes. The Big 12 has two games where current conference foes will play in a non-conference game scheduled years ago.

On top of Baylor vs. No. 12 Utah on Saturday, No. 20 Arizona will play No. 17 Kansas State on Sept. 14.

The Big Ten will soon have the same issue in coming seasons. For example, UCLA and Wisconsin will play each other in 2029 and 2030 as part of their respective non-conference schedules despite the Bruins joining the Big Ten this year.

For a completely separate reason, the ACC already has this issue. Virginia and NC State agreed to schedule each other in non-conference play in 2025 and 2026 because the current ACC model didn't have the two playing until 2027, according to Action Network's Brett McMurphy.

The new college football landscape is confusing and it's going to continue to be that way for years to come until realignment settles down and scheduling formats work themselves out.