Blue & Gold Illustrated: America's Foremost Authority on Notre Dame Football
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34 OCT. 10, 2026 BLUE & GOLD ILLUSTRATED GAME PREVIEW: BYU BY TYLER JAMES T h e re p o r te r wh o a s ke d BY U q u a r te rba c k Bea r B a c h m e i e r the specific yet open-ended question before the Cougars opened the season against Utah Tech probably anticipated how Bachmeier would respond. It's not easy to lead players into talk- ing about games beyond the one in front of them, but the reporter led Bachmeier down the path. If Bachmeier could pick one of the 11 regular-season games af- ter the season opener that he was most looking forward to, what would he pick? "Hmm. I'm not sure," Bachmeier first responded. But after a couple of seconds, Bach- meier landed on a predictable answer. "Probably Notre Dame," he said. "That'll probably be a big one. Yeah, probably that one." Hosting Notre Dame in Provo, Utah, for the first time since 2004 will be a big moment for the entire program. Both the Cougars and Irish have College Football Playoff aspirations and could use a win against the other to boost their postseason résumé. BEAR NECESSITIES Quarterback Bear Bachmeier leads 'dangerous' BYU offense Bachmeier earned 2025 Big 12 Offensive Freshman of the Year honors after throwing for 3,033 yards with 15 touchdowns and 7 interceptions, while also rush- ing for 527 yards and 11 scores. PHOTO COURTESY BYU ATHLETICS 2026 NOTRE DAME SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Sept. 6 vs. Wisconsin* W, 41-13 Sept. 12 Rice W, 52-0 Sept. 19 Michigan State W, 27-10 Sept. 26 at Purdue W, 49-10 Oct. 3 at North Carolina W, 37-26 Oct. 10 Stanford (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Oct. 17 at BYU TBA Oct. 31 vs. Navy^ (ABC/ESPN) 12 p.m. Nov. 7 Miami (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 14 Boston College (NBC) 3:30 p.m. Nov. 21 SMU (NBC) 7:30 p.m. Nov. 28 at Syracuse TBA * at Lambeau Field in Green Bay, Wis. ^ at Gillette Stadium in Foxborough, Mass. 2026 BYU SCHEDULE Date Opponent (TV) Result/Time (ET) Sept. 5 Utah Tech W, 63-7 Sept. 12 Arizona W, 28-17 Sept. 19 at Colorado State W, 41-23 Oct. 3 at TCU W, 17-10 Oct. 9 Iowa State (ESPN) 10:15 p.m. Oct. 17 Notre Dame TBA Oct. 24 at Central Florida TBA Oct. 31 Arizona State TBA Nov. 7 at Utah TBA Nov. 14 Baylor TBA Nov. 21 at Kansas TBA Nov. 28 Cincinnati TBA