Adjusting the 2023 football schedule

[Fido]

BYU Football Schedule 2023
SAT, 9/2 Tennessee - This is the 2nd game in a 2019/2023 series. I'd love to keep this and host Tennessee again if possible!
SAT, 9/9 @ Virginia - Bronco Mendenhall could get his wish and have the 2nd and 3rd games in the 2021/2023/2025 series dropped from the schedules.
SAT, 9/16 @ Utah State
SAT, 9/23 @ Arkansas - This is the 2nd game in a 2022/2023 series. I expect it to be dropped or maybe the whole series is dropped for someone else in 2022?
FRI, 9/29 Rice - This is the 1st game in 2023/2025 series and would be dropped.
SAT, 10/7 @ Fresno State - This is the 1st game in a 2023/2027 series and would be dropped.
SAT, 10/14
SAT, 10/21 Boise State
SAT, 10/28 USF - This is the 2nd game of a 2022/2023 series and would be dropped.
SAT, 11/4 UNLV - This is the 1st game in a 2023/2024 series that would be dropped.
SAT, 11/11 UCF - This game is the 1st game in a 2023/2024 series that would be dropped since they are now conference mates.
SAT, 11/18 Southern Utah - Probably kept but possibly moved up to the 9/9 slot?
SAT, 11/25 @ USC - This is the 3rd game in a 3 game series (2019/2021/2023)

This leaves 5 games on the OOC schedule.
SAT, 9/2 Tennessee
SAT, 9/9 Southern Utah - Rescheduled from 11/18
SAT, 9/16 @ Utah State
SAT, 10/21 Boise State
SAT, 11/25 @ USC

If there is only 3 OOC games, I think BYU has to choose between hosting Tennessee and a road game to USC. Having 2 P5 OOC games wouldn't make a ton of sense. I may take Tennessee here though USC on Thanksgiving weekend is a nice game.
Then you have to choose between a road trip to Utah State and hosting Boise State. For reasons explained in a minute, I'd keep Boise State and push the Aggie road trip to another season.

This would be my OOC schedule for 2023 unless they go 4 OOC games. In that case I add back in the @ Utah State game. It will be weird to have 3 OOC home games but the stars align for it this season.
SAT, 9/2 Tennessee
SAT, 9/9 Southern Utah - Rescheduled from 11/18
SAT, 10/21 Boise State

The key is going to be figuring out how to build your OOC schedule with a FCS team, and the regular rivalry games with Utah/Utah State/Boise State. Maybe you do an arrangement where you play 2 of the 3 in a 4 game OOC schedule (with a FCS game and a wild card game of your choosing). A 3 game OOC game almost surely means you have to rotate Utah/Utah State/Boise State or drop one or two of these from your regular schedule.

3 game OOC Schedule
FCS
Boise State or Utah State
Utah or P5

A 4 game OOC would increase the regularity of the rivalry games or have an occasional break with another team taking a spot (like Utah has done with Florida). If you don't play Utah, you could find another P5 to rotate in.

What are your thoughts?

[Fido]

Working out the 2024 schedule is a bit easier since we have fewer announced games and cleared up the @ UNLV and UCF games when fixing the 2023 schedule.

SAT, 8/31 UCF - This game is cancelled due to now being conference mates.
SAT, 9/7 @ Utah - After a 2 year break, I can't see this game being cancelled.
SAT, 9/14 Hawaii - This is the 1st game in a 2024/2025 series which I see being cancelled.
SAT, 9/21
SAT, 9/28 @ Wyoming - This is the 2nd game in a 2022/2024 series. Wyoming fans are furious the return game gets cancelled.
FRI, 10/4 Utah State - In the absence of Boise State on the schedule this year, this game probably stays. But USU fans want it to be a road game due to my cancelling it last year (assuming only 3 OOC games).
SAT, 10/12 Georgia Southern - This is the 2nd game in a 2021/2024 series which gets cancelled.
SAT, 10/19 @ East Carolina - This is the 2nd game in a 2022/2024 series which gets cancelled.
SAT, 10/26
SAT, 11/2 @ UNLV - This game was cancelled when I revised the 2023 schedule.
SAT, 11/9 @ NC State - This is the 1st game in a 2024/2030 series which gets cancelled.
SAT, 11/16 Dixie State - Likely keep the opponent, but ideally move to the vacated 8/31 date.
SAT, 11/23
SAT, 11/30

The 2024 OOC schedule becomes:
SAT, 8/31 Dixie State (rescheduled from 11/16)
SAT, 9/7 @ Utah
FRI, 10/4 Utah State

[EM_Puma]

I pity poor Tom having to spend so much time on relations and getting these schedules done and now having to scale back. Honestly, it's hard to pick who to drop and keep from 2023. What a shame, but it's one of those good problems to have to deal with.

[scott715]

Many will be just moved back.

[Fido]

I don't know how you move many of them back. Here is the number of currently scheduled games:

2023: 12 games (4 P5, 6 G5, 1 FCS, 1 Big 12)
2024: 10 games (2 P5, 6 G5, 1 FCS, 1 Big 12)
2025: 8 games (4 P5, 4 G5)
2026: 8 games (5 P5, 3 G5)
2027: 4 games (2 P5, 2 G5)
2028: 6 games (4 P5, 1 G5, 1 Big 12)
2029: 3 games (2 P5, 1 G5)
2030: 3 games (2 P5, 1 G5)
2031: 2 games (1 P5, 1 G5)
2032: 3 games (1 P5, 2 G5)
2033: 1 game (1 G5)
2034: 1 game (1 G5)
2035: 2 games (2 P5)

If the only games we agree would be removed are the 3 games against teams that will be part of the Big 12 (UCF, Houston), and were able to shuffle future games so you had 3 OOC games per year and signed no new games, your schedule would be full for the next 20 years--just on existing contracts 2023 and forward. That means adding no new Utah, Utah State, or Boise State games and only having a FCS game in 2 of those 20 years.

It is even worse if you desire to not have more than 1 P5 game in your 3 OOC games. There are 29 future scheduled P5 games. So in half of the next 20 years, you either play 2 P5s out of conference, or your P5 OOC schedule is full for the next 29 years--only facing Utah 5 times in those 29 years since that is all that is currently scheduled).

[KingCoug]

So it will be 9 Big 12 games and 3 out of conference? If that's the case, it would be ideal to have Utah and Utah State for two of those on a permanent basis or at least most years. The third could be whoever.

[Fido]

Many message boards seem to believe there is a good chance they may go to 8 conference games instead of 9. That will be interesting to see....

[scott715]

It would help us to play 8 but I don’t expect the concession from them.

[Fido]

Interesting note from FBSchedules.com regarding the Utah reschedule from 2020 to 2030:
The BYU Cougars are heading to the Big 12 beginning with the 2023 season. It’s expected that the move will not have an effect on the BYU-Utah series, but that could always change. Both schools have been open about scheduling each other when possible.

It will be interesting to watch this begin to take shape. They will need to be giving teams notice if games will be cancelled or rescheduled so I hope to start hearing the announcements.

[byufan4ever]

At least BYU was smart to include a clause in all of their games that if they got invited to a P5 conference then the game can easily go away. Personally, I want to keep Utah every year and Boise St. most years. Maybe we could do Boise St. every other year to give us more variety in who we play in our OOC. Utah St.? Only if we can't get anyone else...