How the Notre Dame-BYU football series, which begins Oct. 17 in Provo, was set up in a matter of days

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Most marquee nonconference college football games require months and months of negotiations before they can be set up, and are often scheduled years and years in advance.

But that wasn’t the case in the upcoming BYU-Notre Dame series, which was announced three days before Christmas last December and will begin on Oct. 17 at LaVell Edwards Stadium in Provo, somewhat surprisingly. School officials have a pretty good idea on the exact date of the 2027 game in South Bend, but have not publicly announced it.

In an exclusive interview with the Deseret News last week, BYU athletic director Brian Santiago publicly revealed for the first time how the agreement came about, how it required “incredible help and cooperation” from both the Big 12 and the ACC, and how “good fortune” smiled upon the Cougars and Irish because there were no other teams available for the open week each team has in 2027.

“The process showed that relationships and good communication still matter, a lot,” Santiago said.

Santiago also revealed that the series “isn’t just a one-hit wonder” and that the faith-based universities are already talking about matchups in other sports in the immediate future. However, don’t get excited about more football games beyond 2027, Cougar fans; BYU’s annual Power Four nonconference game — at least one per year is mandated by the Big 12 — is already booked through 2033.

“We both have said to each other, ‘Hey, this is just the start of something great for our two universities, well into the future, in multiple sports,’” Santiago said. “And that’s a mutual feeling between both of us. I am excited because we believe, especially in this day and age, the religious focus of both of our institutions is connected and needed.”

A timeline of how the agreement unfolded

• Shortly after Santiago succeeded Tom Holmoe as BYU’s athletic director a year ago, Santiago and Notre Dame athletic director, Pete Bevacqua, were connected by “a mutual friend” — whom Santiago declined to name — and they had a “great conversation” about the “unique natures and religious missions” of their universities.

“We just had this general conversation, and it was super positive,” Santiago said. “Our mutual friend is tied to some pretty significant names on the BYU side and the Notre Dame side. So there was some mutual connectivity.”

During that conversation, Bevacqua mentioned that “there was a possibility in the big matrix of college football scheduling that there may be an opening to play Notre Dame,” Santiago said. “So we both kind of planted that seed.”

• On Dec. 7, 2025, Notre Dame and BYU were the first two teams left out of the College Football Playoff’s 12-team field, and shortly thereafter Bevacqua and the Irish announced that they were withdrawing from consideration to play in a bowl game.

A lot of BYU fans were furious, because it had been widely reported that the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando would pit BYU against Notre Dame, and that was perceived in Provo as a much better opportunity for BYU than a matchup with any other team.

Santiago took the news in stride.

“We both have said to each other, ‘Hey, this is just the start of something great for our two universities, well into the future, in multiple sports.’ And that’s a mutual feeling between both of us. I am excited because we believe, especially in this day and age, the religious focus of both of our institutions is connected and needed.”

BYU athletic director Brian Santiago

Although the Big 12 had worked feverishly to get BYU to Orlando (and into a matchup with either Notre Dame or Miami) instead of the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio, where the Cougars had defeated Colorado 36-14 in 2024, the first-year AD understood Notre Dame’s plight and frustration.

“There was a lot out there in the hemisphere about BYU fans and their feelings about Notre Dame not playing in a bowl game, but we (BYU administrators) respected their decision,” Santiago said.

• After the furor died down about a week later, Santiago reached out to Bevacqua via text message and told him there was “huge respect, internally, for you guys” and that BYU understood Notre Dame’s frustration over the CFP snub — BYU, which went 11-2 in 2024 and 12-2 in 2025, has been the first or second team left out the past two years — and held “no ill-will whatsoever” toward the Irish.

The next day, Bevacqua called Santiago back.

“He said, ‘Hey Brian, what if we play next year in Provo?’” Santiago said. “The timing of it was fortunate, obviously. I was like, ‘Yeah, let’s play.’”

BYU football coach Kalani Sitake is on record saying the Cougars want to play the best competition available, whether they are in a P4 conference or an independent, as they were for 12 years.

• Notre Dame’s interest in a 10th and 11th meeting with BYU (Notre Dame leads, 7-2) was incredibly fortunate for BYU, because on Dec. 17, the Cal Bears informed BYU that they were pulling out of a two-game series with the Cougars, the Sept. 12, 2026, game in Provo and the 2027 return trip to Berkeley. Cal withdrew because the ACC — to which the Bears belong — is moving to a nine-game schedule next year, rather than the previous eight-game slate for its teams.

That left a desperate BYU searching for a Power Four opponent in both 2026 and 2027 — before Bevacqua called.

“So what had happened is Notre Dame had been working on finishing a deal (with USC), a longstanding thing, and for whatever reason, between the two of them, it wasn’t happening,” Santiago said. “And this is the magical thing: We had to make one quick adjustment to play here in Provo, and it had to fit in the Big 12 scheduling matrix. So we had to have Big 12 help; Notre Dame had to have ACC help, and it all worked out.”

Wednesday, Notre Dame announced that “the tradition of the Irish ending the season in California will resume” and noted that the Irish will play Stanford on Nov. 27, 2027, at Stanford Stadium and Stanford will visit Notre Dame Stadium on Oct. 14, 2028.

• Last week, while also reflecting upon his first year as BYU’s AD and discussing the proposed expansion of the CFP to 24 teams — he’s in favor of it, in lockstep with the Big 12 — and some pending NCAA legislation regarding an age-based model of eligibility, Santiago summed up what scheduling the private Catholic university means to BYU, which is supported by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

“There is a way bigger play here to try to bring positive light to the Savior, a positive light to college athletics in a very unique way,” Santiago said. “Our institutions are well known for our religious missions. The fact that we are coming together, and both have a history of success in athletics … is amazing.

“We are looking forward to, hopefully, a lot more contests in the future,” he continued. “For now, we are super grateful that it worked out. I think it will be one of the most-watched games of the year when they come to Provo.”

One that took only a couple of days to set up — and again showed the power of relationships.

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