Texas Longhorns Have Major Travel Advantage Next College Football Season

Do the Texas Longhorns have the advantage of travel on their schedule in 2026, or will they make any long trips across the country?

Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisian observes the second half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

One hidden advantage some teams have every season is how far they have to travel. For some programs, it's inevitable. Hawaii has no choice but to rack up miles in the Mountain West, while the West Coast teams in the ACC and Big Ten made regional conferences slightly less regional.

Some athletic directors do everything they can to schedule local teams and play as many home games as possible. The Georgia Bulldogs rarely play games outside the American Southeast, and their trip to Los Angeles for the 2023 national title game was twice their regular-season mileage.

The Texas Longhorns have several advantages in their 2026 season schedule. How far will Texas have to travel in 2026? Lucky for them, they rarely have to leave the Lone Star State.

Texas Longhorns Have Travel Advantage in 2026

Texas Longhorns linebacker Jonathan Cunningham arrives at the stadium before the game between the Texas Longhorns and the Oklahoma Sooners at the Cotton Bowl. | Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The SEC is switching to a nine-game conference schedule in 2026, meaning some teams will play five home games one year and five away games the next, creating a year-to-year advantage.

Texas, meanwhile, will likely maintain a more regular balance than other conference foes. The Red River Rivalry’s long-standing tradition as a neutral-site game at the Cotton Bowl Stadium in Dallas gives the Longhorns four true home games, four true road games and one neutral-site game, thanks to the protected rivalry.

This helps assist in Texas’s low projected mileage for the 2026 season. The Longhorns are only expected to travel 2,226 miles this season, according to Texas Football Life on X. This is the lowest total among all Division I programs in Texas.

In addition to the Cotton Bowl Stadium being just a multi-hour road trip away from Darrell K Royal–Texas Memorial Stadium, the Longhorns’ last game of the season is in College Station, Texas. The Texas A&M Aggies host this season’s rivalry game, and Kyle Field is fewer than 100 miles away as the crow flies.

Texas Longhorns tight end Gunnar Helm celebrates with the crowd after the game against the Texas A&M Aggies at Kyle Field. | Troy Taormina-Imagn Images

Furthermore, every Texas non-conference game this season will be at home, as the Longhorns welcome Texas State, Ohio State and UTSA to Austin, Texas.

The Longhorns have four true road games this season. The first comes in Week 4, when they travel to Neyland Stadium in Knoxville, Tenn., to take on the Tennessee Volunteers. Texas opens its SEC schedule with a challenging road trip before taking a break with a timely, early bye week.

After this trip — the longest of the regular season — Texas plays Oklahoma in Dallas before returning to Austin for a trio of home games. Texas travels again to Columbia, Mo., to play the Missouri Tigers at Faurot Field, which is fewer than 700 miles away in a straight line.

A return home to play Arkansas marks Texas's last home game before its final trip out of the state for the regular season. Traveling to Baton Rouge, La., Texas takes on the LSU Tigers at Tiger Stadium, about 400 miles away.

Texas Longhorns celebrate after running back Quintrevion Wisner runs for a touchdown in the first half against the Vanderbilt Commodores at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium. | Scott Wachter-Imagn Images

The 2026 season marks the Longhorns’ third season in the SEC, and as a result, the team is making long-awaited trips. Texas has played Tennessee just three times, and the teams have never played in Knoxville.

The last time the Longhorns went to Columbia was in 2011, and the last trip to Baton Rouge came in 1953.

If the Longhorns deliver on their high expectations, trips to the SEC Championship Game or College Football Playoff could be in order. If Texas plays for the SEC title, it would add a roughly two-hour flight to Atlanta to the ledger.

A CFP bid, though, is less predictable; Texas could host a first-round game or get a bye, and there are six different locations for quarterfinal and semifinal games. Next year's College Football Playoff National Championship, meanwhile, is in Las Vegas at Allegiant Stadium.

Texas Longhorns wide receiver DeAndre Moore Jr. makes a touchdown catch against the Georgia Bulldogs during the second half in the 2024 SEC Championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. | Brett Davis-Imagn Images

Texas A&M enjoys a similar advantage, with 2,714 projected miles for 2026. Meanwhile, TCU has to travel 6,712 miles for its schedule. Despite having nine games in Texas, the Horned Frogs travel to Ireland for the season-opener against the North Carolina Tar Heels.

The Longhorns could take advantage of this low travel total to stay well-rested as they look to win their first SEC football title.