The BYU Cougars and Oregon State Beavers will play in the 2028 Vegas Kickoff Classic, it was officially announced Wednesday.
“We are excited to be in Las Vegas for the 2028 Vegas Kickoff Classic to face a quality opponent in Oregon State,” said Brian Santiago, BYU director of athletics. “ESPN and the Vegas Kickoff Classic team are valued partners of ours, and we are grateful for long-standing relationships with them. We know Cougar Nation shows up in Vegas. We can’t wait for another great game in a great environment.”
Allegiant Stadium is the home of the NFL’s Las Vegas Raiders and also the UNLV Rebels of the Mountain West Conference. The stadium opened in 2020 and has a seating capacity of 65,000, which is expandable to 71,835.
“Las Vegas continues to be an ideal setting to kick off the college football season in a meaningful way,” said Clint Overby, ESPN Events vice president of events. “In the previous Vegas Kick Offs, we have set records both in attendance and viewership. We are looking forward to hosting these great programs and their fans and providing them a fantastic Vegas Kick Off experience.”
Oregon State was previously scheduled to host BYU on Sept. 9, 2028 at Reser Stadium in Corvallis, Ore. However, we reported that the game was canceled with a stipulation that the teams would seek to reschedule the game. It’s not currently known if this is that rescheduled game or if the two teams will still meet in Corvallis at a later date.
“We’re excited to have two regional rivalries involving national programs help fill our upcoming slate of games,” said John Saccenti, executive director of the Vegas Kickoff Classic and Las Vegas Bowl. “We have a successful history of both BYU and Oregon State competing in our city and know Las Vegas is a perfect location to match two old rivals to kick off the 2030 season when Arkansas and Texas Tech come to town.”
A Vegas Kickoff Classic for the 2030 season was also announced Wednesday, which will feature the Texas Tech Red Raiders facing the Arkansas Razorbacks over Labor Day weekend.
Future Vegas Kickoff Classic Games
2027 – Miami vs. Utah
2027 – North Dakota State vs. Montana State
2028 – BYU vs. Oregon State
2029 – Montana vs. South Dakota State
2030 – Texas Tech vs. Arkansas
