Utah has had a lot of late kickoffs this season.

Actually, the No. 10 Utes have had a lot of late kickoffs since joining the Big 12 in 2024.

But let’s just focus on 2026 for now.

Utah is scheduled to kick off at 8:15 MDT against No. 14 Houston on Saturday. That will be the third straight game in which Utah has been scheduled in the late window and the fourth total this season.

The Utes got some luck on that front — if that’s what you want to call it — when their game against Kansas on Oct. 10 was moved up to 6 p.m. to avoid potential inclement weather.

Utah athletic director Mark Harlan is hopeful it won’t take more bad weather to avoid more late nights.

Harlan said the U. has spoken with both ESPN and the Big 12 about spreading those late kickoffs around moving forward.

“As happy as I was, quite candidly, about [ESPN’s ”College GameDay" coming], I was equally disappointed that we got another night game on ESPN,” Harlan said.

“I like our record at night, and I know our players love playing at night. But I know that is a sacrifice, and I just want to acknowledge that. Obviously, we’ve had four of these. I know one moved up a little bit because of the weather, and certainly one’s been on the road. But ESPN is a great partner. We’ve talked to them. We’ve talked to certainly [Big 12 commissioner] Brett Yormark about spreading this out.”

The Pac-12 had rules in place to protect programs from playing too many late-night games — contests that became lovingly referred to as “Pac-12 After Dark” — but the Big 12 doesn’t have those same restrictions.

In theory, programs could be asked to play at 8:15 p.m. every week.

“We’re honored to play. We’re honored to play anywhere. But I do know for the fans, it’s tough, and I know it’ll be a late night for everybody,” Harlan said.

Add in an early morning, too, with ESPN’s “College GameDay” coming to Salt Lake City this weekend.

“What I would say is this: come out, enjoy the festivities on Saturday, take a long nap, and come back and bring it.”

So does Utah’s AD expect more protection to be added when it comes to the late kickoffs?

“We came into the conference, and we inherited the deal, and so I understand it,” Harlan said. “The Pac-12 Conference was a little restrictive for the networks because we used to hear from them. Our biggest financiers are ESPN and Fox, and they’re great partners. They recognize that this is a lot too.”

He also worries that a string of late starts could take a toll on players. The Utah will get a reprieve on Halloween. Utah is scheduled to play at Cincinnati at 1:45 p.m. MDT.

“It’s not easy for these young people to turn around and recover, and that is a significant issue,” he said. “We got home at 5 a.m. on Sunday. That stuff matters, but ESPN had the first pick this week, and they picked the Utes, and that’s just where it went. Listen, we’re complaining about something, but what my concern really is is just the fans — too many of those start to really add up.”