The college football season is still seven months away from kicking off, but it is never too early to look ahead at the exciting matchups across the state of Texas in the 2022 season. The storylines in 2022 are endless. Can Texas turn a corner in year two under Steve Sarkisian? Can an all-time recruiting class instantly help Texas A&M compete for an SEC title? How long will it take new head coaches such as Joey McGuire, Sonny Dykes, and Rhett Lashlee to settle into their programs? 

Here are five games happening inside the state of Texas in 2022 that are must-watch events. Only in-state games count, so Texas A&M at Alabama can't make the list, for example. We'll go in order starting with the most intriguing contest in Texas for 2022. 

Sept. 24: TCU at SMU

No game in Texas intrigues me more than the mid-September clash between TCU and SMU because this time there is more than an Iron Skillet on the line. The Horned Frogs hired away Sonny Dykes from SMU following the season to add more spice to the evolving crosstown rivalry. Dykes went 30-17 in four full seasons as the head coach at SMU, leading the Mustangs to consecutive wins over TCU in 2019 and 2021. The last time TCU beat SMU was also the last time the Horned Frogs traveled to Gerald J. Ford Stadium – Sept. 7, 2018. 

Dykes helped SMU close the gap on TCU over the last few seasons. SMU is on a two-game winning streak after winning just two games against the Horned Frogs since 1980 prior to the win in 2019. Can first-year head coach Rhett Lashlee and the Mustangs continue to keep pace with its metroplex rivals? Will TCU regain control of the rivalry with Dykes in Fort Worth? Ford Stadium is undoubtedly the place to be in Week 4. The welcoming back given by the SMU students and fan base should rival the one Chris Beard received when the Longhorns traveled to Lubbock to face Texas Tech in men’s basketball. Rivalries are great for the sport, and ones with tension separate college football from most other activities. 

It'll also be the first time Gary Patterson isn’t standing on the TCU sideline in some capacity since 1997. Think about this: TCU and SMU have played for the Iron Skillet 100 times heading into the 2022 season. Patterson was coaching the Horned Frogs as a defensive coordinator or a head coach for 21 of those matchups. The two schools didn’t play in 2006 or 2020. 

Sept. 3: Houston at UTSA

I love a good litmus test. The two best G5 programs in Texas meet to start the season with the Cougars traveling to San Antonio to take on the budding Roadrunners. Houston went 12-2 in 2021 with a trip to the AAC championship game and a win over Auburn in a bowl game. A move to the Big 12 is on the horizon and Dana Holgorsen’s program should be considered a favorite in the AAC with a real shot at running the table and entering the College Football Playoff discussion. 

UTSA was also 12-2 in 2021. The Roadrunners began the season 11-0, entered the national rankings for the first time in program history, and claimed its initial C-USA championship. Jeff Traylor signed a 10-year contract extension and the Roadrunners announced plans to the move to the AAC, which currently houses Houston. Hosting the Cougars provides UTSA with a showcase game that continues to build fan support within San Antonio. 

The outpouring of support seen by the Roadrunners when they hosted the C-USA championship against Western Kentucky is the type of energy that propels programs to new heights. A Week 1 win in front of 30,000+ fans would put UTSA front in center in the city’s sports landscape. A blowout loss wouldn’t be the end of UTSA’s rise to relevance, but it would dampen expectations in the 2022 campaign. The Roadrunners must replace Sincere McCormick at running back and Clarence Hicks on the edge. Houston’s biggest loss is cornerback and returner Marcus Jones. Both teams are arguably favorites to win their respective conferences.  

Sept. 10: Alabama at Texas

Admit it, you’re excited for this game whether you love or hate the Longhorns. Texas fans will hope the additions of Quinn Ewers and the top offensive line class in the country can help the Longhorns hang with the big bad wolf led by Nick Saban, the most recent boss of Texas head coach Steve Sarkisian. Saban tends to humble his former employees when faced head on by a pupil. The Longhorns do field adequate offensive talent in Bijan Robinson and Xavier Worthy, both starting caliber players on any roster in America including the Crimson Tide. 

For those who hate Texas, the Week 2 matchup between Alabama and Texas potentially, and maybe probably, provides another opportunity to laugh at the Longhorns’ recent despair as a football program. Coming off a 5-7 season that included a defeat at home against Kansas isn’t normally the ideal time to host a motivated Alabama program that lost in the national championship game. Oh, and Alabama returns its Heisman winning quarterback and the best pass rusher in college football.  

Texas can shock the world and put a flag in the ground with an upset win in Austin. It’ll also be a big recruiting weekend for Texas and opportunity for fans to get a glimpse of the new reality of the impending move to the SEC. The outcome barely matters. All three potential outcomes – a Texas win, a close game, or a blowout win by Alabama – provides endless entertainment. It’s the closest thing in college football to watching the Cowboys in a playoff game. 

Nov. 26: LSU at Texas A&M

The SEC provides Texas A&M with a litter of quality games on the road and at Kyle Field, which is the best atmosphere in the state. The trip to Alabama will be a must-watch game considering Texas A&M pulled the upset in 2021, Saban will want revenge, and it’ll allow Aggies and Longhorns to compare their performances against a shared foe. 

For me, however, the budding rivalry between Texas A&M and LSU is becoming a contest I can’t miss. The two teams have split the last four games alternating wins and losses since 2018 when the Aggies stopped a seven-game losing streak to LSU with a 74-72 thriller that lasted seven overtimes. LSU won convincingly in 2019, the year the Tigers won a national title with Joe Burrow, but the Aggies rebounded the next year at home. LSU won the 2021 matchup in Baton Rouge. The two teams face off to close the regular season at Kyle Field. There could be a lot on the line if Texas A&M takes the next step under Jimbo Fisher and LSU performs well in year one under Brian Kelly. 

Oct. 29: Baylor at Texas Tech 

The Joey McGuire Bowl takes place in late October when Baylor travels to Lubbock to face a new-look Red Raiders. McGuire famously left the Texas high school football ranks in 2017 to help Matt Rhule settle into coaching college football in the state of Texas. McGuire shot up the ranks and was the second choice to Dave Aranda when Rhule bolted for the NFL. McGuire remained on the staff at Baylor until Texas Tech hired the former Cedar Hill head man to lead the Red Raiders late in the 2021 season. 

Baylor won the Big 12 championship in 2021, and the Bears are amongst the favorites again with Oklahoma undergoing a coaching change, Oklahoma State graduating key members of its 2021 squad, and the constant under-achieving of the Texas Longhorns. Baylor should field the best offensive and defensive lines in Texas. Add experience at quarterback, the wide zone rushing attack, and a stout defense led by Aranda, and Baylor might be favored in every game of 2022. 

Texas Tech is hoping to establish a long-term identity in 2022. A win over an in-state rival such as Baylor at home would provide McGuire and his staff with ammunition on the recruiting trail. The first year for a head coach can be tricky and there are sure to be ups and downs experienced by Texas Tech in 2022.