Open For Business: a Big 12 Podcast w/ John Kurtz
Open for Business with John Kurtz delivers college football and college basketball news from a Big 12 perspective.
We cover every Big 12 school—Arizona, Arizona State, Baylor, BYU, Cincinnati, Colorado, Houston, Iowa State, Kansas, Kansas State, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas Tech, UCF, Utah, and West Virginia. From Saturdays in the fall to March Madness, no program gets left out.
You’ll hear in-depth discussion on Big 12 football, basketball, and recruiting—along with how the league stacks up against the SEC and Big Ten. We cover conference realignment, NIL, TV deals, playoff battles, and national storylines like Deion Sanders and Colorado that impact the Big 12.
If you want college football and college basketball news from a Big 12 perspective, this is your podcast.
Episodes
46 episodes
Big 12 Money Crisis: A Big 12 Power Says It's Broke; K-State is Bleeding Cash
Big 12 basketball has a money problem, and Kelvin Sampson just said the quiet part out loud. After Houston’s win, the Hall of Fame coach admitted the Cougars are broke, raising a bigger question for the conference: if one of the Big 12’s best p...
•
1:01:37
Jerome Tang Makes K-State Crisis Even Messier; Is BYU in Trouble After KU Loss?
Kansas hoops chaos, BYU’s reality check, and the Jerome Tang situation just got uglier.In this live show, I break down the Darryn Peterson conundrum after KU vs BYU. He looked like the best player in the country…then barely played in th...
•
59:18
ESPN Finally Puts BYU in the College Football Playoff; Big 12 Making a Huge Playoff Mistake?
ESPN actually projected BYU and Texas Tech in the College Football Playoff, and Big 12 fans have every right to side-eye it. In this live show, I break down ESPN’s Way-Too-Early Top 25 (and what it really signals about BYU’s playoff path), why ...
•
59:47
Big 12 Gets a HUGE Playoff Win; But it Comes With a Catch
College Football Playoff is staying at 12 teams… and the Big 12 just locked in a guaranteed spot for its champion. That sounds like a win, but is this really stability – or just a pause before the SEC and Big Ten try to reshape the sport on the...
•
53:20
Texas Tech Gets a Gift Big 12 Schedule; Finebaum Takes a SHOT at BYU; Top 5 Big 12 Games in 2026
Texas Tech just got the friendliest playoff path in America, BYU is carrying the Big 12’s reputation into a massive showdown with Notre Dame, and Paul Finebaum somehow managed to take an unnecessary drive-by shot at BYU while disrespecting Indi...
•
55:48
Uncapped Spending is Coming to College Football; Will Tech and BYU Rule the Big 12 Forever?
Many powerful leaders in college football want no revenue sharing cap anymore. Does that mean Tech and BYU are bound to rule the Big 12 forever moving forward?Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the key headlines, interv...
•
1:01:31
BYU Owning the Transfer Portal; Cougars Closing the Gap on Texas Tech
BYU is stepping up in the transfer portal in a way we haven’t seen before, and it changes the Big 12 favorites conversation. In this live show, I break down how BYU’s retention wins (Bear Bachmeier, LJ Martin, Parker Kingston and more) paired w...
•
50:02
The SEC Waves the White Flag: It Lost the War; Indiana Proves the Big 12 Can Win it All
The SEC narrative finally took a real hit, and it might actually stick this time.In this live episode of Open For Business (Big 12 Podcast), we’re talking about why the “SEC deserves special treatment” era is fading fast, what Ole Miss’...
•
1:05:35
Texas Tech Derangement Syndrome: Why College Football Hates the Red Raiders
Texas Tech has become a college football villain overnight, but is it fair? It's definitely not. Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the key headlines, interviews, and my analysis straight to your inbox. No more col...
•
36:03
Texas Tech Landing a Big 12 All-Star Team in the Portal; Sorsby to Tech; BYU Stealing Utah Players?
Texas Tech is putting together a Big 12 All-Star team in the portal and is likely to land Brendan Sorsby. The BYU-Utah-Michigan drama heats up. Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the key headlines, interviews, and ...
•
1:04:19
DISASTER for Texas Tech and the Big 12; Oregon Thumps Tech in Playoff Win
Texas Tech's offense plays its worst game of the season by far and Oregon thumps Texas Tech in the Orange Bowl. Big 12 Newsletter — Open For BusinessGet Big 12 news, playoff analysis, realignment talk and private capital breakd...
•
47:25
Will BYU and Utah Survive Having Staff and Players Raided by Kyle Whittingham?
Will BYU and Utah Survive Having Staff and Players Raided by Kyle Whittingham?BYU and Utah are finally finding out what life is like as true national winners — and that means watching Kyle Whittingham and Michigan circle their staffs and ro...
•
1:14:53
BYU Playoff Snub Looks Worse: The Numbers to Prove It; Texas Tech Can Win a Natty
About This EpisodeIn this episode of the Open For Business Big 12 Podcast, John Kurtz uses advanced metrics and SP+ to compare BYU to the actual playoff field, pushes back on the lazy “G5 doesn’t belong” narrative, examines how TV and reali...
•
1:09:34
Texas Tech Grabbing Big 12 Stars in the Portal?
📺 About This VideoIn this video, John Kurtz reacts to reports that Texas Tech is on the verge of landing Cincinnati quarterback Brendan Sorsby from the transfer portal. John lays out why Texas Tech’s huge NIL and donor backing, contract mov...
•
57:18
Is Kenny Dillingham Going to Michigan? Will Private Capital Kill the Big 12?
Get “Open For Business” Big 12 Newsletter:https://bit.ly/OFBNews12YTKenny Dillingham to Michigan? Big 12 New Era & Private Equity Money – live reaction and breakdown.The big boys are coming for Big 12 coaches again. After Sh...
•
53:48
Texas Tech CRUSHES BYU for Big 12 Title; Playoff Bye Coming; BYU OUT of the Playoff
Texas Tech drills BYU for the second time this season to win a Big 12 championship. The Red Raiders are heading for a first-round bye in the playoff and BYU is likely now out. Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the...
•
36:33
BYU Criminally Punished by Playoff Committee; Tech Gets a Playoff Bye; Notre Dame Left Out
The committee punished BYU for losing a conference championship game but didn't punish Alabama at all. Texas Tech gets a playoff bye. Notre Dame gets left out. Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the key headlines, ...
•
38:31
Kalani Sitake STAYING at BYU! HUGE Day for BYU; Cougars OUT of Playoff if they Lose to Tech
Kalani Sitake staying at BYU is one of the biggest days in BYU football history. The Cougars are ponying up big time to keep him. Bad news, though: they're out of the playoff without a win Saturday. Tech gets a top four spot.
•
41:16
ESPN Has Already Decided BYU is OUT of the Playoff; Media Hates Cinderella; Sitake to Penn State?
ESPN and the national media are shaping the College Football Playoff conversation in a way that leaves BYU on the outside looking in again, and it’s setting the Cougars up for failure. I break down how the playoff race really looks for BYU, Tex...
•
1:02:21
BYU and Texas Tech BOTH Win; Big 12 Will Get 2 in the Playoff OR Get a Playoff Bye
BYU and Texas Tech both took care of business, and now the Big 12 is positioned to either land two College Football Playoff bids or give Tech a top-four seed and a bye. I break down why this isn’t last year’s BYU team, how dominant Tech looked ...
•
40:02
National Reporter Has Definitive Proof BYU Should be in the Playoff + Why Yormark is Quiet Right Now
Why isn’t there a louder national push for BYU in the College Football Playoff race? In this video, I break down why the Big 12’s strategy may be happening more behind the scenes than on social media, how BYU’s blind resume stacks up against AC...
•
28:56
Why Won't Brett Yormark FIGHT for BYU? Cougars Screwed Again by Selection Committee
BYU is the first team out of the College Football Playoff field in the rankings this week despite a better resume than many teams in front of it. Why won't the Big 12 say anything??Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the...
•
12:03
Utah Wins WILDEST Game of the Big 12 Season; Major Controversy to End the Game; At Large Hopes Done?
Utah wins the wildest game of the Big 12 season in comeback fashion against K-State. It took some controversy and guts along the way. Are the Utes at-large hopes now dead?Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newsletter sending the key headl...
•
14:34
BYU Survives Nippert; Cincy Melts Down; Bear Bachmeier and LJ Martin Injured?
BYU pounds Cincinnati into the ground with its running game. Cincy turns it over twice and misses three field goals. Will LJ Martin and Bear Bachmeier have lingering effects from their injuries?Get “Open For Business” a Big 12 newslette...
•
28:01
Are Kyle Whittingham/Chris Klieman Retiring? Is the Big 12 Screwed Out of Multiple Playoff Spots?
In this video, I break down the full Big 12 playoff picture heading into the final week of the regular season, including how likely we are to get a Holy War rematch between BYU and Texas Tech in the Big 12 Championship Game. We’ll walk through ...
•
54:27