Stanford football is entering a new era, and that era will look way different in a variety of ways. Not only will the Cardinal have a new head coach in Tavita Pritchard at the helm, but they will also face a new slew of rules for the 2026 season.

The league in September announced plans to have a nine-game slate, aligning with power-conference peers in the Big 12, Big Ten and Southeastern conferences. That came after debates and disagreement about the impact of unbalanced scheduling and access to the 12-team College Football Playoff.