The Players Era Festival in Las Vegas, Nevada, heard the concerns from the fans and created two brackets. The first will be an eight-team bracket the week of Nov. 16, the week before Thanksgiving.
The Gonzaga Bulldogs will be playing in the 16-team bracket the week of Nov. 23, the week of Thanksgiving. ESPN is now the exclusive broadcast partner of the popular event with Name, Image, and Likeness or NIL money on the line.
The Zags are guaranteed three high-major games, with potential opponents consisting of last year’s Players Era champion and reigning national champion Michigan Wolverines, Alabama Crimson Tide, St. John’s Red Storm, Louisville Cardinals, Tennessee Volunteers, Iowa State Cyclones, Miami Hurricanes, Texas Tech Red Raiders, Baylor Bears, Maryland Terrapins, Oregon Ducks, Creighton Bluejays, San Diego State Aztecs, TCU Horned Frogs, and Kansas State Wildcats. The title game will be the fourth opportunity for the final two remaining teams to get a quality victory in Sin City.
Here is how Gonzaga’s potential 2026-27 non-conference schedule looks, with not all dates/locations/times finalized:
vs. Purdue Boilermakers (Nov. 2, 2026, at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada)
Players Era Festival (week of Nov. 23, 2026, at MGM Grand Garden Arena/Michelob ULTRA Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada)
vs. Michigan State Spartans (Dec. 19, 2026, at Acrisure Arena in Palm Springs, California)
vs. Duke Blue Devils (Feb. 20, 2027, at Little Caesars Arena in Detroit, Michigan)
at Kentucky Wildcats (Rupp Arena in Lexington, Kentucky)
vs. UCLA Bruins (To be determined)
vs. Oregon Ducks (To be determined)
at Creighton Bluejays (Chi Health Center in Omaha, Nebraska)
The matchups with the Big Ten Conference’s UCLA Bruins and Oregon Ducks are on the fence, either taking place in the 2026-27 or 2027-28 season. UCLA would be the first game of their renewed two-year neutral site series, and Oregon the second game of their two-year neutral site series.
Arden Cravalho is a Gonzaga University graduate from the Bay Area… Follow him on X @a_cravalho
