West Coast Schools Facing Incredibly Heavy Travel in 2026 Season

In 2026, college football teams along the West Coast will face an unprecedented amount of travel. Gautham Marthandan of the Action Network ranked the teams based on miles traveled, with the Hawai'i Rainbow Warriors standing out as the most affected. They are expected to travel over 37,000 miles, far exceeding any other team.

The Stanford Cardinals, located in California, are not far behind, with a travel distance of just under 22,000 miles. Following closely are the Sacramento State Hornets and the North Dakota State Bison, each traveling around 21,000 miles and 19,000 miles respectively.

Interestingly, Arizona State University has seen the greatest increase in travel distance, more than doubling their 2025 figure at nearly 18,000 miles. This is largely due to a road schedule that includes games in Florida, Texas, and Kansas. California schools, as West Coast teams in the Atlantic Coast Conference, are also heavily impacted, with several of the top 12 most-traveled squads being from the state, including USC, San Jose State, and UCLA.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Southeastern Conference teams dominate the least-traveled spots, with Alabama and Auburn ranking 137th and 138th respectively. The Alabama Crimson Tide and the Auburn Tigers will only travel around 2,500 miles and 2,200 miles respectively, a fraction of the distance traveled by the Stanford Cardinals and other West Coast schools.