Non-Playoff Bowls
December 12
Celebration Bowl
- Matchup: Delaware State vs. Alabama State
- Location: Atlanta, GA
- Time: 12 PM ET | ABC
- Tie-in: MEAC Champion vs. SWAC Champion
December 15
Salute to Veterans Bowl
- Matchup: Georgia Southern vs. Rice
- Location: Montgomery, AL
- Time: 5:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Group of Five vs. Group of Five
Frisco Football Classic
- Matchup: San Jose State vs. Fresno State
- Location: Frisco, TX
- Time: 9 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Group of Five vs. Group of Five
December 18
Boca Raton Bowl
- Matchup: Duke vs. FAU
- Location: Boca Raton Bowl
- Time: 11 AM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Group of Five vs. Group of Five
Gasparilla Bowl
- Matchup: USF vs. Troy
- Location: Tampa, FL
- Time: 12 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Group of Five vs. Group of Five
December 21
Myrtle Beach Bowl
- Matchup: North Texas vs. Old Dominion
- Location: Conway, SC
- Time: 11 AM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-large vs. At-Large
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
- Matchup: James Madison vs. North Dakota State
- Location: Boise, ID
- Time: 3:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-large vs. At-Large
There is a very real possibility that 12-win James Madison and North Dakota State squads get left out of the College Footbal Playoff. The winner of Western Michigan-Boise State seems poised to make the College Football Playoff early on. If that is the case, then ESPN will work its magic and get these two former FCS titans together in Boise, with NDSU being the de facto home team here.
December 22
Puerto Rico Bowl
- Matchup: Ohio vs. Coastal Carolina
- Location: San Juan, PR
- Time: 1:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-large vs. MAC
Cure Bowl
- Matchup: FIU vs. James Madison
- Location: Orlando, FL
- Time: 5 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Group of Five vs. Group of Five
Independence Bowl
- Matchup: Washington vs. Iowa State
- Location: Shreveport, LA
- Time: 8:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Legacy PAC-12 #6 vs. Big 12
Get ready to get confused. Per Jon Wilner’s report, the Independence Bowl will return to the PAC-12 bowl lineup. The legacy PAC-12 that is. This means that once again multiple bowls like the Independence will pick a team from the 2023 PAC-12 membership instead of the current PAC-12 core.
December 23
New Orleans Bowl
- Matchup: Delaware vs. Louisiana Tech
- Location: New Orleans, LA
- Time: 2 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Conference USA vs. Sun Belt
Conference USA reunion here. I originally had Delaware slated for a more nearby bowl, but I project Conference USA to have few bowl teams after the conference’s showing in the early weeks.
Armed Forces Bowl
- Matchup: Arizona vs. Army
- Location: Fort Worth, TX
- Time: 5:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Group of Five vs. At-large
Poinsettia Bowl
- Matchup: UCLA vs. Boise State
- Location: San Diego, CA
- Time: 7:30 PM ET | The CW
- Tie-in: New PAC-12 Member #2 vs. Former PAC-12 school
Frisco Bowl
- Matchup: Air Force vs. Oregon State
- Location: Frisco, TX
- Time: 9 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-Large vs. At-Large
December 24
New Mexico Bowl
- Matchup: Tulane vs. New Mexico
- Location: Albuquerque, NM
- Time: 2:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Mountain West vs. At-Large
Barring they make the College Football Playoff, New Mexico seems like a lock for their home town bowl since it will be on Christmas Eve and they haven’t appeared since 2016.
Hawai’i Bowl
- Matchup: San Diego State vs. Hawai’i
- Location: Honolulu, HI
- Time: 8 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: New PAC-12 member #2 vs. Mountain West
More PAC-12 confusion. Per Jon Wilner’s report, the Hawai’i Bowl will host a new PAC-12 team and a Mountain West team. The Hawai’i Bowl would have second choice of the 5 Mountain West departures to the PAC-12 and Texas State. Here, I going with Boise State, who has not appeared in the Hawai’i Bowl since 2013.
December 26
Pinstripe Bowl
- Matchup: Pitt vs. Iowa
- Location: Bronx, NY
- Time: 12 PM ET | ABC
- Tie-in: ACC vs. Big 10 non-CFP #5
Fenway Bowl
- Matchup: Temple vs. UMass
- Location: Boston, MA
- Time: 2 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: AAC vs. At-Large
After a huge win over Rutgers, the possibility of UMass playing its first bowl game since the 1978 Pioneer Bowl at Fenway Park is too much of an opportunity for the Fenway Bowl to pass up. Combine this with a Temple team I project to make its first bowl since 2019, and the Fenway Bowl could have a new attendance record on its hands.
Duke’s Mayo Bowl
- Matchup: Michigan vs. Virginia Tech
- Location: Charlotte, NC
- Time: 3:30 PM ET | ABC
- Tie-in: ACC vs. Big 10 non-CFP #3
68 Ventures Bowl
- Matchup: Miami (OH) vs. Missouri State
- Location: Mobile, AL
- Time: 5:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-Large vs. At-Large
Cactus Bowl
- Matchup: Baylor vs. Illinois
- Location: Tempe, AZ
- Time: 7:30 PM ET | ABC
- Tie-in: Big 12 vs. Big Ten non-CFP #6
December 28
Military Bowl
- Matchup: Memphis vs. Georgia Tech
- Location: Annapolis, MD
- Time: 2 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: American vs. ACC
Holiday Bowl
- Matchup: Utah vs. Clemson
- Location: San Diego, CA
- Time: 5 PM ET | The CW
- Tie-in: ACC vs. Legacy PAC-12 member #3
December 29
Birmingham Bowl
- Matchup: South Carolina vs. Tulane
- Location: Birmingham, AL
- Time: 2 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-Large vs. At-Large
Pop-Tarts Bowl
- Matchup: Cincinnati vs. Virginia
- Location: Orlando, FL
- Time: 5:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: ACC vs. Big 12
Alamo Bowl
- Matchup: Texas Tech vs. Oregon
- Location: San Antonio, TX
- Time: 9 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Legacy PAC-12 member #1 vs. Big 12
December 30
Gator Bowl
- Matchup: NC State vs. Mississippi State
- Location: Jacksonville, FL
- Time: 11:30 AM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: SEC vs. ACC
December 31
Music City Bowl
- Matchup: Minnesota vs. Vanderbilt
- Location: Nashville, TN
- Time: 12 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Big 10 non-CFP #4 vs. SEC
Reliaquest Bowl
- Matchup: Tennessee vs. Nebraska
- Location: Tampa, FL
- Time: 3 PM ET | ABC
- Tie-in: SEC vs. Big Ten non-CFP #2
Sun Bowl
- Matchup: SMU vs. USC
- Location: Las Vegas, NV
- Time: 3:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Former PAC-12 member #4 vs. ACC
The Sun Bowl has not had a Texas school participate in the game since 1999. SMU is always a logical choice.
Las Vegas Bowl
- Matchup: Oklahoma vs. Colorado
- Location: Las Vegas, NV
- Time: 3:45 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Legacy PAC-12 member #2 vs. SEC
This would be the first meeting between the former Big 8 and Big 12 conference rivals since 2010. Oklahoma leads the series 40-17-2.
January 2
Citrus Bowl
- Matchup: Penn State vs. Alabama
- Location: Orlando, FL
- Time: 3:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: Big Ten non-CFP #1 vs. SEC
This would be the 16th meeting between these two bluebloods, the first since 2011, and fourth meeting in a bowl game.
First Responder Bowl
- Matchup: Oklahoma State vs. Northwestern
- Location: College Park, TX
- Time: 3:30 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: At-Large vs. At-Large
Liberty Bowl
- Matchup: UTSA vs. Kansas State
- Location: Memphis, TN
- Time: 7 PM ET | ESPN
- Tie-in: SEC vs. Big 12 (American Conference Backup)
TBD Date Bowls
Arizona Bowl
- Matchup: Toledo vs. UNLV
- Location: Tucson, AZ
- Time: TBD | The CW
- Tie-in: MAC vs. Mountain West
College Football Playoff
First Round
- #5 Miami vs. #12 Western Michigan
- #6 Texas vs. #11 BYU
- #7 Ohio State vs. #10 Houston
- #8 Texas vs. #9 LSU
Quarterfinals
Fiesta Bowl
- Matchup: #2 Indiana vs. #10 Houston
- Location: Glendale, AZ
- Date: December 30th
Peach Bowl
- Matchup: #3 Georgia vs. #6 Oregon
- Location: Atlanta, GA
- Date: January 1st | 12 PM ET
Rose Bowl
- Matchup: #1 Notre Dame vs. #8 Oklahoma
- Location: Pasadena, CA
- Date: January 1st | 4 PM ET
Cotton Bowl
- Matchup: #4 Ole Miss vs. #5 Miami
- Location: Arlington, TX
- Date: January 1st | 8 PM ET
Semifinals
Orange Bowl
- Matchup: #1 Notre Dame vs. #4 Ole Miss
- Location: Miami Gardens, FL
- Date: January 14th | 7:30 PM ET
Sugar Bowl
- Matchup: #3 Georgia vs. #2 Ohio State
- Location: New Orleans, LA
- Date: January 15th | 7:30 PM ET
National Championship Game
- Matchup: #1 Notre Dame vs. #3 Georgia
- Location: Miami, FL
- Date: January 19th | 7:30 PM ET | ESPN
