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Celebration Bowl, Atlanta, GA (MEAC Champion vs. SWAC Champion), December 13th, 12 PM ET, ABC
Delaware State vs. Jackson State
LA Bowl, Inglewood, CA (Mountain West vs. Former PAC-12 Member), December 13th, 9 PM ET, ESPN
Bosie State vs. Arizona
Salute to Veterans Bowl, Montgomery, AL: (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 16th, 9 PM ET ESPN
Jacksonville State vs. Miami (OH)
Cure Bowl, Orlando, FL (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 17th, 5:30 PM ET ESPN
North Texas vs. Buffalo
In 1958, Buffalo received an invite to Orlando’s Tangerine Bowl. Unfortunately, the Bulls never played after the bowl demanded Buffalo leave their Black players home. In 2025, I have Buffalo finally making its Orlando bowl debut.
68 Ventures Bowl, Mobile, AL (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 17th, 9 PM ET ESPN
UConn vs. Old Dominion
Myrtle Beach Bowl, Conway, SC (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 19th, 12 PM ET, ESPN
Western Michigan vs. James Madison
Gasparilla Bowl, Tampa, FL (At-large vs. At-Large), December 19th, 3:30 PM ET, ESPN
USF vs. Virginia
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, Boise, ID (MAC vs. Mountain West), December 22nd, 2 PM ET, ESPN
Ohio vs. Colorado State
Boca Raton Bowl, Boca Raton, FL (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 23rd, 2 PM ET, ESPN
Bowling Green vs. Georgia Southern
New Orleans Bowl, New Orleans, LA (Conference USA vs. Sun Belt), December 23rd, 5:30 PM ET, ESPN
Louisiana Tech vs. South Alabama
Frisco Bowl, Frisco, TX (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 23rd, 9 PM ET, ESPN
Louisiana vs. UTEP
This would mark UTEP’s first appearance in a bowl other than the New Mexico Bowl since 2005, when they played in Mobile’s GMAC Bowl. The Frisco Bowl’s recent move to the Dallas Cowboys’ practice facility, The Ford Center at The Star, allows ESPN to take a chance on the Miners due to the venue’s 12,000-seat capacity.
Hawaii Bowl, Honolulu, HI (Mountain West vs. Conference USA), December 24th, 8 or 9 PM ET, ESPN
Hawaii vs. Liberty
GameAboveSports Bowl, Detroit, MI (MAC vs. Big Ten), December 26th, 1 PM ET, ESPN
Central Michigan vs. Rutgers
Rate Bowl, Phoenix, AZ (Big 12 vs. Big 10), December 26th, 4:30 PM ET, ESPN
Baylor vs. Maryland
First Responder Bowl, College Park, TX, (At-large vs. At-large), December 26th, 8 PM ET, ESPN
San Jose State vs. Mississippi State
This would mark San Jose State's first bowl appearance against a Power Four opponent.
Military Bowl, Annapolis, MD, (AAC vs. ACC), December 27th, 11 AM ET ESPN
Memphis vs. Syracuse
Pinstripe Bowl, Bronx, NY, (ACC vs. Big 10), December 27th, 12 PM ET, ABC
Louisville vs. Iowa
Fenway Bowl, Boston, MA (AAC vs. ACC), December 27th, 2:15 PM ET, ESPN
Tulane vs. Pitt
Pop-Tarts Bowl, Orlando, FL (ACC vs. Big 12), December 27th, 3:30 PM ET, ABC
Notre Dame vs. Colorado
There will be no Rocket Ishmail or Rashaan Salaam, but another Notre Dame-Colorado bowl game will be peak cinema.
Arizona Bowl, Tucson, AZ, (MAC vs. Mountain West), December 27th, 4:30 PM ET, The CW
UNLV vs. Northern Illinois
New Mexico Bowl, Albuquerque, NM, (Group of Five vs. Group of Five), December 27th, 5:45 PM ET
Air Force vs. Texas State
Gator Bowl, Jacksonville, FL, (ACC vs. SEC), December 27th, 7:30 PM ET, ABC
Georgia Tech vs. Florida
Former SEC foes collide in their first meeting since 1981.
Texas Bowl, Houston, TX, (SEC vs. Big 12), December 27th, 9:15 PM ET, ESPN
Oklahoma vs. TCU
Birmingham Bowl, Birmingham, AL (At-Large vs. At-Large), December 29th, 2 PM ET, ESPN
Auburn vs. East Carolina
Independence Bowl, Shreveport, LA (Conference USA vs. Big 12), December 30th, 2 PM ET, ESPN
Western Kentucky vs. Kansas
This is Conference USA’s lone guaranteed tie-in against a Power Four conference (thanks to BYU forfeiting its tie-in after joining the Big 12) so I expect the league to reward its champion with this coveted matchup.
Music City Bowl, Nashville, TN, (SEC vs. Big Ten), December 30th, 5:30 PM ET, ESPN
Indiana vs. Ole Miss
Alamo Bowl, San Antonio, TX, (Former PAC-12 member vs. Big 12), December 30th, 9 PM ET, ESPN
Texas Tech vs. USC
Texas Tech and USC last met in a bowl game on New Year's Day 1995, when 6-5 Texas Tech won a five-way tiebreaker to represent the Southwest Conference as champion in the Cotton Bowl. They lost to 7-3-1 USC 55-14.
ReliaQuest Bowl, Tampa, FL, (SEC vs. Big Ten), December 31st, 12 PM ET, ESPN
Tennessee vs. Minnesota
Sun Bowl, El Paso, TX, (ACC vs. Former PAC-12 member), 2 PM ET, CBS
Boston College vs. Utah
Citrus Bowl, Orlando, FL, (SEC vs. Big Ten), 3 PM ET, ABC
Nebraska vs. Alabama
A matchup like this would be a dream for the Citrus Bowl. These two have not met since 1978, and have three prior meetings in bowls, none since the 1972 Orange Bowl.
Las Vegas Bowl, Las Vegas, NV, (Former PAC-12 member vs. Big Ten), 3:30 PM ET, ESPN
Michigan vs. California
Armed Forces Bowl, Fort Worth, TX (At-Large vs. At-Large), January 2nd, 1 PM ET, ESPN
Army vs. Toledo
Liberty Bowl, Memphis, TN, (SEC vs. Big 12), January 2nd, 4:30 PM ET, ESPN
Vanderbilt vs. West Virginia
Surprisingly, Vanderbilt has not appeared in the Liberty Bowl since 2011.
Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Charlotte, NC (ACC vs. SEC), January 2nd, 8 PM ET, ESPN
Duke vs. South Carolina
Holiday Bowl, San Diego, CA, (ACC vs. Former PAC-12 school), Date TBA
SMU vs. Arizona State
Bahamas Bowl Replacement Bowl, TBD
New Mexico State vs. Southern Miss
First Round
#5 Penn State vs. #12 Navy
#6 LSU vs. #11 BYU
#7 Texas A&M vs. #10 Iowa State
#8 Oregon vs. #9 Clemson
Quarterfinals
Cotton Bowl, Arlington, TX, December 31st
#3 Miami vs. #6 LSU
Orange Bowl, Miami, FL, January 1st, 12 PM ET
#4 Georgia vs. #5 Penn State
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA, January 1st, 4 PM ET
#1 Ohio State vs. #10 Iowa State
Sugar Bowl, New Orleans, LA, January 1st , 8 PM ET
#2 Texas vs. #9 Oregon
Semifinals
Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, AZ, January 8th, 7:30 PM ET
#1 Ohio State vs. #5 Penn State
Peach Bowl, Atlanta, GA, January 8th, 7:30 PM ET
#3 Miami vs. #2 Texas
National Championship Game, January 19th, Miami, FL, 7:30 PM ET, ESPN
#1 Ohio State vs. #2 Texas
