COLLEGE FOOTBALL BOWL GUIDE
Monday, Dec. 21 Myrtle Beach Bowl: Appalachian State vs. North Texas
Appalachian State looks to keep its perfect postseason record intact. The Mountaineers have won all five of their bowl games since joining the Football Bowl Subdivision before the 2015 season. North Texas hopes to avoid a second straight losing season and break its three-game bowl losing streak.
Tuesday, Dec. 22 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Tulane vs. Nevada
Tulane won four of its last five games after losing four of its first six. The only loss in the last five games was a 30-24, two-overtime thriller against Tulsa. Nevada opened with five straight wins before losing twice in its last three games.
Boca Raton Bowl: UCF vs. BYU
BYU won its first nine games before losing 22-17 at now-No. 9 Coastal Carolina on Dec. 5, with that game being a late addition to the schedule after a coronavirus-related postponement of Coastal Carolina’s game against No. 23 Liberty. UCF started 2-0 and spent the first four weeks of this season in the AP Top 25, peaking at No. 11 in late September before falling out of the poll.
Wednesday, Dec. 23 New Orleans Bowl: Louisiana Tech vs. Georgia Southern
Georgia Southern can surpass last year’s win total with a win under coach Chad Lunsford. Four of Georgia Southern’s five losses came by eight or fewer points. Louisiana Tech is going for a seventh straight bowl victory under coach Skip Holtz, who is also pursuing his 150th career victory.
Montgomery Bowl: Florida Atlantic vs. Memphis
Memphis won four of its last five games, including a closing 3027 victory over Houston when Riley Patterson made a 47-yard field goal as time expired. Florida Atlantic is in its first season under Willie Taggart, who is 61-65 with head coaching stops including Oregon and Florida State.
Thursday, Dec. 24 New Mexico Bowl: Houston vs. Hawaii
Houston has played only once since mid-November after games against Tulsa and SMU were canceled. They’re coming off a 30-27 loss at Memphis. Hawaii won two of their last three, with the loss coming at home to MWC champion San Jose State.
Friday, Dec. 25 Camellia Bowl: Buffalo vs. Marshall
Marshall won its first C-USA Eastern Division title since 2014. Had its seven-game bowl winning streak snapped with a 48-25 loss to UCF in the Gasparilla Bowl. Buffalo captured the MAC Eastern Division championship and only loss came to Ball State, 38-28, in the MAC title game. Dropped from the Top 25 with that defeat.
Saturday, Dec. 26 Gasparilla Bowl: South Carolina vs. UAB
UAB earned its second straight Conference USA title by defeating Marshall 22-13 in the league championship game Friday. South Carolina fired coach Will Muschamp during a six-game skid that closed their regular season.
Cure Bowl: Liberty vs. Coastal Carolina
Liberty has posted its best regular season in school history and look to finish with a second consecutive bowl win. Coastal Carolina-completed the first unbeaten regular season in school and Sun Belt history (8-0), including Top-25 wins over then-No. 8 BYU and No. 21 Louisiana and Power 5 win over Big 12 Kansas in the opener.
First Responder Bowl: UTSA vs. Louisiana Lafayette
UTSA opened the season with three straight victories, then lost four of their next five before closing with three straight wins. Louisiana Lafayette was declared Sun Belt co-champions along with No. 9 Coastal Carolina (No. 12 CFP) after their Sun Belt championship game matchup was canceled.
LendingTree Bowl: Georgia State vs. Western Kentucky
Georgia State won three of its last four games. Allowed averages of just 18.3 points and 334.7 yards in its last three games, including wins over South Alabama and Georgia Southern and a loss to Appalachian State. Ranks seventh in FBS with 3.56 sacks per game. Western Kentucky closed the season with three straight wins over Southern Miss, FIU and Charlotte.
Tuesday, Dec. 29 Cheez-It Bowl: Miami vs. Oklahoma State
Oklahoma State seeks its 10th bowl victory in their 15th consecutive bowl appearance. The Cowboys are 19-11 in bowl games. Miami looks to end a three-game bowl losing streak. The Hurricanes finished third in the ACC, with games against Duke postponed and Wake Forest canceled because of COVID-19-related issues.
Alamo Bowl: Texas vs. Colorado
Colorado was unbeaten until a 38-21 loss to Utah on Dec. 11. It also lost linebacker Nate Landman to a season-ending ankle injury. Texas will be without offensive lineman Samuel Cosmi and linebacker Joseph Ossai, who have declared for the NFL draft. Texas has won four of five and is coming off a 69-31 win over Kansas State.
Wednesday, Dec. 30 Duke’s Mayo Bowl: Wake Forest vs. Wisconsin
Wake Forest has been buoyed by a plus-13 turnover margin, and they have returned three interceptions for touchdowns. Wake Forest has scored 40 points in four of its eight games, but the Demon Deacons lost two of those. Wisconsin is set to extend its Big Ten-leading streak to 19 consecutive seasons playing in a bowl.
Music City Bowl: Missouri vs. Iowa
Missouri just missed their second consecutive six-win regular season but are back in the postseason under first-year coach Eli Drinkwitz. Iowa enters with a six-game winning streak that earned second place in the Big Ten West Division. They outscored opponents 214-83 during the run.
Cotton Bowl: Oklahoma vs. Florida
Oklahoma has won six consecutive Big 12 titles, the latest coming after beating Iowa State 27-21 on Saturday in the same stadium where they will now play the Cotton Bowl. Florida has lost its last two games, with a home loss to LSU before the 52-46 loss to No. 1 Alabama in the SEC title game. Standout TE Tyle Pitts is bypassing the Cotton Bowl to turn pro.
Thursday, Dec. 31 Armed Forces Bowl: Mississippi State vs. Tulsa
Tulsa’s only losses this season came against ranked opponents. They lost their opener 16-7 at then-No. 11 Oklahoma State and fell to No. 8 Cincinnati 27-24 on a field goal as time expired in the AAC championship game. Mississippi State had 26 first-time starters this season, tied for most in the FBS.
Arizona Bowl: San Jose State vs. Ball State
Ball State won its first MAC championship since 1996, the year before the title game originated, by beating Buffalo 38-28. A six-game winning streak carried them to their first winning record since 2013. San Jose State is one of the biggest stories in college football this year after making an unbeaten run to the Mountain West Conference championship. They were forced to play three straight games out of the state of California due to the coronavirus pandemic, including a 34-20 win over Boise State in the title game in Las Vegas.
Liberty Bowl: West Virginia vs. Tennessee
West Virginia will be without linebacker Tony Fields, the Big 12’s leading tackler, after he announced earlier this month he will skip the Mountaineers’ bowl game to focus on his preparations for the NFL draft. Tennessee lost seven of its last eight games after opening the season with wins against South Carolina and Missouri.
Texas Bowl: TCU vs. Arkansas
Arkansas is on a four-game losing streak, including a 52-3 rout at the hands of No. 1 Alabama in their last game. It won only three games. TCU is on a three-game winning streak. It won five of their final six games after losing three of their first four.
Friday, Jan. 1 Peach Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Georgia
Cincinnati has three wins over Top 25 teams this season and joined Clemson as the nation’s only two teams to be ranked among the top 20 teams in scoring and scoring defense. Georgia played only three home games after its final regular-season game against Vanderbilt was canceled due to the Commodores’ COVID-19 roster limitations. Georgia seniors have a 43-9 record with one SEC championship and three SEC Eastern Division titles.
Citrus Bowl: Northwestern vs. Auburn
Northwestern won six times against a Big Ten-only schedule, with a Dec. 5 game at Minnesota canceled, under Pat Fitzgerald. In addition to the Ohio State loss, Northwestern lost at Michigan State on Nov. 28. Auburn won six times in an SEC-only schedule, including four of their last six. And on Dec. 13, the Tigers fired Gus Malzahn as coach after eight seasons while designating defensive coordinator Kevin Steele as the interim coach.
College Football Playoff Semifinal No. 1: Alabama vs. Notre Dame
The ACC title game loss to Clemson snapped Notre Dame’s 16game winning streak, longest in the FBS. Irish QB Ian Book has more completions (701) than any quarterback in school history except Jimmy Clausen. Alabama is two wins away from Nick Saban’s sixth national championship. Saban’s teams are 12-5 in postseason games. The Tide are back in the four-team playoff after missing it for the first time last year.
Sugar Bowl (College Football Playoff Semifinal No. 2): Clemson vs. Ohio State
Ohio State got in to the playoff despite playing only six games this season because of COVID-19 issues. Buckeyes QB Justin Fields had a season-low 114 passing yards in the Big Ten Championship after a thumb injury hampered his throwing. He also threw two interceptions. In last weekend’s win over Notre Dame, Clemson’s QB Trevor Lawrence overcame an early interception and completed 25 of 36 passes for 322 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another score. Lawrence is a Heisman Trophy frontrunner who came back hot after missing time with COVID-19.
Saturday, Jan. 2 Gator Bowl: North Carolina State vs. Kentucky
Kentucky’s Mark Stoops is set to become the first coach to lead the Wildcats to five consecutive bowl appearances. The Kentucky defense has allowed opponents only 30 scores in 40 red zone trips this season. N.C. State enters the game on a four-game winning streak. This is the sixth bowl invitation in Dave Doeren’s eight seasons as N.C. State’s coach.
Outback Bowl: Indiana vs. Ole Miss
Indiana was left out of the New Year’s Six games, but they’ll have a chance to face a Southeastern Conference team in a Florida bowl. Indiana lost quarterback Michael Penix Jr. to a late-season injury, but Jack Tuttle led the Hoosiers to a win over Wisconsin. Indiana’s lone loss was by seven at playoff-bound Ohio State. It hasn’t been a great season for Ole Miss under new coach Lane Kiffin, but the Rebels did put up 48 points against Alabama in an October loss.
Fiesta Bowl: Oregon vs. Iowa State
Iowa State was good on both sides of the ball, finishing third in the Big 12 in total offense (441.1 yards per game) and defense (343). RB Breece Hall led the nation with 1,436 yards rushing and scored 19 TDs in 11 games. Oregon, which finished second in the Pac-12 North, won its second straight conference title with a 31-24 win over USC. The Ducks are 2-0 all-time in the Fiesta Bowl with wins over Colorado in 2002 and Kansas State in 2013.
Orange Bowl: Texas A&M vs. North Carolina
Texas A&M: is the winner of seven straight and lost only to No. 1 Alabama this season. It’ll be Texas A&M’s first time playing in the state of Florida since Dec. 31, 2018, when the Aggies rolled past N.C. State in the Gator Bowl at Jacksonville. North Carolina scored 41 or more points seven times in 11 games this season. With Michael Carter (1,245 yards) and Javonte Williams (1,140), the Tar Heels have two of the top six rushers in the country.