Only five days remain until the selection committee unveils the inaugural 12-team College Football Playoff bracket and individual and contract bowls make their selections from the remaining eligible teams.
Tuesday night’s CFP rankings release is the most important — save for the final announcement — in the system’s 11-year history. Where the committee ranks Alabama and Miami tonight likely indicates where the teams will end up in the postseason. For Miami, it’s either the CFP or the Pop-Tarts Bowl in Orlando, Fla. For Alabama, it’s either the CFP or probably the Citrus Bowl, which also is in Orlando. Considering neither team is playing in their conference championship game, any adjustments made on Sunday rightly will receive heavy scrutiny.
Exactly 82 teams became eligible for bowl games, which means there will be no 5-7 qualifiers. Among the most interesting bowl situations to watch is Michigan and Iowa. Although the Hawkeyes have a better record (8-4) and a fan base likely to travel well, the Wolverines (7-5) upset Ohio State and generate high television ratings. The ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa will choose between them, with the Music City Bowl likely to pick the other team.
Potential matchups to watch include Colorado–Iowa State in the Alamo Bowl and BYU-Clemson in the Pop-Tarts Bowl (if the Cyclones lose the Big 12 title game and Miami qualifies for the CFP). The Gasparilla Bowl in St. Petersburg, Fla., leads into the first CFP game on Friday, Dec. 20, so expect a matchup between well-known programs. We project Oklahoma-North Carolina.
Some bowls with early dates will announce their participants this week ahead of the full announcement on Sunday.
A friendly reminder: Most non-CFP bowls do not have to select teams in order of conference standings.
College Football Playoff
| Bowl/Playoff | Date | Team | Team | Location | Time (ET) | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Playoff |
Dec. 20 |
6. Penn State |
11. Miami |
State College, Pa. |
8 p.m. |
ABC/ESPN |
|
Playoff |
Dec. 21 |
5. Texas |
12. Arizona St (Big 12 champ) |
Austin, Texas |
Noon |
TNT |
|
Playoff |
Dec. 21 |
7. Notre Dame |
10. Indiana |
South Bend, Ind. |
3:30 p.m. |
TNT |
|
Playoff |
Dec. 21 |
8. Tennessee |
9. Ohio State |
Knoxville, Tenn. |
8 p.m. |
ABC/ESPN |
|
Fiesta |
Dec. 31 |
4. Boise State (G5 champ) |
Texas/Arizona State winer |
Glendale, Ariz. |
7:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Peach |
Jan. 1 |
3. SMU (ACC champ) |
Penn State/Miami winner |
Atlanta |
Noon |
ESPN |
|
Rose |
Jan. 1 |
1. Oregon (Big Ten champ) |
Tennessee/Ohio State winner |
Pasadena, Calif. |
5 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Sugar |
Jan. 1 |
2. Georgia (SEC champ) |
Notre Dame/Indiana winner |
New Orleans |
8:45 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Orange |
Jan. 9 |
Quarterfinal winner |
Quarterfinal winner |
Miami, Fla. |
7:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Cotton |
Jan. 10 |
Quarterfinal winner |
Quarterfinal winner |
Arlington, Texas |
7:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Championship |
Jan. 20 |
Semifinal winner |
Semifinal winner |
Atlanta |
7:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
Remaining bowls
| Bowl | Date | Team | Team | Location | Time (ET) | Network |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Bahamas |
Jan. 4 |
Northern Illinois (MAC) |
Jacksonville State (C-USA) |
Nassau, Bahamas |
11 a.m. |
ESPN2 |
|
Duke’s Mayo |
Jan. 3 |
Minnesota (Big Ten 6) |
Virginia Tech (ACC 5-7) |
Charlotte, N.C. |
7:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
First Responder |
Jan. 3 |
N.C. State (ESPN) |
Arkansas (ESPN) |
University Park, Texas |
4 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Gator |
Jan. 2 |
Duke (ACC 2-4) |
Florida (SEC 3-8) |
Jacksonville, Fla. |
7:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Texas |
Dec. 31 |
Baylor (Big 12 4) |
Missouri (SEC 3-8) |
Houston |
3:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Citrus |
Dec. 31 |
Illinois (Big Ten 2) |
Alabama (SEC 2) |
Orlando, Fla. |
3 p.m. |
ABC |
|
Sun |
Dec. 31 |
Louisville (ACC 5-7) |
Washington (Pac-12 5) |
El Paso, Texas |
2 p.m. |
CBS |
|
ReliaQuest |
Dec. 31 |
Michigan (Big Ten 3) |
South Carolina (SEC 3-8) |
Tampa, Fla. |
Noon |
ESPN |
|
Music City |
Dec. 30 |
Iowa (Big Ten 4) |
Ole Miss (SEC 3-8) |
Nashville, Tenn. |
2:30 p.m. |
ABC |
|
Independence |
Dec. 28 |
Memphis (AAC) |
West Virginia* (Pac-12 7) |
Shreveport, La. |
9:15 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Alamo |
Dec. 28 |
Iowa State (Big 12 2) |
Colorado (Pac-12 2) |
San Antonio, Texas |
9:15 p.m. |
ABC |
|
Military |
Dec. 28 |
Army (AAC 2) |
Georgia Tech (ACC 8-10) |
Annapolis, Md. |
5:45 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Arizona |
Dec. 30 |
Colorado State (MWC) |
Miami of Ohio (MAC) |
Tucson, Ariz. |
4:30 p.m. |
CW |
|
Pop-Tarts |
Dec. 28 |
BYU (Big 12 3) |
Clemson (ACC 2-4) |
Orlando, Fla. |
3:30 p.m. |
ABC |
|
New Mexico |
Dec. 28 |
Ohio (MWC)* |
UTSA (ESPN) |
Albuquerque, N.M. |
2:15 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Pinstripe |
Dec. 28 |
Nebraska (Big Ten 5) |
Boston College (ACC 5-7) |
Bronx, N.Y. |
Noon |
ABC |
|
Fenway |
Dec. 28 |
Pittsburgh (ACC 8-10) |
UConn (ESPN) |
Boston |
11 a.m. |
ESPN |
|
Vegas |
Dec. 27 |
USC (Pac-12 4) |
Texas A&M (SEC 3-8) |
Las Vegas, Nev. |
10:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Holiday |
Dec. 27 |
Syracuse (ACC 2-4) |
Washington State (Pac-12 3) |
San Diego, Calif. |
8 p.m. |
FOX |
|
Liberty |
Dec. 27 |
Kansas State (Big 12 5) |
LSU (SEC 3-8) |
Memphis, Tenn. |
7 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Birmingham |
Dec. 27 |
Vanderbilt (SEC 9) |
Tulane (ESPN) |
Birmingham, Ala. |
12/3:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Armed Forces |
Dec. 27 |
TCU (Big 12 7) |
Navy (ESPN) |
Fort Worth, Texas |
12/3:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
68 Ventures |
Dec. 26 |
Georgia Southern (Sun Belt) |
Western Kentucky (C-USA) |
Mobile, Ala. |
9 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Rate |
Dec. 26 |
Rutgers (Big Ten 7) |
Texas Tech (Big 12 6) |
Phoenix, Ariz. |
5:45 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
GameAbove |
Dec. 26 |
Arkansas State (Big Ten 8)* |
Toledo (MAC) |
Detroit |
2 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Hawaii |
Dec. 24 |
Fresno State (MWC) |
Liberty (C-USA) |
Honolulu, Hawaii |
8 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Idaho Potato |
Dec. 23 |
San Jose State (MWC) |
Buffalo (MAC) |
Boise, Idaho |
2:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Myrtle Beach |
Dec. 23 |
Coastal Carolina (ESPN) |
East Carolina (ESPN) |
Myrtle Beach, S.C. |
11 a.m. |
ESPN |
|
Gasparilla |
Dec. 20 |
North Carolina (ACC 8-10) |
Oklahoma (ESPN) |
Tampa, Fla. |
3:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Cure |
Dec. 20 |
USF (ESPN) |
Marshall (ESPN) |
Orlando, Fla. |
Noon |
ESPN |
|
New Orleans |
Dec. 19 |
Louisiana (Sun Belt) |
Sam Houston (C-USA) |
New Orleans |
7 p.m. |
ESPN2 |
|
LA Bowl |
Dec. 18 |
California (Pac-12 6) |
UNLV (MWC 1) |
Inglewood, Calif. |
9 p.m. |
ABC |
|
Boca Raton |
Dec. 18 |
Bowling Green (ESPN) |
James Madison (ESPN) |
Boca Raton, Fla. |
5:30 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Frisco |
Dec. 17 |
Texas State (ESPN) |
North Texas (ESPN) |
Frisco, Texas |
9 p.m. |
ESPN |
|
Camellia |
Dec. 14 |
South Alabama (ESPN) |
Western Michigan (ESPN) |
Montgomery, Ala. |
9 p.m. |
ESPN |
Notes: (ESPN) indicates an ESPN Events bowl. Teams can be moved between them. An asterisk (*) indicates a replacement team because a league was not able to fill all of its slots.
(Illustration: Demetrius Robinson / The Athletic, Photos: Don Juan Moore / Getty)
