The holiday week ahead brings us 16 college football bowl games. Each one of them carries its own unique program pairing with a special-edition backdrop (and sponsorship shenanigans). Though no two bowls are exactly alike, all have some pull for fans of the sport. With the College Football Playoff proceedings on break until New Year’s Eve, here’s what to watch between Monday and Saturday. Be on the lookout for accounting alligators and anthropomorphic pastries.
All times ET, all odds via BetMGM and rankings based on the CFP Top 25.
College football bowl game viewing guide (Dec. 22-27)
Watching in person? Get tickets on StubHub.
| Game | Time | TV | Stream |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Washington St. vs. Utah St. |
2 p.m., Mon. |
ESPN |
|
|
UNLV vs. Ohio |
9 p.m., Tue. |
ESPN |
|
|
Cal vs. Hawai’i |
8 p.m., Wed. |
ESPN |
|
|
New Mexico vs. Minnesota |
4:30 p.m., Fri. |
ESPN |
|
|
Georgia Tech vs. BYU |
3:30 p.m., Sat. |
ABC |
|
|
North Texas vs. San Diego St. |
5:45 p.m., Sat. |
ESPN |
|
|
Virginia vs. Missouri |
7:30 p.m., Sat. |
ABC |
ABC is free over the air. ABC and all ESPN networks also stream on ESPN Unlimited.
Monday
Washington State vs. Utah State (Famous Idaho Potato Bowl)
Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho
The week’s first game serves two wonky 6-6 crews and french fry stakes. It’s not the most glamorous grouping, but it could be razor close. The Aggies opened as narrow 1.5-point favorites; Bill Connelly’s SP+ model predicts a 28-24 Cougars win. That all sounds fun. Utah State QB Bryson Barnes leads the Mountain West Conference in yards per completion. Washington State DE (and Utah native) Isaac Terrell has seven sacks through 11 games.
From our celebration of the most unique bowl games: “Blue turf, full starch, can’t lose. Fine, either Washington State or Utah State will lose, but the audience stays unbeaten with one of college football’s most mesmerizing backdrops. The cobalt surface jumps off the screen, and when else do we get to spend a few hours in Boise’s high altitude? Other food baths are exercises in humiliation, but french fry baths are dignified. Bear Bryant would’ve approved, and he’d probably line his pockets with extra ketchup packets.”
Tuesday
UNLV vs. Ohio (Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl)
Ford Center at The Star in Frisco, Texas
UNLV comes in with 10 wins and a dice-rolling offense (35.9 points per game). Ohio is 8-4 and has one of the swiftest rushing attacks in the nation, averaging nearly 230 yards per game. As such, oddsmakers see a lit-up scoreboard, and neutral observers might get to see some pre-Christmas fireworks and a cold-brew bath for the winner.
The Bobcats are playing for themselves after their head coach was fired Wednesday. That’s a cue for senior RB Sieh Bangura to let loose. The Rebels counter with Anthony Colandrea, who airs it out as the Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year.
The other bowls:
- Toledo vs. Louisville (Boca Raton Bowl), 2 p.m. on ESPN
- Western Kentucky vs. Southern Miss (New Orleans Bowl), 5:30 p.m. on ESPN
Wednesday
California vs. Hawai’i (Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl)
Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in Honolulu
Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele was raised near Honolulu in Ewa Beach, but he is Cal’s quarterback amid a strong freshman season. Sagapolutele says that he’ll stay with the program after new head coach Tosh Lupoi visited him in Hawai’i. What a cool spotlight for the local slinger. Scheming from the other sideline is Timmy Chang, who has put together his first winning season in four tries. The Hawai’i coach (and former Hawai’i quarterback) will have tropical wind in his sails for this one-of-a-kind home bowl.
From our celebration of the most unique bowl games: “Golden Bears versus Rainbow Warriors on Christmas Eve. ‘Caloha’ is an S-tier portmanteau. Sheraton is the presenting sponsor, but this bowl is mostly isolated from the commercialism and steeped in local tradition. There’s a pregame lūʻau and a halftime performance from Hawai’ian luminaries Kapena. The stadium might have singular chill, but the home team’s entrance is volcanic.”
Friday
New Mexico vs. Minnesota (Rate Bowl)
Chase Field in Phoenix
Friday’s Phoenix affair has an SP+ projection of 25-25. The mirror match gets some sway from elite sack artists. New Mexico’s Keyshawn James-Newby totaled a Mountain West-leading eight sacks this season. Minnesota’s 6-foot-6 force, Anthony Smith, torched opposing offenses from the edge with 10 1/2 sacks. The Golden Gophers are going for their ninth straight bowl win, a stretch that dates back to 2015.
From Scott Dochterman’s bowl venue rankings: “The Phoenix area easily ranks among the best bowl locations with its temperate climate in late December. This game used to be played at Arizona State University, but it has been moved to Chase Field, the home of the Arizona Diamondbacks, which is equipped with a retractable roof. To improve fan visibility and broaden the viewing experience, the bowl brings in bleachers behind one of the sidelines, which is helpful.”
The other bowls:
- Central Michigan vs. Northwestern (GameAbove Sports Bowl), 1 p.m. on ESPN
- Florida International vs. UTSA (First Responder Bowl), 8 p.m. on ESPN
Saturday
Best on paper: No. 22 Georgia Tech vs. No. 12 BYU (Pop-Tarts Bowl)
Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
The non-CFP bowl to see. Emotions are running on high and panning out wide for BYU. The hype: 11 wins, extra national interest and ultimate dedication from head coach Kalani Sitake, who is staying in Provo despite Penn State’s all-out recruitment. The humility: a big Playoff committee snub and two rivalry losses to spoil an 8-0 start.
Freshman quarterback Bear Bachmeier and a clawing Cougars front seven can make statements on national TV. But Georgia Tech counters with edge of its own. The Yellow Jackets also squandered their 8-0 opening, and a tiebreaker kept them out of the ACC championship game. Senior QB Haynes King has almost 2,700 yards and 900 more on the ground. Come for the scorn and the scoring, stay for the Pop-Tarts’ “sacrifice to mouth heaven.”
BYU was No. 1 on David Ubben’s CFP snub list: “The Cougars went 11-2 in a power conference with two top-25 wins and two losses to a No. 4 team, and somehow found themselves on the outside of the top 10. They needed a little magic to beat Colorado, Arizona and Utah, but … they won. BYU’s strength of record was better than Alabama, Miami and Notre Dame. The only explanation is BYU failed the eye test.”
Chaos agent #1: No. 25 North Texas vs. San Diego State (Isleta New Mexico Bowl)
University Stadium in Albuquerque, N.M.
Dust and heat triangulate between Denton, San Diego and Albuquerque. North Texas holds double-digit wins for the first time in program history, and it leads all FBS offenses with 44.8 points per game. Mean Green freshman Drew Mestemaker (31 TDs to 7 INTs) has great arm strength and downfield vision. Nine-win San Diego State won’t be intimidated behind its fifth-ranked scoring defense (12.6 ppg). Senior cornerback Chris Johnson has four picks this year, and he’ll try to mess with Mestemaker before eyeing the NFL Draft. Mayhem awaits for this true style clash.
Chaos agent #2: No. 19 Virginia vs. Missouri (TaxSlayer Gator Bowl)
EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla.
We last saw Virginia take a torturous overtime loss in the ACC title game. The 10-win Cavaliers can vent their frustrations from the Florida swamp. Chandler Morris is a chaos quarterback, a “no no no YES!” kind of playmaker.
Mizzou has one-possession losses to Alabama and Vanderbilt, but it’s still seeking a first ranked win in 2025. Tigers RB Ahmad Hardy is a thrill. He paces the nation with an average of 130 rushing yards per game, liable to take a carry to the house with a sliver of space. A different quarterback will hand the ball off to Hardy on Saturday — freshman Matt Zollers gets the nod after starter Beau Pribula decided to enter the transfer portal.
From Scott Dochterman’s bowl venue rankings: “One college football’s oldest postseason games, the Gator Bowl is approaching its third iteration as a stadium. It remained largely unchanged for its first 50 years before Jacksonville landed the expansion Jaguars in 1995. Then it was rebuilt for the NFL and hosted a Super Bowl in 2005. Now, it will undergo another major renovation which will limit capacity next year and force the bowl to relocate in 2027. Then, EverBank Stadium will surge near the top of the list of open-air stadiums.”
The other bowls:
- Pittsburgh vs. East Carolina (Military Bowl), 11 a.m. on ESPN
- Penn State vs. Clemson (Pinstripe Bowl), noon on ABC
- UConn vs. Army (Fenway Bowl), 2:15 p.m. on ESPN
- Miami (OH) vs. Fresno State (Arizona Bowl), 4:30 p.m. on The CW
- LSU vs. No. 21 Houston (Texas Bowl), 9:15 p.m. on ESPN
Updated bowl game odds
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