Bowl season will begin to pick up as we approach Christmas. And for college football fans, it’s a time for family, friends, hopefully some time off from work, and a lot of college football. While bowl games may not have as much juice as they used to have in the pre-College Football Playoff era, but they’re still games filled with prideful players and rabid fans making road trips to root on their favorite team one more time this season.
So while there are many College Football Playoff games in the new 12-team format, here are the Top 5 college football bowl games, not including those being played in the Playoff.
1. Texas Bowl: Baylor vs. LSU
Date, time, TV: Dec. 31, 3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN. Location: Houston.
This is a great match up that pits one of the hottest teams in college football that no one is talking about in Baylor against an SEC heavyweight in LSU. Dave Aranda gets to coach against the program he was the defensive coordinator for before he made the move to Waco and take on an uber-talented LSU program that has yet to reach its expectations under Brian Kelly. And talk about two polar opposites when it comes to sideline demeanor. Plus, the best Big 12 vs. SEC match up will always be near or at the top of my list. And that’s definitely this game, even if these teams didn’t meet their preseason expectations.
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2. Citrus Bowl: No. 14 South Carolina vs. Illinois
Date, time, TV: Dec. 31, 3 p.m. ET, ABC. Location: Orlando, Fla.
South Carolina was a team that was fighting for a spot in the College Football Playoff until late in the season. They ended the year with a six-game winning streak that included wins over teams like Texas A&M, Missouri and Clemson. Meantime, Illinois went 9-3, and while they were able to get some solid wins like Kansas, Nebraska and Michigan, those teams did not live up to preseason expectations. The best teams they played, Oregon and Penn State, beat them by a combined 40+ points. So what will get in this one? South Carolina is a big favorite, but the game still has intrigue when you get quality SEC vs. quality Big Ten.
3. Pop-Tarts Bowl: No. 19 Iowa State vs. No. 16 Miami
Date, time, TV: Dec. 28, 3:30 p.m. ET, ABC. Location: Orlando, Fla.
The Pop-Tarts Bowl, formerly the Camping World Bowl, has become a really good bowl game. And they’ve been competitive. Three of the last four games have been decided by one score or less. Iowa State’s defense, which was the best pass defense in the Big 12, going up against likely first round NFL Draft pick Cam Ward at quarterback will be a great match up to watch. Iowa State has been here now three times in the last six seasons. But they haven’t won one yet. Cam Ward is ready to play and will likely want to show off in a big way ahead of the NFL Draft. This one is going to be fun.
4. Alamo Bowl: BYU vs. Colorado
Date, time, TV: Dec. 28, 7:30 p.m. ET, ABC. Location: San Antonio, Texas.
Some might rank this higher because it is a great game, but since it’s an all-Big 12 game, it loses some of its luster. But obviously the contracts are still in place that required Colorado, as the former Pac-12 team, to play a Big 12 team and it’s an enticing match up for the Alamo Bowl since these two teams never played each other during the regular season and they finished tied for first place. BYU’s defense was its strength all season and getting to go up against Shedeur Sanders, Travis Hunter and the explosive Colorado offense is going to be the match up to watch. In fact, that BYU defense vs. Colorado offense might be one of the best match ups to watch in the entire bowl season.
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5. Music City Bowl – No. 20 Missouri vs. Iowa
Date, time, TV: Dec. 30, 2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN. Location: Nashville, Tenn.
NFL Draft opt-outs are keeping this game lower on the list than it might otherwise be in an intriguing SEC vs. Big Ten match up, but this bowl game is always well attended and typically features solid brands. Missouri fumbled with a couple of tough losses in the second half of the season against Alabama and South Carolina, but Eli Drinkwitz has built a solid Top 25 program in Columbia. Iowa, is well, Iowa. It’s rarely sexy, but they will get their 8-10 wins and find interesting and unique ways to win games every season.
Honorable Mentions: Birmingham Bowl – Georgia Tech vs. Vanderbilt; ReliaQuest Bowl – No. 11 Alabama vs. Michigan; Liberty Bowl – Arkansas vs. Texas Tech
