We’ve got a long regular season ahead of us, but it’s never too early to start thinking about college football bowl season and who goes where this postseason. These projections come from (roughly) how Vegas sees each team at the beginning of the 2022 season, but if there is anything we know about college football it’s that it won’t play out anywhere close to how we predict it beyond maybe the Playoff four. We’ll merely use this as a starting point before the real games start—when everything you see here probably gets shredded.
All times are Eastern.
College Football Playoff
Peach Bowl, Atlanta (Dec. 31, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Alabama vs. Ohio State
Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, Ariz. (Dec. 31, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Utah vs. Clemson
Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch/USA TODAY NETWORK
New Year’s Six
Orange Bowl, Miami (Dec. 30, 7:30 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten/SEC/Notre Dame
NC State vs. Texas A&M
Sugar Bowl, New Orleans (Dec. 31, noon, ESPN)
SEC vs. Big 12
Georgia vs. Baylor
Cotton Bowl, Arlington, Texas (Jan. 2, 1 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Houston vs. Oklahoma
Rose Bowl, Pasadena (Jan. 2, 5 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Michigan vs. Oregon
All other bowls
Dec. 16
Bahamas Bowl, Nassau (11:30 a.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. MAC
FAU vs. Miami (Ohio)
Cure Bowl, Orlando (3 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Appalachian State vs. UAB
Dec. 17
Fenway Bowl, Boston (11 a.m., ESPN)
ACC/Notre Dame vs. American
Boston College vs. Tulane
New Mexico Bowl, Albuquerque (2:15 p.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. Mountain West
UTEP vs. Utah State
Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl, Inglewood, Calif. (3:30 p.m., ABC)
Pac-12 vs. Mountain West
San Diego State vs. Arizona State
LendingTree Bowl, Mobile (5:45 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. Sun Belt
Middle Tennessee vs. Georgia State
Las Vegas Bowl, Las Vegas (7:30 p.m., ABC)
Pac-12 vs. SEC
LSU vs. Cal
Frisco Bowl, Frisco, Texas (9:15 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
BYU vs. Troy
Dec. 19
Myrtle Beach Bowl, Conway, S.C. (2:30 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Liberty vs Louisiana
Dec. 20
Famous Idaho Potato, Boise, Id. (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Mountain West vs. MAC
Wyoming vs. Western Michigan
Boca Raton Bowl, Boca Raton, Fla. (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Coastal Carolina vs. Memphis
Dec. 21
New Orleans Bowl, New Orleans (9 p.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. Sun Belt
Marshall vs. North Texas
Dec. 22
Armed Forces Bowl, Fort Worth (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
American vs. at-large
SMU vs. Washington State
Dec. 23
Independence Bowl, Shreveport, La. (3 p.m., ESPN)
American vs. Army
UCF vs. Army
Gasparilla Bowl, Tampa (6:30 p.m., ESPN)
ACC/SEC vs. at-large
Florida vs. Oregon State
Dec. 24
Hawai’i Bowl, Honolulu (8 p.m., ESPN)
Mountain West vs. C-USA
Air Force vs. Western Kentucky
Dec. 26
Quick Lane Bowl, Detroit (2:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. MAC
Maryland vs. Northern Illinois
Dec. 27
Camellia Bowl, Montgomery, Ala. (Noon, ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Central Michigan vs. Fresno State
First Responder Bowl, Dallas (3:15 or 6:45 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. at-large
Texas Tech vs. Virginia
Birmingham Bowl, Birmingham (3:15 or 6:45 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. ACC/SEC
UTSA vs. Syracuse
Guaranteed Rate Bowl, Phoenix (10:15 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Big Ten
Nebraska vs. TCU
Dec. 28
Military Bowl, Annapolis, Md. (2 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. American
Wake Forest vs. Cincinnati
Liberty Bowl, Memphis (5:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Iowa State vs. Auburn
Holiday Bowl, San Diego (8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Pac-12
Washington vs. Florida State
Texas Bowl, Houston (9 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Kansas State vs. Mississippi State
Dec. 29
Pinstripe Bowl, the Bronx (2 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten
Purdue vs. Louisville
Cheez-It Bowl, Orlando (5:30 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big 12
Texas vs. North Carolina
Alamo Bowl, San Antonio (9 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Oklahoma State vs. USC
Dec. 30
Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Charlotte (Noon, ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten
Miami vs. Minnesota
Sun Bowl, El Paso (2 p.m., CBS)
ACC vs. Pac-12
Pitt vs. UCLA
Gator Bowl, Jacksonville (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Wisconsin vs. Arkansas
Arizona Bowl, Tucson (4:30 p.m., Barstool)
Mountain West vs. MAC
Toledo vs. Boise State
Dec. 31
Music City Bowl, Nashville (Noon, ABC)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Michigan State vs. Kentucky
Jan. 2
ReliaQuest Bowl, Tampa (Noon, ESPN2)
Big Ten/ACC vs. SEC
Notre Dame vs. Tennessee
Citrus Bowl, Orlando (1 p.m., ABC)
SEC vs. Big Ten
Ole Miss vs. Penn State
