College Football Bowl Games 2025-26: Complete Schedule and Playoff Bracket
The college football bowl season for 2025-26 is shaping up to be a wild ride. There are so many matchups to look forward to, plus it’s the second time we’ll see the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff in action.
The selection announcements are out, and fans are buzzing already. If you want every date, time, and TV detail, here’s the full schedule.
Contents
College Football Bowl Season Kickoff
Everything gets started on Saturday, December 13. The Cricket Celebration Bowl and the Bucked Up LA Bowl Hosted by Gronk will open the season.
It’s only the beginning of what should be a pretty memorable bowl stretch. The whole thing wraps up at the College Football Playoff National Championship on January 19, 2026.
First-Round Games
The new 12-team playoff means four first-round games, all played at the home stadiums of the higher-seeded teams. One game lands on Friday, December 19, with three more on Saturday, December 20.
This setup? It’s got “upset” written all over it—imagine the energy of a playoff game on campus.
Quarterfinals and Semifinals
Quarterfinals get rolling on New Year’s Eve. The Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic is set for Wednesday, December 31.
Then, on New Year’s Day, you’ve got the Capital One Orange Bowl, the Rose Bowl Game, and the Allstate Sugar Bowl. These are the heavyweights, and they’ll decide who moves on.
College Football Playoff Semifinals
This year’s semifinals are hosted by the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on Thursday, January 8, 2026. The Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl follows on Friday, January 9, 2026.
Winners from these two? They get to play for everything.
National Championship
It all comes down to the College Football Playoff National Championship. That’s Monday, January 19, 2026, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida.
Millions will be watching to see who comes out on top. Can’t really blame them—this is the big one.
Other Notable Bowl Games
There’s more to bowl season than just the playoff. Some of these other games are worth a look, too. Here are a few that stand out:
- Pinstripe Bowl: Clemson vs. Penn State
- Sun Bowl: Duke vs. Arizona State
- Duke’s Mayo Bowl: Wake Forest vs. Mississippi State
- Boca Raton Bowl: Louisville vs. Toledo
- Military Bowl: Pitt vs. East Carolina
- First Responder Bowl: FIU vs. UTSA
- Myrtle Beach Bowl: Kennesaw State vs. Western Michigan
- Gasparilla Bowl: NC State vs. Memphis
- Armed Forces Bowl: Rice vs. Texas State
- New Orleans Bowl: Western Kentucky vs. Southern Miss
- Liberty Bowl: Cincinnati vs. Navy
- Arizona Bowl: Fresno State vs. Miami (OH)
- Music City Bowl: Illinois vs. Tennessee
- Texas Bowl: LSU vs. Houston
- Potato Bowl: Utah State vs. Washington State
- Alamo Bowl: TCU vs. USC
- Citrus Bowl: Texas vs. Michigan
Analysis and Predictions
The expanded playoff has sparked plenty of arguments and, honestly, a lot of excitement. With 12 teams in, there’s more room for surprises and those classic underdog stories.
Top Contenders
The top four seeds this year? Here they are:
- #1 Indiana (will play the winner of Oklahoma-Alabama in the Rose Bowl)
- #2 Ohio State (will play the winner of Texas A&M-Miami in the Cotton Bowl)
- #3 Georgia (will play the winner of Ole Miss-Tulane in the Sugar Bowl)
- #4 Texas Tech (will play the winner of Oregon-JMU in the Orange Bowl)
These programs have been solid all season and are probably the favorites. Still, with this format, you can’t count out teams like Oregon, Ole Miss, Texas A&M, or Oklahoma—they could shake things up.
Dark Horses
Don’t sleep on JMU or Tulane. They’ve got a shot to make things interesting and maybe even pull off a shocker or two.
Conclusion
The 2025-26 college football bowl season is shaping up to be a wild ride. There are so many matchups to keep an eye on, and the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff just ups the stakes even more.
Fans are in for a treat, honestly. The national championship at Hard Rock Stadium is going to be a huge moment, one way or another.
If you want the full rundown of games and details, you can always check out the full schedule here.
