Bowl Games Schedule 2014-15: TV, Live Stream Coverage Info and Predictions
Selection Sunday is typically a term reserved for college basketball. Well, this Sunday saw college football's first foray into the madness.
The College Football Playoff selection committee's choice of Alabama, Oregon, Florida State and Ohio State for the inaugural four-team postseason bonanza set the stage for a crazy afternoon in which the nation's best found out where they were headed. After selecting the Top Four teams, the committee was also tasked with selecting representatives for the contests formerly known as BCS bowls—though those matchups were held to conference restrictions.
In large part, the committee's selections created a trickle-down effect that helped finalize the 2014-15 bowl schedule. There are a record 39 bowl games in all this season, nearly every one of which can be found on the ESPN family of networks. Which, of course, means they're available on the WatchESPN app for streaming purposes.
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While most will be transfixed on discussing the inaugural playoff—in part because it's long overdue—the two weeks of buildup to those games may prove just as exciting. The stakes won't nearly be as high nor the crowds as raucous (or in some cases existent), but the proliferation of smaller bowls has opened the stage for eye-opening performances. After all, we weren't seeing Johnny Manziel shock the world with his freewheeling ways in January last season.
With that in mind, let's take a look at the complete bowl schedule for this season and dive deep into the playoff.
| R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl | Nevada vs. Louisiana-Lafayette | Saturday, Dec. 20 | 11 a.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Gildan New Mexico Bowl | UTEP vs. Utah State | Saturday, Dec. 20 | 2:20 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl | Colorado St. vs. Utah | Saturday, Dec. 20 | 3:30 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Famous Idaho Potato Bowl | Western Michigan vs. Air Force | Saturday, Dec. 20 | 5:45 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Raycom Media Camellia Bowl | Bowling Green vs. South Alabama | Saturday, Dec. 20 | 9:15 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Miami Beach Bowl | BYU vs. Memphis | Monday, Dec. 22 | 2 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Boca Raton Bowl | Marshall vs. Northern Illinois | Tuesday, Dec. 23 | 6 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| San Diego County CU Poinsettia Bowl | Navy vs. San Diego State | Tuesday, Dec. 23 | 9:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Popeyes Bahamas Bowl | Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan | Wednesday, Dec. 24 | 12 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Sheraton Hawaii Bowl | Rice vs. Fresno State | Wednesday, Dec. 24 | 8 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl | Illinois vs. Louisiana Tech | Friday, Dec. 26 | 1 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Quick Lane Bowl | Rutgers vs. North Carolina | Friday, Dec. 26 | 4:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| BITCOIN St. Petersburg Bowl | NC State vs. UCF | Friday, Dec. 26 | 8 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Military Bowl | Virginia Tech vs. Cincinnati | Saturday, Dec. 27 | 1 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Hyundai Sun Bowl | Duke vs. Arizona State | Saturday, Dec. 27 | 2 p.m. | CBS | N/A |
| Duck Commander Independence Bowl | Miami (Fla.) vs. South Carolina | Saturday, Dec. 27 | 3:30 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| New Era Pinstripe Bowl | Boston College vs. Penn State | Saturday, Dec. 27 | 4:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| National University Holiday Bowl | Nebraska vs. USC | Saturday, Dec. 27 | 8 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| AutoZone Liberty Bowl | West Virginia vs. Texas A&M | Monday, Dec. 29 | 2 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Russell Athletic Bowl | Clemson vs. Oklahoma | Monday, Dec. 29 | 5:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| AdvoCare Texas Bowl | Texas vs. Arkansas | Monday, Dec. 29 | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl | Notre Dame vs. LSU | Tuesday, Dec. 30 | 3 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Belk Bowl | Louisville vs. Georgia | Tuesday, Dec. 30 | 6:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Foster Farms Bowl | Maryland vs. Stanford | Tuesday, Dec. 30 | 10 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl | Ole Miss vs. TCU | Wednesday, Dec. 31 | 12:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Vizio Fiesta Bowl | Boise State vs. Arizona | Wednesday, Dec. 31 | 4 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Capital One Orange Bowl | Mississippi State vs. Georgia Tech | Wednesday, Dec. 31 | 8 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Outback Bowl | Michigan State vs. Baylor | Thursday, Jan. 1 | 12 p.m. | ESPN2 | WatchESPN |
| Goodyear Cotton Bowl | Minnesota vs. Missouri | Thursday, Jan. 1 | 12:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl | Wisconsin vs. Auburn | Thursday, Jan. 1 | 1 p.m. | ABC | WatchESPN |
| Rose Bowl Game | Oregon vs. Florida State | Thursday, Jan. 1 | 5 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Allstate Sugar Bowl | Alabama vs. Ohio State | Thursday, Jan. 1 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl | Pittsburgh vs. Houston | Friday, Jan. 2 | 12 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| TaxSlayer Bowl | Iowa vs. Tennessee | Friday, Jan. 2 | 3:20 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Valero Alamo Bowl | Kansas State vs. UCLA | Friday, Jan. 2 | 6:45 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Cactus Bowl | Oklahoma St. vs.Washington | Friday, Jan. 2 | 10:15 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| Birmingham Bowl | Florida vs. East Carolina | Saturday, Jan. 3 | 1 p.m. | ESPN2 | WatchESPN |
| GoDaddy Bowl | Toledo vs. Arkansas State | Sunday, Jan. 4 | 9 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
| College Football Championship Game | TBD | Monday, Jan. 12 | 8:30 p.m. | ESPN | WatchESPN |
College Football Playoff Preview
We came into Sunday's selection show with two guarantees: Alabama and Oregon were locks with impressive victories in their conference championship games.
The No. 1 Crimson Tide survived a third-quarter scare from Missouri to score the game's final 21 points in a 42-13 rout. Derrick Henry rushed for 141 yards and two touchdowns, while Blake Sims completed all but four of his 27 passes for 262 yards and two scores.
Sims, who quietly sat for his first four seasons in Tuscaloosa, has become one of college football's best stories. He's thrown for 3,250 yards and 26 touchdowns against seven interceptions while also giving Alabama's offense an extra dimension with his legs. While we're probably not looking at a future pro, Sims has been a nearly perfect fit for Lane Kiffin's ascending offense.
"I don't know that I've ever seen a player go through any more than Blake went through for four years, and never once did he ever not do whatever he needed to do to help the team," Alabama coach Nick Saban told reporters.
The Crimson Tide will face an Ohio State team that's been a source of controversy as the fourth seed. The Buckeyes vaulted into the No. 4 spot thanks to a 59-0 thrashing of Wisconsin in the Big Ten Championship Game.
Cardale Jones, taking over for the injured J.T. Barrett, threw for 257 yards and three touchdowns in his first career start. Running back Ezekiel Elliott also picked a great time for the best performance of his career, rushing for 220 yards and two touchdowns, including an 81-yard scamper in the first half.
Since taking over at Ohio State, Urban Meyer has dropped only one game in the conference and three contests overall. The Buckeyes' 11-game winning streak is longer than any team not named Florida State coming into the playoff. They've emerged as a powerful offense despite injuries depleting their depth, and the defense is peaking at the right time.
Ohio State held Heisman candidate Melvin Gordon to 76 yards on 26 carries, his second-lowest total of the season. Gordon finished only two games this season under five yards per carry, and the first was a meaningless blowout of lowly Western Illinois.
"It was really about Ohio State's movement up," committee chair Jeff Long said on ESPN, per Nicole Auerbach of USA Today. "It was their performance on the field that made a difference to the committee. We said going into this weekend that three-through-six was very close. I will say Ohio State was decisive at No. 4, they were voted in there clearly. Ohio State was clear-cut over five and six."
The other semifinal game will very likely see the last two Heisman winners battle it out. Marcus Mariota's five touchdowns gave Oregon its fourth conference championship in six seasons, as the Ducks cruised to a 51-13 win over Arizona. Mariota has accounted for 53 touchdowns (38 passing, 14 rushing, one receiving) and only two interceptions in a season that's likely clinched his spot as the No. 1 pick in next April's draft.
"If this guy isn't what the Heisman Trophy is all about, then I'm in the wrong profession," Oregon coach Mark Helfrich told reporters. "If you want your son or daughter to have a role model, pick this guy."
Jameis Winston, who entered 2014 as Mariota's closest competition for the top spot, has had anything but an easy ride in his Heisman defense. The sophomore has experienced noticeable drop-offs in every major category while turning the ball over at an alarming rate. His 17 interceptions are tied for fourth-most in the nation and are two fewer than the combined total of the three primary quarterbacks for Ohio State, Oregon and Alabama.
But for all his struggles, Winston finds ways to come through when the Seminoles need him most. Perhaps his most impressive performance of 2014 came Saturday, when he threw for 309 yards and three touchdowns in Florida State's 37-35 win over Georgia Tech. Winston and Dalvin Cook consistently answered the call as the Seminoles defense struggled to curtail Georgia Tech's triple-option attack.
| Sugar Bowl | Sugar Bowl | No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Ohio State | Alabama 38, Ohio State 24 |
| Rose Bowl | Rose Bowl | No. 2 Oregon vs. No. 3 Florida State | Florida State 42, Oregon 38 |
| National Championship | National Championship | No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 3 Florida State | Alabama 41, Florida State 23 |
Florida State will hope Winston is phenomenal again. Oregon has been held under 38 points once all season and under the 40-point mark just twice. Barring a significant defensive upgrade from the unit on the field Saturday, the Seminoles' best bet is to win a shootout.
With a month to prepare, Jimbo Fisher will be tasked with coming up with the game plan of his life. It'll be interesting to see if he can get the job done.
Follow Tyler Conway (@tylerconway22) on Twitter
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