Dream Scenarios for Every 2015-16 College Football Bowl Matchup
The college football offseason is far too long from a fan's perspective, lasting longer than the season itself and consisting of only minor distractions and time-wasters. Once the summer comes along, we've been away from the real thing for so long it's like living in a fever dream.
These last few weeks before training camp are when hope and expectation work overtime to push reality to the side. Anything is possible, and darn it if we don't think it's leaning closer to probable.
Bowl organizers can get swept up in this wave of optimism as well, cooking up dream matchups for their games that will make for great TV and even greater ticket sales. The likelihood of most of these happening is slim, but that's not really taken into consideration at this point.
Using the preexisting conference tie-ins and other agreements in place, we've made our own dream matchups for every 2015-16 bowl game.
These were selected similarly to how the real bowl pairings will be made, starting with the ones filled by the College Football Playoff and then filtering down to the lower-tier games featuring non-power opponents. This means some matchups aren't going to be particularly enticing from an overall perspective, but they're the best available at that point.
This list does not include the newly approved Arizona Bowl, as bowl organizers aren't certain it will happen in 2015, and it's the only one of the 41 games without a set date or time.
Cure Bowl (Dec. 19, Orlando, Florida)
1 of 40
UCF vs. Georgia Southern
The newest bowl in the lineup needs something to help make it stand out from the crowd, and the Cure Bowl organizers would be wise to have Georgia Southern make its first-ever bowl appearance in Orlando. The Eagles were more than worthy of a bowl invite last season, going 9-3 in their inaugural FBS campaign and unbeaten in Sun Belt play, but were not eligible.
To ensure a strong crowd, though, there needs to be a local hook for what will be the city's third bowl game in the current rotation. The natural move would be to get in-town UCF as the American Athletic Conference representative.
New Mexico Bowl (Dec. 19, Albuquerque, New Mexico)
2 of 40
UTEP vs. New Mexico
With a relatively uninspiring Conference USA-Mountain West pairing to work with, the best move for the New Mexico Bowl is to get teams that will make the most of a trip to Albuquerque. Having one of them not have to actually travel to get there certainly helps.
New Mexico has been to 12 bowl games in its history, all in the western half of the country, and its last two in 2006-07 were in the first two versions of the New Mexico Bowl. Those two games drew better than 30,000 fans, and only one other contest there has topped the 30,000 mark since.
That one involved UTEP, which has played in the New Mexico Bowl twice before (including last year) and just so happens to be a long-standing rival of the Lobos.
The teams have met 78 times, including in the previous two seasons, with the Miners winning at New Mexico to open the 2014 campaign.
Las Vegas Bowl (Dec. 19, Las Vegas)
3 of 40
BYU vs. Utah
Desperate to ensure it won't get left out of the bowl-invitation party, independent BYU has locked up bids for the 2015 and 2016 seasons by agreeing to play in either the Hawaii or Las Vegas Bowls in those years. The Hawaii game is good for the Cougars because of how well they recruit the islands, while Vegas is perfect for fans wanting to head down Interstate 15 to catch a game.
Assuming BYU ends up in Vegas this year, there's no better opponent to pit it against than a hated rival who hasn't been on the schedule since 2013.
BYU and Utah have waged the "Holy War" 89 times since 1922 and are scheduled to resume the rivalry in 2016. Why not get it going a year earlier?
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Camellia Bowl (Dec. 19, Montgomery, Alabama)
4 of 40
Toledo vs. Arkansas State
One of two Alabama-based bowl games (along with the GoDaddy Bowl in Mobile) that will pit Mid-American and Sun Belt teams against each other in 2015, the Camellia Bowl had a heck of a debut in 2014, when Bowling Green and South Alabama waged a back-and-forth battle that was decided in the final minutes.
The Arkansas State-Toledo matchup in last year's GoDaddy Bowl wasn't as close, with Toledo rolling behind 271 rushing yards and five touchdowns from Kareem Hunt to beat the Red Wolves, 63-44.
Maybe moving the game north to Montgomery will make for a more tight finish. If not, at least the Camellia crowd will be able to watch Hunt rumble to another big output.
New Orleans Bowl (Dec. 19, New Orleans)
5 of 40
Colorado State vs. Louisiana-Lafayette
If it ain't broke, don't fix it. The New Orleans Bowl has no reason to alter its approach, which for the previous four years saw it select Louisiana-Lafayette as its Sun Belt representative regardless of what place the Ragin' Cajuns finished in that league.
The four largest crowds in the bowl's history (dating back to 2001) have been with ULL involved, so why go in any other direction?
Last year's game against Nevada was the least entertaining of the quartet as well as least attended, but the latter was to be expected with the bowl now having a tie-in with the Mountain West instead of Conference USA.
It's difficult to find a team from that league who will appeal to the New Orleans crowd, but Colorado State could work since its new coach (Mike Bobo) spent the previous 14 years coaching at Georgia.
Miami Beach Bowl (Dec. 21, Miami)
6 of 40
Florida Atlantic vs. Temple
The inaugural Miami Beach Bowl was a memorable one for two reasons: having a thrilling finish to top off a double-overtime win by Memphis and then being where Memphis and BYU engaged in a postgame brawl that got ugly real quick.
"Joy quickly turned ugly as players from both teams started exchanging punches instead of postgame handshakes," Kevin McGuire of College Football Talk wrote.
Here's hoping the second edition of this bowl only matches the in-game theatrics. Florida Atlantic and Temple will gladly jump at the chance to do so, since each has had a season in the past two that saw it reach bowl-eligibility but not get an invite. FAU was 6-6 in 2013, while Temple had that record last year.
Potato Bowl (Dec. 22, Boise, Idaho)
7 of 40
Akron vs. Wyoming
The Mid-American Conference has bowl affiliations with games in Alabama, Florida, Idaho and the Bahamas, none of which are exactly hotbeds of those schools' alumni or fans. The other games at least have the allure of being in warm weather, something Boise's Potato Bowl can't promise.
The MAC has sent a team to Boise since 2010, with the last three opponents losing to Mountain West teams by an average of 21.7 points per game. That's not exactly a good omen for Akron, but since the Zips last made a bowl game in 2005 (and 1968 before that), we doubt they'll be too upset about past history.
The same goes for Wyoming, who last bowled in 2011 and would likely send plenty of Brown and Gold fans on the roughly 700-mile trip from Laramie.
Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 22, Boca Raton, Florida)
8 of 40
Connecticut vs. Massachusetts
To many people, the first thing that comes to mind when hearing about the Fort Lauderdale suburb of Boca Raton is Seinfeld, since that's where Jerry's parents retired to. This wasn't just a fictional bit, since Florida tends to be a prime destination for retirees from the Northeast.
Maybe some of those winter residents wouldn't mind spending a few hours on a pre-Christmas evening taking in a matchup of teams from back home, particularly ones that haven't been in the bowl mix for a while.
UMass has won five games in its three seasons at the FBS level and after 2015 is getting booted from the Mid-American Conference and relegated to independent status. It would be a nice sendoff for the Minutemen to land one of the MAC's bowl bids on their way out, and it would be their first since the 1964 Tangerine Bowl.
Connecticut last bowled in 2011, when Randy Edsall's final team won the Big East and then was blown out by Oklahoma in the Fiesta Bowl. This will be a far more favorable matchup for the Huskies and one head coach Bob Diaco can use to build off for the future.
And if we're lucky, he might even create some sort of rivalry trophy to go with it.
Poinsettia Bowl (Dec. 23, San Diego)
9 of 40
Army vs. San Diego State
With its strong military ties, the San Diego region goes out of its way to make America's servicemen and women feel welcome. To that end, the Poinsettia Bowl has often extended invitations to service academies Army and Navy even before the seasons were played, assuming they were eligible.
Navy has held its end of the bargain when invited in 2005, 2007, 2010 and 2014, but Army did not when offered a spot in 2006 and 2013. The third time could be the charm for the recently rebranded Army West Point, which hasn't been bowl-eligible since 2010.
For the Mountain West tie-in, there's no better choice for this lesser of the two San Diego games (along with the more prestigious Holiday Bowl) than to be able to keep San Diego State in town to play on its home turf at Qualcomm Stadium. That was the case in 2010, 2012 and 2014, and the Aztecs have helped draw three of the five-largest crowds in the bowl's 10-year history.
GoDaddy Bowl (Dec. 23, Mobile, Alabama)
10 of 40
Bowling Green vs. South Alabama
Played in January every year since 2007, the GoDaddy Bowl has been shifted to a pre-Christmas slot for 2015. It will again be featuring teams from the Mid-American and Sun Belt, but with the bowl pairings getting announced on Dec. 6, there's not much turnaround to be able to sell tickets.
There's a quick fix to that problem: invite South Alabama, which plays its games in Ladd Peebles Stadium.
South Alabama made its first-ever bowl appearance last year—against Bowling Green—but it was in the Camellia Bowl in Montgomery, Alabama. We've already placed last year's GoDaddy matchup (Arkansas State vs. Toledo) in that one, so in essence the Alabama bowls would swap 2014-15 pairings for this cycle.
Bahamas Bowl (Dec. 24, Nassau, Bahamas)
11 of 40
Marshall vs. Northern Illinois
After the way that last year's inaugural Bahamas Bowl ended, it's going to be hard for the second act to come close to matching that excitement. The best way to make that possible is to line up a pair of teams with plenty of firepower, and maybe some recent history to go with it.
Marshall beat Northern Illinois in last year's Boca Raton Bowl, but now the Thundering Herd are without record-setting quarterback Rakeem Cato and prolific receiver Tommy Shuler. Northern Illinois lost some key talent as well, but these teams remain among the top contenders from both the Mid-American Conference and Conference USA.
For a game on Christmas Eve that's played during the day, most viewers might be watching only in passing while they wrap presents or mingle with guests at a holiday party. But if Marshall and NIU can somehow replicate or top the lateral-filled play that Central Michigan executed at the end of its one-point loss to Bowling Green, they might be forced to look up.
Hawaii Bowl (Dec. 24, Honolulu)
12 of 40
Oregon State vs. Utah State
It will be a reunion of sorts in Hawaii even though the teams in this Christmas Eve game haven't met since 1998. But thanks to the American Athletic Conference not being able to have enough teams to fill its increased bowl allotment (and BYU choosing Las Vegas over Hawaii for its bowl destination), we'll get to see the man who helped turn Utah State around against his old program.
Gary Andersen went 26-24 in four years at Utah State from 2009-12, winning 11 games that final year and springboarding that success into the Wisconsin job. He left that gig after 2014, opting to return to his Western roots with Oregon State.
Oregon State's last bowl game came in 2013, a loss to Boise State in Hawaii. Utah State has played bowls in a school-record four straight seasons but never in the tropics.
St. Petersburg Bowl (Dec. 26, St. Petersburg, Florida)
13 of 40
South Florida vs. Western Kentucky
Willie Taggart helped turn Western Kentucky, his alma mater, into a solid program from 2010-12 as its head coach. That success prompted South Florida to bring him on in 2013 in hopes he could turn around the Bulls, but so far that hasn't been the case.
South Florida turns the corner in 2015, and the Tampa-based school will hop across the bay to play in the latest edition of a bowl game that currently has no title sponsor but over the years has been presented by a motley crew of advertisers, such as Bitcoin, Beef O'Brady's and magicJack.
To add some spice to the matchup, the St. Petersburg Bowl needs to land Western Kentucky from Conference USA so Taggart can coach against his old team. He'd also get to see in person what became of quarterback Brandon Doughty. Because of knee injuries he only appeared in four games in 2011-12 but last season threw for 4,830 yards and 49 touchdowns.
Sun Bowl (Dec. 26, El Paso, Texas)
14 of 40
Miami (Florida) vs. Washington
The Sun Bowl is tied for the second-oldest bowl game that's still being played, dating back to 1935 and trailing only the Rose Bowl in longevity. But while its fellow 80-year-old bowls (Orange and Sugar) remain among the most coveted on the schedule, the Sun has slid down the ranks over the years and is now basically an afterthought.
All the old game has is its history to hang on to, so why not commemorate this longevity by pitting a pair of teams against each other that probably would have given the Sun Bowl crowd a much better game than in 1991, when UCLA earned a 6-3 win over Illinois?
That same season, Miami and Washington both went unbeaten but didn't face off in a bowl because of their tie-ins with other games.
Heart of Dallas Bowl (Dec. 26, Dallas)
15 of 40
Illinois vs. Florida International
The Tim Beckman era at Illinois has been a wild one, with slow but steady progress in his three seasons that included a bowl appearance in last year's Heart of Dallas Bowl.
Since that loss to Louisiana Tech, Beckman has come under fire, first for opining to reporters that the media should only cover the positives of his program and then for media coverage of a potential major negative associated with claims by former players that Beckman mistreated them.
Yet somehow, former Illinois coach Ron Turner's tenure was far more uneven, since in his eight seasons he had eight- and 10-win campaigns but also ones with one and zero victories.
Turner is now at Florida International, where in his two years he's won five games but based on his past history should be in line for a spike this season.
Pinstripe Bowl (Dec. 26, Bronx, New York)
16 of 40
Syracuse vs. Rutgers
There are no FBS teams in New York City, but several schools like to lay claim to being the team in the region. Now two of those will get to fight it out on the field for tri-state area supremacy.
Rutgers and Syracuse were once part of the same league, the Big East, but that ended after the 2012 season when Syracuse joined the ACC. Rutgers moved to the Big Ten a year later, and there are no scheduled nonconference meetings between the programs.
Each school has played in the Pinstripe Bowl twice in its five-year history, but never against each other.
Independence Bowl (Dec. 26, Shreveport, Louisiana)
17 of 40
Louisville vs. LSU
One of LSU's annual goals is to be in position to play a bowl game in its own state, but that only applies to the Sugar Bowl and preferably just in years when that game is part of the playoffs. For the Tigers to be ending their season in Shreveport isn't something they'll take as much pride in, but the locals will love it.
LSU played in (and won) the 1995 and 1997 Independence Bowls, but that was when the game had a much better reputation. Now it gets the SEC's 10th-best team against an equally low-end ACC squad, which last year meant squaring 6-6 Miami and South Carolina against each other.
Somehow, head coach Les Miles will still manage to make a game of an otherwise meaningless matchup, and with Louisville as the opponent, the Tigers could top the 1997 attendance mark of 50,459 they set when beating Notre Dame.
Most Arkansas fans will be saving their money for the Razorbacks' bowl trip later on, but some might also want to take a day trip to Shreveport to boo former Arkansas coach Bobby Petrino with Louisville.
Foster Farms Bowl (Dec. 26, Santa Clara, California)
18 of 40
Iowa vs. Stanford
Levi's Stadium has played host to two college football games in its brief history, and neither has been close. Oregon destroyed Arizona in last year's Pac-12 title game, then three weeks later Stanford rolled over Maryland in the latest edition of a bowl that's had six names since debuting in 2002.
In other words, there's nowhere to go but up for the pairing for the Foster Farms Bowl and the new home of the NFL's San Francisco 49ers. Getting Stanford to play there again is a good start, but with Iowa as the other participant, the contest might only draw a niche crowd that is a fan of defense and punting.
Military Bowl (Dec. 28, Annapolis, Maryland)
19 of 40
Navy vs. Virginia Tech
Played since 2008 but in Washington, D.C., for its first five years, the Military Bowl is one of a handful of games that does its best to pay homage to the armed forces. That's only included having Navy in the game once, in the first year, but now that the Midshipmen have joined the American Athletic Conference they have the opportunity to grab that league's bid and play on their home turf.
Virginia Tech liked that field last season, beating Cincinnati there by 16 points in front of a sellout crowd of more than 34,000 fans. With Navy involved as well, there would be a need for some standing-room tickets to be sold.
Quick Lane Bowl (Dec. 28, Detroit)
20 of 40
Michigan vs. Pittsburgh
When Michigan hired Jim Harbaugh in January, the reaction among Wolverines fans was as if the move would signify an immediate return to greatness and perennial contention for national titles. In reality, Harbaugh is going to need at least a little time to get Michigan back to that level, but being respectable in the first season isn't too much to expect.
And with respectability at the power-conference level comes a bowl bid. Almost every bowl that has a shot at non-CFP bowls with Big Ten tie-ins will want the Fighting Harbaughs; none would need Michigan in its game more than the fledgling Quick Lane Bowl.
The first edition of this game, which replaced the Little Caesars Pizza Bowl, drew fewer than 24,000 fans for last year's clash between Rutgers and North Carolina.
It wouldn't matter whom Michigan played to guarantee a much bigger crowd, but a Pittsburgh pairing would add even more value because the Panthers are the closest ACC team and their involvement would provide a homecoming of sorts for head coach Pat Narduzzi, the former Michigan State defensive coordinator.
Armed Forces Bowl (Dec. 29, Fort Worth, Texas)
21 of 40
Minnesota vs. Air Force
Air Force has played in 24 bowls in its history, but five of the past seven have been ones with military sponsors or affiliations. That includes four previous trips to this Fort Worth-based game, where the Falcons have gone 1-3.
Minnesota has played a game in the state of Texas in each of the previous three seasons, losing to Texas Tech and Syracuse in bowls in Houston in 2012 and 2013, respectively, and then getting romped by TCU in Amon G. Carter Stadium—the site of this game—in September 2014.
There haven't been great memories for either program in its recent trip to the Lone Star State, but at least those who travel with the teams will know where all the best restaurants are.
Russell Athletic Bowl (Dec. 29, Orlando, Florida)
22 of 40
Georgia Tech vs. Oklahoma
Georgia Tech ran over an SEC team in Miami last season in the Orange Bowl, and now it gets to take down a Big 12 blue blood a little further to the north.
Oklahoma likely won't be too happy about having to play in this game for a second straight season, especially with the memories of last year's 40-6 loss to Clemson still fresh in the Sooners' minds, but another mediocre season won't leave it with any better bowl options.
This matchup will provide a fun contrast of playing styles, as Tech runs the triple option while Oklahoma plans to return to the Air Raid passing attack that was so successful for it in the past.
Texas Bowl (Dec. 29, Houston)
23 of 40
Texas vs. Texas A&M
Remember, these bowl matchups are dream pairings and in most cases are very unlikely to happen. Otherwise, Texas and Texas A&M would have renewed their rivalry in this game in 2014 instead of having the SEC send Arkansas to Houston to steamroll the Longhorns.
It's a game that seemingly everyone other than the powers that be with the Longhorns and Aggies want to see played, even the folks who put together the foremost source of football in Texas.
"This story—Texas vs. Texas A&M, and how it's inconceivably gone dormant—is the proverbial elephant in the room," Greg Tepper, managing editor of Dave Campbell's Texas Football, told Kevin McGuire of College Football Talk. "For decades, Aggies vs. Longhorns shaped the face of football in Texas. As the authorities on football in the Lone Star State, our position is clear: It's time to bring it back."
It's good to dream, isn't it?
Birmingham Bowl (Dec. 30, Birmingham, Alabama)
24 of 40
Ole Miss vs. Houston
With 11 commitments for his 2016 class from the state of Texas, per 247Sports, new Houston coach Tom Herman has already shown he's got a firm hold on his own backyard when it comes to recruiting even though he's yet to coach a game. By the end of that first season, the Cougars could be on the rise to the point that being able to land prospects from other SEC states will be doable, including Alabama.
So that would make the Birmingham Bowl a recruiting trip of sorts. Houston played there in January 2014 as well, under previous coach Tony Levine, but fell to Vanderbilt.
A win over Ole Miss would be the third opportunity for the American Athletic Conference's Cougars to beat a power program, with regular-season games scheduled against Louisville and Vanderbilt.
Belk Bowl (Dec. 30, Charlotte, North Carolina)
25 of 40
North Carolina vs. South Carolina
Bowl organizers try at all costs to avoid rematches of games that were held during the regular season, but sometimes the opportunity is just too good to pass up.
North Carolina and South Carolina open the 2015 season against each other in a neutral-site game in Charlotte, and the run-up to that game will no doubt be filled with plenty of one-liners from Gamecocks coach Steve Spurrier. It would be fun to compare those quotes with the ones he'd spout during press conferences prior to a second game against UNC.
Music City Bowl (Dec. 30, Nashville, Tennessee)
26 of 40
Penn State vs. Vanderbilt
There are few matchups that could potentially draw more interest for the Music City Bowl than last year's clash between LSU and Notre Dame, which drew more than 60,000 fans to LP Field. Penn State and Vanderbilt could come close, if only because Vandy fans would show up in droves to spit fire at Nittany Lions head coach James Franklin for leaving the school after the 2013 season.
Franklin led the Commodores to three straight bowl games, but then several of his 2014 commitments followed him to Penn State. That left Vandy with a bare cupboard, and it went 3-9 in 2014.
Holiday Bowl (Dec. 30, San Diego)
27 of 40
Nebraska vs. Arizona
San Diego has been the site of one of Arizona's most notable postseason achievements as well as one of its biggest bowl stinkers. Both have been in the Holiday Bowl against Nebraska.
In 1998 the Wildcats finished off their best season in school history with a 23-20 win over the Cornhuskers to finish 12-1, but then they didn't go to another bowl for a decade. They returned to the Holiday Bowl in 2009, but Nebraska shut them out.
Nebraska played in this game last year, losing to USC, but that was under interim coach Barney Cotton. Now the 'Huskers are led by Mike Riley, who during his 14 seasons at Oregon State went 8-4 against Arizona.
Outback Bowl (Jan. 1, Tampa, Florida)
28 of 40
Wisconsin vs. Arkansas
The picture above is from Bret Bielema's final game as coach at Wisconsin, when he led the Badgers to the 2012 Big Ten title with a 70-31 blowout win over Nebraska...and then accepted the Arkansas job three days later.
Wisconsin has since undergone a second coaching change, again right after reaching the Big Ten final, with Gary Andersen bolting in December for Oregon State (and replaced by Paul Chryst, who was Bielema's offensive coordinator at Wisconsin from 2006-11).
Meanwhile, Bielema has turned around Arkansas and developed the Razorbacks into a Big Ten-style smashmouth team that prides itself on hard-nosed running, offensive line play and smothering defense up front.
Bielema's teams were pretty efficient with the pass when Chryst was calling plays, and now he'll get to do so against his old boss. And Wisconsin fans get a chance to boo Bielema in person during their winter vacation in Florida.
Citrus Bowl (Jan. 1, Orlando, Florida)
29 of 40
Florida State vs. Kentucky
Mark Stoops had a good run as Florida State's defensive coordinator from 2010-12, producing the nation's fourth-best defense in 2011 and second-best in 2012 before getting hired as Kentucky's head coach. His defenses at Kentucky haven't been nearly as good, but he's making progress.
That will translate into a bowl bid for the Wildcats in 2015, their first since 2011, and an opportunity for Stoops to impress his former boss in Florida State's Jimbo Fisher.
While it will still be a New Year's Day bowl, playing in Orlando rather than Miami—where the Orange Bowl will have hosted a national semifinal the night before—won't seem as prestigious for FSU.
The Seminoles will have gone through a bit of a rebuilding year after having 11 players get drafted this spring, but by the end of the season they'll be playing their best ball and will finish on a high note with a win over an SEC opponent in their home state.
TaxSlayer Bowl (Jan. 2, Jacksonville, Florida)
30 of 40
Northwestern vs. Florida
Back when it was the Gator Bowl, this game was regularly one of the biggest on the bowl schedule. It still has plenty of tradition, but the TaxSlayer Bowl doesn't carry the same weight as in the past. Now its status is that of being a bowl played by the second or third tiers of its conference tie-ins.
This year that's the SEC and either the ACC or Big Ten, both of which get three spots over a six-year span that began last season with the Big Ten sending Iowa down to face (and get blown out by) Tennessee. It'll be the Big Ten again, this time represented by Northwestern in its return to the bowl field after a two-year hiatus.
Florida gets the SEC nod, playing a virtual home game in a stadium it occupies once a year against Georgia. The Gators have played in this bowl nine times, most recently in 2012 when they beat Ohio State.
Liberty Bowl (Jan. 2, Memphis, Tennessee)
31 of 40
Oklahoma State vs. Tennessee
Last year's victory over Iowa in the TaxSlayer Bowl was Tennessee's 26th in 50 all-time bowl games but also the 46th that the Volunteers have played outside of their home state despite there being bowls played in Memphis and Nashville. They played in the 2010 Music City Bowl, but their last trip to Memphis was in 1986.
This will give Tennessee a chance to knock off two Big 12 schools in the same season after facing Oklahoma at home in September. There are other opponents that would be more desirable, but being able to lay claim to the title of Oklahoma State Champion would be a nice side prize to the 2015 season.
Oklahoma State has only played in the Volunteer State once, losing 31-0 at Tennessee in 1995. The offensive coordinator on that Cowboys team was Les Miles. Since taking over LSU as head coach in 2005, he has gone 7-1 against Tennessee-based SEC opponents, and he'd won every game he'd played in that state until LSU lost to Notre Dame in last year's Music City Bowl.
Alamo Bowl (Jan. 2, San Antonio)
32 of 40
Texas Tech vs. Oregon
If a bowl doesn't have a tie to the national championship or some sort of tradition to uphold, it strives to get the best possible matchup and preferably one that will be as fan- and TV-friendly as possible. In other words, a game where points are a plenty is highly desired.
(Think Baylor-Washington in the 2011 Alamo Bowl, when they combined for 123 points.)
If Oregon and Texas Tech were to square off in a bowl game that has nothing riding on it other than pride and bragging rights, expect the scoreboard to get a workout and potentially challenge that total score.
Tech didn't make a bowl last season, finishing with a 4-8 record, but in the Red Raiders' last seven bowl appearances they averaged 38 points per game. Oregon has topped 40 points in four of its last nine bowls, including the 59 it had last year against Florida State in the Rose Bowl semifinal.
Cactus Bowl (Jan. 2, Phoenix)
33 of 40
West Virginia vs. Arizona State
With construction at Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe making it unwise to hold a bowl there, the Cactus Bowl returns to Chase Field in downtown Phoenix. The home of Major League Baseball's Arizona Diamondbacks hosted the game—known then as the Insight.com or Insight Bowl—from 2000 to 2005.
Arizona State played in the last of those games, beating Rutgers in 2005, and would make for a great reason for Phoenix-area fans to spend the day after New Year's at a college football game when college basketball, the NBA and NHL are all in full swing.
For the Big 12 tie-in, it's tie for some fresh blood. Every current Big 12 team other than Texas has played in a version of this bowl, but West Virginia hasn't since 1998, when it was still in the Big East. The only other time the Mountaineers headed west since then for a bowl was for the 2008 Fiesta Bowl, a 48-28 win over Oklahoma that is among the school's greatest performances ever.
Peach Bowl (Dec. 31, Atlanta)
34 of 40
Michigan State vs. Georgia
The Peach Bowl will officially become one of the major bowl games after the 2016 season, when it hosts one of the two semifinal contests. It's a far cry from the game's origins, which often featured matchups involving independent at-large teams.
The game has been on an upward track in terms of matchups ever since, often showcasing big-name quarterbacks having some of their best performances ever. Trevone Boykin threw three touchdown passes for TCU in last year's 42-3 romp over Ole Miss, and the year before Johnny Manziel capped his Texas A&M career with four TD passes in a comeback win over Duke.
Can Michigan State's Connor Cook be the next QB to star in the Georgia Dome? Or will Georgia's new passer—possibly Virginia transfer Greyson Lambert—step up and have the game of his life?
Fiesta Bowl (Jan. 1, Glendale, Arizona)
35 of 40
Boise State vs. Clemson
The automatic bid handed out by the playoff selection committee to a non-power conference team is a great PR move, but it's probably not something that the bowl which ends up with a Group of Five participant is particularly happy about. Unless it's Boise State, since the Broncos have already shown a propensity to make for great theater when put on the big stage.
As fate would have it, the Fiesta continues to be the place that Boise ends up, both for geographic purposes and how the pairings end up. With Glendale also hosting the national championship game this year, it can't be too upset about getting the Broncos for a fourth time since 2007 and second season in a row.
The new blood comes from Clemson, which might not be one of the most recognizable national programs but could be different in 2015 if quarterback Deshaun Watson is able to stay healthy and garners Heisman Trophy attention.
Clemson has only headed west for a bowl once, in 2001 for the Humanitarian Bowl in Boise. That game only drew about 25,000 fans, which the Tigers could have just rooting for them in University of Phoenix Stadium.
Rose Bowl (Jan. 1, Pasadena, California)
36 of 40
Notre Dame vs. UCLA
If the Rose Bowl can't get its traditional Big Ten/Pac-12 matchup, it wants something that holds as much appeal as possible. Notre Dame, loosely translated in bowl-speak, means money in the bank.
The Fighting Irish always draw well for their annual trips to California, either at Stanford or in the Los Angeles Coliseum against USC, but they have only played in the Rose Bowl twice. Once was against UCLA in 2007, a 20-6 win, the other in 1925.
UCLA plays its home games in this stadium but hasn't been there for a bowl game since 1999 and hasn't won a Rose Bowl since 1986.
Sugar Bowl (Jan. 1, New Orleans)
37 of 40
Auburn vs. Baylor
Just before the committee finalized the College Football Playoff, the Big 12 and SEC set up an agreement with the Sugar Bowl to have their champions square off in New Orleans whenever they weren't in a national semifinal and the Sugar Bowl wasn't a semifinal site. The Sugar hosted a semifinal last season, so this will be the first time it gets that coveted matchup.
It won't be pitting conference champions against each other, though, as those teams (shown on future slides) will be in the semifinals. But for third and fourth options, Auburn and Baylor make for a pretty darn good pairing.
Baylor led the nation in scoring last season at 48.2 points per game, while Auburn scored 35.5 per game. Each did it in its own innovative way, with head coach Art Briles operating Baylor's offense like a high-powered rifle and Auburn's Gus Malzahn finding ways to make a run-heavy attack as wide open as possible.
The Tigers will be more pass-oriented this season, thanks to quarterback Jeremy Johnson, but no less dangerous. Baylor will have a new quarterback running its unit, but the Bears' system has shown it can swap out individual parts and still run like a well-oiled weapon.
It will also be fun to see what Auburn defensive coordinator Will Muschamp can cook up to try to negate that Baylor attack, as well as to see if Baylor can finally hold on to a big bowl victory instead of letting another slip through its fingers like in the past two seasons.
Cotton Bowl (Dec. 31, Arlington, Texas)
38 of 40
Alabama vs. TCU
Baylor and TCU had legitimate claims to being part of the playoffs last year, but the lack of a Big 12 championship game did them in and gave the playoff selection committee an easy out when it decided to make that conference the one that didn't get a semifinal spot.
It's going to be a lot harder to do so this season, especially if the Baylor-TCU winner goes undefeated, a very strong possibility. And with a semifinal in Texas, it stands to reason the committee is going to try to get a Big 12 representative in that game.
We're going with TCU over Baylor in that regular-season clash, which gives the Horned Frogs the playoff spot. And since it's the cool thing nowadays to say, "We Want Bama," it's understandable that the Cotton Bowl folks would like the Crimson Tide in Arlington as well.
The strong turnout of Alabama fans for the season opener against Wisconsin confirmed this, but this time around the Tide will have a far tougher opponent in TCU. Having learned through the season how to deal with uptempo teams, particularly when it comes to stopping the pass game, Alabama will dictate the pace and roll into its third championship game in the past five seasons.
Orange Bowl (Dec. 31, Miami)
39 of 40
Ohio State vs. USC
The Rose Bowl is the traditional site for Big Ten/Pac-12 champions to square off, but this year the Orange Bowl gets to handle that assignment as a semifinal site. Miami has been the site of plenty of championship-worthy matchups, and it's where USC won its last title after the 2004 season.
Ohio State, as the No. 1 overall seed, gets first dibs on where it plays in the semifinals, and the playoff selection committee will choose the Orange Bowl in an effort to spread the Buckeyes' marketability around. OSU played in New Orleans and Arlington, Texas, during last year's run, and this time will go through South Florida to get to the title game in Arizona.
The Buckeyes were in the Orange Bowl two seasons ago, losing to Clemson, one of just three games they've lost under Urban Meyer. It was also the last time that Braxton Miller played for the Buckeyes, fighting through numerous injuries to account for four touchdowns, and he'll come off the bench to replace an injured Cardale Jones and lead his team to a comeback victory.
College Football Championship Game (Jan. 11, Glendale, Arizona)
40 of 40
Alabama vs. Ohio State
The first round was tons of fun, so why not have a sequel?
Everyone loves rematches—except for maybe the team that won the first one, since there's nothing left to prove—and the chance to see Alabama and Ohio State battle again, this time for a championship (instead of just the right to play for one), is too enticing to pass up.
Beyond that, who wouldn't want to see another clash of coaching minds, Alabama's Nick Saban against Ohio State's Urban Meyer? Now both with three national titles and the only two to have won championships with multiple teams, each has two wins against the other.
Best of five, anyone?
"Saban won a BCS title in his fourth year at LSU and third at Alabama," Dan Wolken of USA Today wrote. "Meyer did it in his second at Florida and third at Ohio State. That doesn't happen by accident, and when you throw in Meyer's unbeaten season at Utah in 2004, the resume gap starts to get pretty narrow."
We want to see another Saban/Meyer clash, and so would the accountants at every entity associated with the College Football National Championship Game.
Follow Brian J. Pedersen on Twitter at @realBJP.
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