Fiesta Bowl 2016: Known Info Before Final Playoff Rankings Reveal

With the regular season over (aside from the Army-Navy game Dec. 12), the college football bowl picture is starting to take shape. However, there is still some question as to which teams will participate in the Fiesta Bowl.

In the past, the bowl was part of the BCS, which guaranteed it would be hosting the national championship game once every four years.

However, in 2014, it became part of the College Football Playoff, which guaranteed it would be a semifinal game once every three seasons.

The Fiesta Bowl will not hold that distinction until next year, meaning it will not play a role in determining the national champion this season.

Here is a quick look at how you can watch the game and some details on what role the bowl plays in the postseason picture:

When: Jan. 1, 2016, at 1 p.m. ET

Where: Glendale, Arizona

Watch: ESPN

Live Stream: WatchESPN.com

Fiesta Bowl Still Up for Grabs

This year, the Fiesta Bowl—along with the Sugar Bowl, Rose Bowl and Peach Bowl—is part of the "New Year's Six" that the CFP committee will select based on its rankings.  While the Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl are tied in with conferences, the Peach Bowl and Fiesta Bowl are not. 

Here is a look at the selection process for the four bowls:

Bowl	Date	Location	Matchup
Sugar Bowl	Jan. 1	New Orleans, La.	Big 12 vs. SEC
Rose Bowl	Jan. 1	Pasadena, Calif.	Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Fiesta Bowl	Jan. 1	Glendale, Ariz.	At-Large vs. At-Large
Peach Bowl	Dec. 31	Atlanta, Ga.	At-Large vs. At-Large

As you can see, four of the Power Five conferences will have teams in the Sugar Bowl and Rose Bowl. While the ACC is not tied to the Peach Bowl, the committee will strongly consider a team from that conference. 

That leaves the Fiesta Bowl with two true at-large selections.

According to the CFP website, the committee will use the following when determining who will play in the Fiesta Bowl this season:

"

When not hosting semifinals, the Cotton, Fiesta and Peach Bowls will welcome displaced conference champions and the top-ranked champion from a non-contract conference. The highest-ranked available teams will fill any other berths. The selection committee will make the pairings.

"

Jerry Palm of CBSSports.com currently has the Ohio State Buckeyes playing the Houston Cougars in the game. In this case, Houston qualifies as the American Athletic Conference champion. Ohio State earns the bid because Palm has Michigan State in the CFP and Iowa contracted to go to the Rose Bowl as the next highest-ranking Big Ten team.

Ultimately it comes down to the committee choosing who it thinks has the better resume. In reality, it's all speculation until the matchups are revealed Sunday, as KWQC sports reporter Mihir Bhagat surmised as well:

The CFP committee will announce its final rankings, including who will play in the Fiesta Bowl, at 12 p.m. ET on Sunday. Until then, it's nothing but a waiting game.