Bowl Games 2017-18: TV Schedule and Predictions For Top Matchups
The three-and-a-half-week journey known as bowl season kicks off just two weeks after the conference champions in college football were crowned.
By the time the first set of games rolls around on December 16, we'll be craving any type of football and we'll pay more attention than necessary to a contest between six-win teams from the Sun Belt and Conference USA.
What makes bowl season special is the midweek afternoon kickoffs, unique matchups and electric performances that come from the most unexpected sources.
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While you slowly work up your excitement level for the start of bowl season, here's a look at the whole schedule plus three interesting matchups to feast on.
December 16
R&L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (1 p.m. ET)
Troy vs. North Texas
TV: ESPN
AutoNation Cure Bowl (2:30 p.m. ET )
Western Kentucky vs. Georgia State
TV: CBS Sports Network
Las Vegas Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET)
No. 25 Boise State vs. Oregon
TV: ABC
Gildan New Mexico Bowl (4:30 p.m. ET)
Marshall vs. Colorado State
TV: ESPN
Raycom Media Camellia Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
Middle Tennessee vs. Arkansas State
TV: ESPN
December 19
Cheribundi Tart Cherry Boca Raton Bowl (7 p.m. ET)
Akron vs. Florida Atlantic
TV: ESPN
December 20
DXL Frisco Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
Louisiana Tech vs. SMU
TV: ESPN
December 21
Bad Boy Mowers Gasparilla Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
Temple vs. Florida International
TV: ESPN
December 22
Bahamas Bowl (12:30 p.m. ET)
UAB vs. Ohio
TV: ESPN
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (4 p.m. ET)
Central Michigan vs. Wyoming
TV: ESPN
December 23
Birmingham Bowl (12 p.m. ET)
Texas Tech vs. South Florida
TV: ESPN
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET)
San Diego State vs. Army
TV: ESPN
Dollar General Bowl (7 p.m. ET)
Appalachian State vs. Toledo
TV: ESPN
December 24
Hawai'i Bowl (8:30 p.m. ET)
Fresno State vs. Houston
TV: ESPN
December 26
Zaxby's Heart of Dallas Bowl (1:30 p.m. ET)
West Virginia vs. Utah
TV: ESPN
Quick Lane Bowl (5:15 p.m. ET)
Duke vs. Northern Illinois
TV: ESPN
Cactus Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
Kansas State vs. UCLA
TV: ESPN
December 27
Walk On's Independence Bowl (1:30 p.m. ET)
Southern Miss vs. Florida State
TV: ESPN
New Era Pinstripe Bowl (5:15 p.m. ET)
Boston College vs. Iowa
TV: ESPN
Foster Farms Bowl (8:30 p.m. ET)
Arizona vs. Purdue
TV: Fox
Academy Sports & Outdoors Texas Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
Texas vs. Missouri
TV: ESPN
December 28
Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman (1:30 p.m. ET)
Virginia vs. Navy
TV: ESPN
Camping World Bowl (5:15 p.m. ET)
No. 22 Virginia Tech vs. No. 19 Oklahoma State
TV: ESPN
Valero Alamo Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
No. 13 Stanford vs. No. 15 TCU
TV: ESPN
San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl (9 p.m. ET)
No. 18 Washington State vs. No. 16 Michigan State
TV: Fox
December 29
Belk Bowl (1 p.m. ET)
Wake Forest vs. Texas A&M
TV: ESPN
Hyundai Sun Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET)
No. 24 NC State vs. Arizona State
TV: CBS
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl (4:30 p.m. ET)
No. 21 Northwestern vs. Kentucky
TV: ESPN
Nova Home Loans Arizona Bowl (5:30 p.m. ET)
Utah State vs. New Mexico State
TV: CBS Sports Network
Goodyear Cotton Bowl (8:30 p.m. ET)
No. 5 Ohio State vs. No. 8 USC
TV: ESPN
December 30
TaxSlayer Bowl (Noon ET)
No. 23 Mississippi State vs. Louisville
TV: ESPN
AutoZone Liberty Bowl (12:30 p.m. ET)
No. 20 Memphis vs. Iowa State
TV: ABC
PlayStation Fiesta Bowl (4 p.m. ET)
No. 9 Penn State vs. No. 11 Washington
TV: ESPN
Capital One Orange Bowl (8 p.m. ET)
No. 6 Wisconsin vs. No. 10 Miami (FL)
TV: ESPN
January 1, 2018
Outback Bowl (Noon ET)
Michigan vs. South Carolina
TV: ESPN2
Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (12:30 p.m. ET)
No. 7 Auburn vs. No. 12 UCF
TV: ESPN
Citrus Bowl presented by Overton's (1 p.m. ET)
No. 14 Notre Dame vs. No. 17 LSU
TV: ABC
Rose Bowl (National Semifinal, 5 p.m. ET)
No. 2 Oklahoma vs. No. 3 Georgia
TV: ESPN
Sugar Bowl (National Semifinal, 8:45 p.m. ET)
No. 1 Clemson vs. No. 4 Alabama
TV: ESPN
January 8, 2018
National Championship Game (8 p.m. ET)
TV: ESPN
Top Matchups
Peach Bowl: No. 7 Auburn vs. No. 12 UCF
Each one of the New Year's Six games presents an intriguing matchup with a bevy of storylines, but only one of them will produce a David vs. Goliath clash like the Peach Bowl will.
Every year we see one of the nation's top programs square off against that year's best Group of Five team, and for the most part the team from the lesser-known conference puts more emphasis on a victory because it has something to prove.
No team has embraced the us-against-the-world mentality more than the UCF Knights, who were slighted throughout the playoff ranking process and ended up 12th despite an undefeated regular season.
On the other hand, the Auburn Tigers come into the Peach Bowl off an SEC Championship loss to Georgia, a game in which a College Football Playoff spot was on the line. The Peach Bowl marks the second time in three games that the Tigers will go up against an unbeaten team. John Zenor of the AP noted the strength of Auburn's last three opponents:
How Auburn's defense tries to stop the high-powered UCF offense led by McKenzie Milton will be interesting to watch. The Knights rank seventh in the nation in total offense with 6,485 yards and they are fifth in yards per game at 540.
The Auburn defensive unit is 14th in FBS in yards conceded per game at 312 and it has held opponents to 177.8 passing yards per contest. Milton has thrown for more yards in the air than Auburn's per-game total in every game he's played this season.
Orange Bowl: No. 6 Wisconsin vs. No. 10 Miami (FL)
Throughout bowl season, you'll witness plenty of style clashes on the field, but one that carries onto the off-field personality of both programs is the Orange Bowl.
No. 6 Wisconsin is the no-nonsense hard-working Big Ten program, while No. 10 Miami (FL) is one of the flashiest programs in the country, and it carries around the now-famous turnover chain.
On the field, the Badgers will run their opponents to death, and expect much of the same out of Jonathan Taylor and Co., especially as they enter a potentially hostile environment in the home stadium of the Hurricanes.
Everything seems to be aligning in Miami's way to finish off Mark Richt's second season in charge, even if it can be seen as a disappointment without an ACC Championship sitting in the trophy case.
Miami's talented defense should throw everything into the box to stop Taylor and the Wisconsin game, which could force Alex Hornibrook to win the game for the Badgers, which is far from the ideal scenario for head coach Paul Chryst.
Wisconsin will try to do the same to Miami's running game, and it will force Malik Rosier into stress almost immediately in the pocket.
The winner of the Orange Bowl will most likely be victorious in the battle of the trenches and will get the most pressure on the opposing signal-caller.
Birmingham Bowl: Texas Tech vs. South Florida
If you're looking for a game in the first week of bowl season that you want to be entertained by, look no further than the Birmingham Bowl.
The Saturday afternoon contest between Texas Tech and South Florida at Legion Field is one of two bowl games to feature a pair of top-20 offenses. The other is the Rose Bowl between No. 2 Oklahoma and No. 3 Georgia.
But unlike the Sooners and Bulldogs, the Red Raiders and Bulls don't play a lick of defense. If you needed a reason to guess why they're playing in the Birmingham Bowl, that's it.
The only teams Texas Tech held under 20 points in the regular season were Eastern Washington of the FCS and Kansas, while South Florida recorded that achievement on three occasions against Temple, Cincinnati and Stony Brook of the FCS.
Texas Tech's 3,547-yard passer Nic Shimonek and 1,242-yard receiver Keke Coutee will be hard to stop as will South Florida dual threat quarterback Quinton Flowers, who has 2,600 passing yards and 972 rushing yards.
Follow Joe on Twitter, @JTansey90.
All statistics obtained from ESPN.com
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