Bowl Games Schedule 2020-21: Dates, Times and Best Potential CFP Matchups

2020 has been an adventure for college football. As recently as August, the Big Ten and Pac-12 weren't planning on playing any games because of the COVID-19 pandemic and the SEC, ACC and Big 12 were discussing whether they should cancel too. When they opted not to, the Pac-12 and Big Ten scrambled to put their seasons back together, opting for six- and eight-game regular season schedules, respectively.

Hundreds of games were postponed or scrapped because of COVID-19-related roster issues, and few teams made it through the season unscathed. But college football has made it all the way to Championship Week, which seemed like a pipe dream a few months ago. Because of shortened schedules, many bowl-eligible teams will be finding out their opponents maybe a week ahead of time, instead of on the usual Selection Sunday after the conference title games.

Eleven bowl games—Redbox, Hawai'i, Bahamas, Holiday, Quick Lane, Pinstripe, Sun, Fenway, Celebration, Las Vegas, LA—have been canceled because of local safety protocols or because it simply didn't make sense to hold a game that would lose money. There are still 34 games slated to go on, including the CFP National Championship, and some teams have already begun bowl prep ahead of their season finales.

2020-21 College Football Bowl Schedule

Dec. 19

Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl

SMU vs. UTSA

Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)

4:30 p.m. ET | ESPN2

Dec. 21

Myrtle Beach Bowl

Brooks Stadium (Conway, South Carolina)

2:30 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 22

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl

Nevada vs. Tulane

Albertsons Stadium (Boise, Idaho)

3:30 p.m. | ESPN

Boca Raton Bowl

FAU Stadium (Boca Raton, Florida)

7 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 23

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl

Mercedes-Benz Superdome (New Orleans, Louisiana)

3:30 p.m. | ESPN

Montgomery Bowl

Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Alabama)

7 p.m. | ESPN or ESPN2

Dec. 24

New Mexico Bowl

Hawaii vs. Houston

Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)

3:30 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 25

Camellia Bowl

Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Alabama)

2:30 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 26

Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl

Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)

12 p.m. | ABC

Cure Bowl

Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)

12 p.m. | ESPN

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl

Gerald J. Ford Stadium (Dallas, Texas)

3:30 p.m. | ABC

LendingTree Bowl

Ladd-Peebles Stadium (Mobile, Alabama)

3:30 p.m. | ESPN

Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl

Army vs. TBD

Independence Stadium (Shreveport, Louisiana)

7 p.m. | ESPN

Guaranteed Rate Bowl

Chase Field (Phoenix, Arizona)

10:15 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 28

Military Bowl

Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (Annapolis, Maryland)

2:30 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 29

Cheez-It Bowl

Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)

5:30 p.m. | ESPN

Valero Alamo Bowl

Alamodome (San Antonio, Texas)

9 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 30

Duke's Mayo Bowl

Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, North Carolina)

12 p.m. | ESPN

TransPerfect Music City Bowl

Nissan Stadium (Nashville, Tennessee)

3:30 p.m. | ESPN

Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic

AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)

7:15 p.m. | ESPN

Dec. 31

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl

Amon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas)

12 p.m. | ESPN

AutoZone Liberty Bowl

Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium (Memphis, Tennessee)

4 p.m. | ESPN

Arizona Bowl

Arizona Stadium (Tucson, Arizona)

4 p.m. | CBSSN

Texas Bowl

NRG Stadium (Houston, Texas)

8 p.m. | ESPN

Jan. 1

TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl

Legion Field (Birmingham, Alabama)

12 p.m. | ESPN2

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl

Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Georgia)

12:30 p.m. | ESPN

Vrbo Citrus Bowl

Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)

1 p.m. | ABC

Rose Bowl (College Football Playoff semifinal)

Rose Bowl (Pasadena, California)

5 p.m. | ESPN

Allstate Sugar Bowl (College Football Playoff semifinal)

Mercedes-Benz Superdome (New Orleans, Louisiana)

8:45 p.m. | ESPN

Jan. 2

TaxSlayer Gator Bowl

TIAA Bank Field (Jacksonville, Florida)

12 p.m. | ESPN

Outback Bowl

Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)

12:30 p.m. | ABC

PlayStation Fiesta Bowl

State Farm Stadium (Glendale, Arizona)

4 p.m. | ESPN

Capital One Orange Bowl

Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)

8 p.m. | ESPN

Jan. 11

College Football Playoff National Championship

Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)

8 p.m. | ESPN

CFP Scenarios

The College Football Playoff is the biggest prize in the sport, and this year, there hasn't been that much intrigue or surprise around the teams projected to be in. The current top four—Alabama, Notre Dame, Ohio State and Clemson—have just one combined loss, which belongs to Clemson at the hands of Notre Dame. The two will meet Saturday in the ACC Championship Game, and it will go a long way in deciding the fates of multiple teams.

With all four teams participating in championship games, a number of scenarios are in play. But four are most likely.

1. Alabama and Ohio State win and Clemson beats Notre Dame in a close finish. If all of this happens, each of the four in will likely stay in, and Clemson will move up to the No. 2 spot. Alabama and Notre Dame would meet in the Sugar Bowl, and Clemson and Ohio State would face off in the Rose Bowl.

2. Notre Dame beats Clemson and Ohio State and Alabama both win. This assumes that Texas A&M beats Tennessee in its regular-season finale, which is likely but not a foregone conclusion. In the case it does, Clemson falls out of the top four, and Texas A&M likely slides into the No. 3 spot to avoid an Alabama-Texas A&M rematch in the semifinal, giving Justin Fields gets a shot to take down the Crimson Tide.

3. Clemson beats Notre Dame in a blowout. This wouldn't eliminate the Fighting Irish from sneaking in as the No. 4 seed, but with the schedule Notre Dame has played this year, Texas A&M could sneak past them as long as it takes care of business against Tennessee. Again, A&M likely jumps past Ohio State into the No. 3 spot, and we get Alabama vs. Ohio State and Texas A&M vs. Clemson.

4. Clemson loses, and Texas A&M gets upset by Tennessee. This is where all hell breaks loose. The top three seeds will be set: Alabama, Notre Dame and Ohio State. But after that, the discussion gets compelling. Potential candidates include: two-loss Clemson, a two-loss Big 12 champion (Iowa State or Oklahoma), 6-0 USC (if it wins the Pac-12 championship) and undefeated Group of Five champion Cincinnati.

Of the two-loss teams, Clemson would arguably have the weakest schedule because it didn't beat Notre Dame on two occasions. But on paper, the Tigers would be the best team among the group. If you're a College Football Playoff committee member, this is your nightmare. If you're someone who loves chaos, this is what you dream of.

Follow Keegan on Twitter, @ByKeeganPope.