In a span that has covered more than a quarter century, the Peach Bowl in Atlanta went from a rain-soaked experience at Fulton County Stadium to a New Year’s Six bowl inside the Georgia Dome to an annual component in college football’s 12-team playoff and a two-time site of the sport’s national championship game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

Scott Ramsey, the CEO and president of the Nashville Sports Council, would love to see his city travel a similar path.

When Illinois and Tennessee meet in a pairing of 8-4 teams at the Music City Bowl on Tuesday (5:30 p.m. Eastern on ESPN), it will mark the 26th version held at Nissan Stadium, the home of the NFL’s Tennessee Titans. Next season’s Music City Bowl will be the last that will take place outdoors, with the new Nissan Stadium scheduled to open in 2027 at a cost of $2.1 billion.

“Getting a roof will open up a lot of doors for us and for this city to pursue some events that we haven’t really been qualified to pursue — the Super Bowl, the Final Four, the College Football Playoff national championship game,” Ramsey said. “With concerts, you won’t have the CMA (Country Music Association) struggling with thunderstorms in the middle of the summer. You can book concerts now in the middle of winter.

“It’s going to open up the door for us to do a lot of things.”

Though he harbors big aspirations on the college football front, Ramsey is currently in the dark with everyone else due to the uncertainties ahead.

The Music City Bowl began in 1998 — the inaugural game was held at Vanderbilt — and paired a Southeastern Conference team with a Big East opponent. It then pitted the SEC against the Atlantic Coast Conference before pairing the SEC with the Big Ten, which has been the best marriage yet in terms of interest and crowd support.

ESPN has set a Jan. 23 deadline for the College Football Playoff to come up with its format for the 2026 season, according to Ramsey, and if an agreement can’t be reached, the field would remain at 12 teams and negotiations would start for 2027.

“I think we’re all on pins and needles as far as where do we see postseason college football going,” Ramsey said. “Is it going to be a combination of playoffs and bowls? Is the playoff going to expand to where the bowls will play a different role? There are a lot of what-ifs, but from Nashville’s perspective, we’re locked and loaded to pursue any opportunity out there.

“Right now, there is not an opportunity to pursue, because the New Year’s Six bowls have that contractually locked up, but we will definitely pursue the national championship when it’s time to pursue that bid.”

The next five national championship locations are set, with Miami hosting this season’s game, Las Vegas after the 2026 season, New Orleans after the 2027 season, Tampa after the 2028 season, and Miami again after the 2029 season.

Josh Heupel’s Volunteers are responsible for the two largest football-related crowds in Nissan Stadium history. The Vols lost the 2021 Music City Bowl to Purdue 48-45 in overtime in front of 69,489 fans, which set the record, and they broke it in their 2023 opener when 69,507 watched them defeat Virginia 49-13.

Those two totals may not be challenged by the Vols and Fighting Illini.

“Tickets are going OK,” Ramsey said. “It’s a little slower than it was in 2021, but in 2021 we were coming out of COVID, and I think everybody was just ready to get out of the house. That set an all-time record for us in the stadium, and it was an overtime game.

“It’s been a little slower, but I know the local Vol fans here are going to come out and support the team. I think Illinois is going to bring a good crowd, too.”

Tennessee defeated Virginia on Nissan Stadium’s new synthetic turf, which replaced its natural grass that always looked good on Labor Day but not so much by Thanksgiving. When the Vols played Purdue, the Music City Bowl logos and Titans logos bled into one another at midfield and in the end zones.

“That’s been a big upgrade for us,” Ramsey said. “It was hard for us to flip a field, and I know that Charlotte and Baltimore had also struggled with that. There was also just the playability aspect, but now it’s very consistent.

“The turf has been great, and it’s easier to schedule events now, especially those that are closer together.”

Contact David Paschall at dpaschall@timesfreepress.com.