In the long history of college football, it’s hard to find a swifter collapse than what James Franklin and Penn State experienced the past two weeks.
The Nittany Lions went from a real national title favorite to suffering a double-overtime loss to Oregon, then following that up with two inexplicable no-shows against the two worst teams in the Big Ten (just a few days ago, at least) in UCLA and Northwestern. Now, Franklin is out of a job, Penn State has lost starting quarterback Drew Allar for the season and what was shaping out to be a dream campaign has instead turned into nightmare fuel for every fan in blue and white.
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To make matters worse, Sports Illustrated’s preseason No. 1 team seems to be cursed even further: Based on their upcoming schedule and how they’ve played so far, the Nittany Lions are no longer projected to make a bowl game. From one play away from the national championship game in a College Football Playoff semifinal to bowl-less just nine months later, stunning doesn’t even begin to describe it.
The good news for others outside Happy Valley is that a rash of upsets paved the way for some thrilling matchups, including Arch Manning vs. Bryce Underwood in the Citrus Bowl and a Tennessee-Nebraska reunion sure to evoke late 1990s nostalgia. Also, there are intriguing matchups like LSU-Virginia and another pair of preseason playoff hopefuls meeting in the Vegas Bowl between Illinois and Arizona State. Fun.
Here is how Sports Illustrated sees all of the 35 bowl games coming together to form the postseason picture and which 70 FBS teams will wind up going bowling in 2025–26 after Week 7.
Bowl
Date
Matchup
L.A. Bowl
Dec. 13
Washington vs. Boise State
Salute to Veterans Bowl
Dec. 16
Troy vs. Utah State
Cure Bowl
Dec. 17
James Madison vs. Memphis
68 Ventures Bowl
Dec. 17
Georgia Southern vs. Miami (Ohio)
Myrtle Beach Bowl
Dec. 19
Appalachian State vs. East Carolina
Gasparilla Bowl
Dec. 19
Mississippi State vs. Kansas State
Potato Bowl
Dec. 22
Western Michigan vs. UNLV
Boca Raton Bowl
Dec. 23
Old Dominion vs. Temple
New Orleans Bowl
Dec. 23
Liberty vs. Southern Miss
Frisco Bowl
Dec. 23
Louisiana Tech vs. Texas State
Hawai‘i Bowl
Dec. 24
Western Kentucky vs. Hawai‘i
Sports Bowl
Dec. 26
Kansas vs. Toledo
Rate Bowl
Dec. 26
Baylor vs. Minnesota
First Responder Bowl
Dec. 26
Washington State vs. Texas State
Military Bowl
Dec. 27
Wake Forest vs. Navy
Pinstripe Bowl
Dec. 27
Iowa vs. Louisville
Fenway Bowl
Dec. 27
Pitt vs. Tulane
Pop-Tarts Bowl
Dec. 27
BYU vs. Florida State
Arizona Bowl
Dec. 27
Buffalo vs. San Diego State
New Mexico Bowl
Dec. 27
Fresno State vs. Tulsa
Gator Bowl
Dec. 27
LSU vs. Virginia
Texas Bowl
Dec. 27
Oklahoma vs. Houston
Birmingham Bowl
Dec. 29
Auburn vs. Cal
Independence Bowl
Dec. 30
Iowa State vs. North Texas
Music City Bowl
Dec. 30
South Carolina vs. Maryland
Alamo Bowl
Dec. 30
TCU vs. USC
ReliaQuest Bowl
Dec. 31
Tennessee vs. Nebraska
Sun Bowl
Dec. 31
Arizona vs. SMU
Citrus Bowl
Dec. 31
Texas vs. Michigan
Vegas Bowl
Dec. 31
Illinois vs. Arizona State
Armed Forces Bowl
Jan. 2
Bowling Green vs. UTSA
Liberty Bowl
Jan. 2
Missouri vs. Cincinnati
Mayo Bowl
Jan. 2
Vanderbilt vs. Duke
Holiday Bowl
Jan. 2
Utah vs. Clemson
TBD/Bahamas Bowl
TBD
Kennesaw State vs. Ohio
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