Hello everyone, and welcome back to another installment of bowl picks here at Last Word On College Football. We split the first picks into two parts this year. In the first part, we took a deep dive into the College Football Playoff, going game by game until we declared a winner—a huge thank you to everyone who checked out the first installment. From the Cricket Celebration Bowl on December 12th to the Autozone Liberty Bowl on January 2nd, we’ll give you picks for each game. Plus some information, new bowls, and some changes to others. With the preliminaries out of the way, let’s get to why you’re here. Time for the First 2026 Bowl Projections.
First 2026 Bowl Projections
West Coast Reshuffling
As is the case every year, conference realignment is always a key talking point. For this season, most of the shuffling is on the West Coast. Arguably, the biggest story is the rebirth of the Pac-12 (or 8) for now. Joining legacy members Oregon State and Washington is a host of schools from the Mountain West. The league now includes Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, and Utah State. In addition, Texas State leaves the Sun Belt to come aboard.
Not to be outdone, the Mountain West added several schools to make up for the loss to the Pac-12. That league currently has legacy schools Air Force, Hawai’i, Nevada, New Mexico, San Jose State, UNLV, and Wyoming. Texas El Paso left Conference USA to join, while Northern Illinois left the MAC to become a football-only member. Finally, FCS powerhouse North Dakota State moved up to the FBS for 2026 and is a football-only member.
New Games For 2026
In addition to some conference reshuffling, we are saying goodbye to some games and adding others. The Bahamas, LA and GameAbove Sports Bowls are no more. Furthermore, the Xbox Bowl became a one-and-donecontest. The returning Frisco Football Classic is replacing it. Joining the schedule this year are the Puerto Rico Bowl and the Poinsettia Bowl, which returns after a 10-year absence. It will be the second game played in San Diego. Currently, it’s scheduled to be the Pac-12 versus the Mountain West. As a result, you could get an old and a new Pac-12 school playing each other.
Two more things: until a definite decision is made on the playoff legacy, Pac-12 schools will go to those conference tie-ins. For example, Utah would go to one of those sponsored games rather than a Big 12 one, assuming they don’t make the playoff. Second, the NCAA eliminated the rule requiring you to wait at least a year before becoming bowl-eligible. That means both North Dakota State and Sacramento State, which is now part of the MACtion, can play in a bowl this season. Finally, since it’s an even-numbered year, the SEC plays in the Las Vegas Bowl and the Big Ten in the Mayo. Got all that? There’s a quiz later. With all of the pertinent information dispensed, let’s get to our First 2026 Bowl Projections.
Games Around The New Year
Cheez-It Citrus Bowl: January 2nd- Big Ten vs. SEC- Alabama vs. Michigan- Starting the season, we have the Tide as one of the first teams out of the playoff. These two squads met in Orlando back in 2021 and in the ReliaQuest Bowl in 2024.
Autozone Liberty Bowl- January 2nd- Big 12 vs. SEC- Auburn vs. Kansas State
ServPro First Responder Bowl- January 2nd- AAC/ACC-Big 12- North Carolina State vs. Arizona
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl- December 30th- ACC vs. SEC- Clemson vs. Oklahoma– Many were surprised when we didn’t have the Sooners in the playoff. However, organizers in Jacksonville would be more than pumped for this matchup.
Liberty Mutual Music City Bowl: December 30th- Big Ten vs. SEC- Florida vs. Nebraska- Some think the Gators can make a run in Jon Sumrall’s first year in Gainesville. However, a solid bowl game is more likely.
Reliaquest Bowl: December 31st- SEC vs. Big Ten- Tennessee vs. Penn State
Tony The Tiger Sun Bowl: December 31st- ACC/Notre Dame vs. Pac-12- California vs. Utah*- The Utes go to El Paso as a legacy Pac-12 member.
Las Vegas Bowl: December 31st- SEC vs. Pac-12- Texas A&M vs. Arizona State- *The Sun Devils go as a legacy Pac-12 team.
Kinder’s Texas Bowl- December 31st- SEC vs. Big 12- Missouri vs. Oklahoma State- Big things are expected from the Cowboys in 2026 from a team that went 1-11 last season.
That’s our first group of picks. As we move along with our 2026 First Bowl Projections, let’s move to the contests after the big holiday.
Post-Christmas Games
Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl: December 26th- ACC/Notre Dame vs. Big Ten- Georgia Tech vs. Wisconsin
Wasabi Fenway Bowl: December 27th- ACC/Notre Dame vs. American- Pittsburgh vs. Army
Duke’s Mayo Bowl: December 26th- ACC/Notre Dame vs. Big Ten- Virginia vs. Iowa
68 Ventures Bowl: December 26th- Conference USA/Mid-American/Sun Belt- Jacksonville State vs. Louisiana Tech
Cactus Bowl – December 26th: Big Ten vs. Big 12 – Illinois vs. TCU – The former Rate Bowl is renamed the Cactus Bowl for 2026.
Freedom Mortgage Military Bowl: December 28th- ACC/Notre Dame vs. American- Navy vs. Wake Forest- If the Demon Deacons can navigate one of the toughest conference slates, they should make a second straight bowl.
JLab Birmingham Bowl: December 29th- American/ACC/SEC- Vanderbilt vs. Duke– The Diego Pavia era is over in Nashville, and Jared Curtis takes over. A bit of a drop-off from the last two seasons is to be expected. However, we still have them making a bowl.
Pop-Tarts Bowl: December 29th- ACC/Notre Dame vs. Big 12- Louisville vs. Houston- The Cardinals are a legit contender in the ACC this season.
Valero Alamo Bowl: December 29th- Big 12 vs. Pac-12- BYU vs. Washington*- The Huskies go to San Antonio as a legacy Pac-12 member.
We are moving right along with our 2026 First Bowl Projections. Time now for the opening contests of bowl season.
First Week Games
Cricket Celebration Bowl- December 12th- MEAC vs. SWAC- South Carolina State vs. Alabama State
IS4S Salute To Veterans Bowl: December 15th- Conference USA/MAC/Sun Belt- Old Dominion vs. Ohio
Frisco Football Classic- December 15th- Conference USA vs. Sun Belt- Louisiana vs. Delaware
Boca Raton Bowl: December 18th- American/Conference USA/MAC/Mountain West/Sun Belt- Liberty vs. Marshall
Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl: December 19th- American/ACC/Notre Dame/SEC- Memphis vs. South Carolina- We mentioned in our playoff projections that one of the biggest Group of Six games is a week one matchup between the Tigers and UNLV. The Rebels win that one and have the inside track on that playoff bid. As a result, we’re sending the Tigers to Tampa.
As we wrap up our First 2026 Bowl Projections, let’s move to the games before the big holiday. One thing you’ll notice is that there are a lot more games before Christmas this year.
Bowls Right Before Christmas
Myrtle Beach Bowl: December 21st- Conference USA/MAC/Sun Belt- Arkansas State vs. Central Michigan
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: December 21st- Mountain West vs. MAC- North Dakota State vs. Toledo- We do indeed have the Bison making a bowl in their first season at the FBS level.
Puerto Rico Bowl- December 22nd- MAC vs. American/CUSA/MWC/SBC- Miami (Ohio) vs. East Carolina- Much like the former Bahamas Bowl, the new game in Bayamon features the Mid-American Conference.
StaffDNA Cure Bowl- December 22nd- AAC/CUSA/MAC/SBC- Tulane vs. UConn
Radience Technologies Independence Bowl- December 30th- Big 12 vs. Conference USA- West Virginia vs. Kennesaw State
New Orleans Bowl: December 23rd- Conference USA vs. Sun Belt– Western Kentucky vs. James Madison. Every year, this has one of the best matchups, and this year is no different.
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl- December 23rd- Big 12 vs. AAC/MWC/SBC- Baylor vs. North Texas
Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl: December 23rd- AAC/CUSA/MAC/MWC/SBC- Washington State+ vs. UCLA+- We’re pulling a couple of schools from the Pac-12 and Big Ten to create an old school Pac-12 matchup.
Isleta New Mexico Bowl- December 24th- MWC vs. AAC/CUSA/MAC/SBC- San Diego State vs. Florida International
Sheraton Hawai’i Bowl: December 24th- American vs. Mountain West- Hawai’i vs. South Florida
To Be Announced Games
Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl- MAC vs. MWC- Utah State vs. Buffalo
Poinsettia Bowl- Pac-12 vs. Mountain West- Boise State vs. Air Force- This would make a pretty good first matchup if it holds.
Trust & Will Holiday Bowl- ACC vs. Pac-12- USC* vs. Virginia Tech- Big things are expected in James’ Franklin’s first season in Blacksburg. A trip to San Diego would certainly qualify. The Trojans go as a legacy Pac-12 squad.
There you have it, our First 2026 Bowl Projections for the upcoming season. If you don’t see your favorite team, don’t worry, we’ve got a whole season to go. Thanks for checking out our picks here at Last Word On College Football
Main Image: Morgan Tencza-USA TODAY Sports
