College Football Bowl Projections After Week 6: Two More CFP Hopefuls Tumble

Penn State and Texas have two losses apiece to drop into the Vegas Bowl and ReliaQuest Bowl, respectively, instead of meeting their preseason expectations in the playoff.

Penn State quarterback Drew Allar takes hits from UCLA linebacker Jalen Woods and defensive back Rodrick Pleasant. / Kiyoshi Mio-Imagn Images

You could almost see one of those chaotic weekends in college football coming, but few could have really predicted the type of carnage that transpired in Week 6. Everywhere you looked, there was a massive favorite or big-brand team taking a loss where they should have comfortably walked out of the stadium with a win.

As a result, the postseason picture has shifted quite a bit from where it was just a week prior. After shocking road losses, Texas and Penn State tumbled from College Football Playoff hopefuls to the ReliaQuest Bowl and Vegas Bowl, respectively, in the latest projections. Who had that as the destination for either during the preseason? 

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The good news is that we’re in store for some enticing matchups, from a fascinating Gator Bowl between Florida State and Tennessee, a likely shootout between Notre Dame and Baylor in the Pop-Tarts Bowl and even an excellent meeting of overachieving Virginia and Missouri with an extra touch of mayo.

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 6.

Bowl	Date	Matchup
L.A. Bowl	Dec. 13	Washington vs. Boise State
Salute to Veterans Bowl	Dec. 16	Troy vs. Miami (Ohio)
Cure Bowl	Dec. 17	James Madison vs. Memphis
68 Ventures Bowl	Dec. 17	Old Dominion vs. Temple
Myrtle Beach Bowl	Dec. 19	Appalachian State vs. East Carolina
Gasparilla Bowl	Dec. 19	Wake Forest vs. UCF
Potato Bowl	Dec. 22	Ohio vs. Fresno State
Boca Raton Bowl	Dec. 23	Georgia Southern vs. Utah State
New Orleans Bowl	Dec. 23	Louisiana Tech vs. Southern Miss
Frisco Bowl	Dec. 23	UTEP vs. San Diego State
Hawai‘i Bowl	Dec. 24	Hawai‘i vs. Liberty
Sports Bowl	Dec. 26	Maryland vs. Toledo
Rate Bowl	Dec. 26	Kansas vs. Minnesota
First Responder Bowl	Dec. 26	Cal vs. Texas State
Military Bowl	Dec. 27	Duke vs. Navy
Pinstripe Bowl	Dec. 27	Clemson vs. Michigan State
Fenway Bowl	Dec. 27	Louisville vs. USF
Pop-Tarts Bowl	Dec. 27	Notre Dame vs. Baylor
Arizona Bowl	Dec. 27	Western Michigan vs. UNLV
New Mexico Bowl	Dec. 27	San Jose State vs. Buffalo
Gator Bowl	Dec. 27	Florida State vs. Tennessee
Texas Bowl	Dec. 27	TCU vs. Auburn
Birmingham Bowl	Dec. 29	Pitt vs. Mississippi State
Independence Bowl	Dec. 30	Houston vs. UTSA
Music City Bowl	Dec. 30	Iowa vs. Vanderbilt
Alamo Bowl	Dec. 30	USC vs. Iowa State
ReliaQuest Bowl	Dec. 31	Illinois vs. Texas
Sun Bowl	Dec. 31	SMU vs. Arizona
Citrus Bowl	Dec. 31	Nebraska vs. LSU
Vegas Bowl	Dec. 31	Utah vs. Penn State
Armed Forces Bowl	Jan. 2	North Texas vs. Cincinnati
Liberty Bowl	Jan. 2	BYU vs. South Carolina
Mayo Bowl	Jan. 2	Virginia vs. Missouri
Holiday Bowl	Jan. 2	Georgia Tech vs. Arizona State
TBD/Bahamas Bowl	TBD	Western Kentucky vs. Bowling Green

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