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Sports Illustrated’s Preseason College Football Bowl Game Projections for 2026
Ahead of Week Zero, it’s time to set a revamped bowl game table with projections for each of the non–College Football Playoff contests. (We’ll have our CFP projected bracket later this week.)
Here is how Sports Illustrated sees the 35 bowl games coming together to form the postseason picture and which 70 FBS teams will go bowling in 2026–27.
Bowl Game | Date | Projected Matchup |
|---|---|---|
Salute to Veterans Bowl | Dec. 15 | Bowling Green vs. Marshall |
Frisco Football Classic | Dec. 15 | Miami (Ohio) vs. USF |
Boca Raton Bowl | Dec. 18 | FAU vs. Louisiana Tech |
Gasparilla Bowl | Dec. 18 | Missouri vs. Georgia Tech |
Myrtle Beach Bowl | Dec. 21 | Temple vs. Western Kentucky |
Idaho Potato Bowl | Dec. 21 | Fresno State vs. Air Force |
Puerto Rico Bowl | Dec. 22 | Utah State vs. Central Michigan |
Cure Bowl | Dec. 22 | Memphis vs. Troy |
Independence Bowl | Dec. 22 | Cincinnati vs. Louisiana |
New Orleans Bowl | Dec. 23 | Arkansas State vs. Kennesaw State |
Armed Forces Bowl | Dec. 23 | Duke vs. UTSA |
Frisco Bowl | Dec. 23 | North Dakota State vs. Army |
New Mexico Bowl | Dec. 24 | New Mexico vs. San Diego State |
Hawai’i Bowl | Dec. 24 | UNLV vs. James Madison |
Pinstripe Bowl | Dec. 26 | NC State vs. Maryland |
Fenway Bowl | Dec. 26 | Pitt vs. East Carolina |
Mayo Bowl | Dec. 26 | Illinois vs. Virginia Tech |
68 Ventures Bowl | Dec. 26 | Toledo vs. Old Dominion |
Cactus Bowl | Dec. 26 | Iowa vs. Oklahoma State |
Military Bowl | Dec. 28 | Wake Forest vs. Navy |
Birmingham Bowl | Dec. 29 | Texas State vs. Jacksonville State |
Pop-Tarts Bowl | Dec. 29 | Houston vs. Louisville |
Alamo Bowl | Dec. 29 | Washington vs. Texas Tech |
Gator Bowl | Dec. 30 | Florida vs. SMU |
Music City Bowl | Dec. 30 | Nebraska vs. Auburn |
ReliaQuest Bowl | Dec. 31 | Texas A&M vs. Michigan |
Sun Bowl | Dec. 31 | Arizona vs. Virginia |
Las Vegas Bowl | Dec. 31 | Arizona State vs. Oklahoma |
Texas Bowl | Dec. 31 | TCU vs. Tennessee |
Citrus Bowl | Jan. 2 | Alabama vs. Penn State |
First Responder Bowl | Jan. 2 | Cal vs. Minnesota |
Liberty Bowl | Jan. 2 | Kansas State vs. South Carolina |
Holiday Bowl | TBD | Utah vs. Clemson |
Poinsettia Bowl | TBD | UCLA vs. Colorado State |
Arizona Bowl | TBD | Hawai’i vs. Western Michigan |
PODCAST: Listen to SI’s college sports podcast, Others Receiving Votes, hosted by Pat Forde, below or on Apple and Spotify. Watch the show on SI’s college YouTube channel or on SI TV.
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Bryan Fischer is a staff writer at Sports Illustrated covering college sports. He joined the SI staff in October 2024 after spending nearly two decades at outlets such as FOX Sports, NBC Sports and CBS Sports. A member of the Football Writers Association of America’s All-America Selection Committee and a Heisman Trophy voter, Fischer has received awards for investigative journalism from the Associated Press Sports Editors and FWAA. He has a bachelor’s in communication from USC.