Bowl Games UCF Fans Should Keep An Eye On

While the UCF Knights themselves are not participating in a bowl game, here are three bowls UCF fans could watch.

Dec 28, 2024; Orlando, FL, USA; Iowa State Cyclones head coach Matt Campbell and quarterback Rocco Becht (3) celebrate after beating Miami Hurricanes in the Pop Tarts bowl at Camping World Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

The UCF Knights may not be playing in a bowl game themselves this 2025-26 slate, but that does not mean Knights fans have to miss out on all the football action.

In lieu of a bowl game featuring the Knights, here are three bowl games UCF fans can watch and have a vested interest in:

1. Cure Bowl

Dec 20, 2024; Orlando, FL, USA; a general view of the stadium during the Cure bowl between the Jacksonville State Gamecocks and Ohio Bobcats at Camping World Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images | Nathan Ray Seebeck-Imagn Images

Keep your friends close and your enemies closer. Despite the War on I-4 having gone cold, at least on the football front, since the Knights have moved to the Big 12, the animosity between their fanbase and Bulls fans remains.

So, for the UCF fans that love a good hate-watch, the Bulls are coming to Orlando to take on a fellow 9-3 team, Old Dominion, in the StaffDNA Cure Bowl. The Bulls are coming off losing coach Alex Golesh to Auburn.

The game kicks off at 5 p.m. on Dec. 17.

2. Frisco Bowl

Ohio State Buckeyes safety Caleb Downs (2) pursues Ohio Bobcats quarterback Parker Navarro (13) during the second half of the NCAA football game at Ohio Stadium on Sept. 13, 2025. Ohio State won 37-9. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Once upon a time, in 2021, quarterback Parker Navarro was a freshman at UCF, a potential quarterback of the future who was in his first season under coach Gus Malzahn.

However, once Dillon Gabriel was injured, sidelined for the rest of the season, another freshman, Mikey Keene, emerged to take the starting job and led the Knights to a win in the Gasparilla Bowl against Florida. Following that season, he entered the transfer portal and found his way to Ohio, where he's been ever since.

He earned the Bobcats' starting job in 2024 and ended up earning All-MAC Second Team honors in that season and this one. While he is seeking a seventh year of eligibility, if that appeal is unsuccessful, this bowl game could be his last collegiate game.

Navarro's Bobcats (8-4) take on UNLV (10-3) on Dec. 23 at 9 p.m.

The game kicks off at noon on New Year's Day.

3. Orange Bowl

Texas Tech's Lee Hunter attempts to make the tackle against BYU during the Big 12 Conference championship football game, Saturday, Nov. 6, 2025, at AT&T Stadium in Arlington. | Nathan Giese/Avalanche-Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

On New Year's Day, the Big 12 Champion Texas Tech Red Raiders take on the winner of the James Madison vs. Oregon game for a spot in the College Football Playoff Semifinal.

Not only are the Red Raiders the only team representing the Big 12 in the CFP, but it’s also the new team of former UCF defensive tackle Lee Hunter. He was one of three Texas Tech defensive linemen to get named All-Big 12 First Team this season after he recorded 34 tackles (11 solo), 2.5 sacks, 8.5 tackles for loss and a forced fumble.

4. Rose Bowl

Oct 11, 2025; Eugene, Oregon, USA; Indiana Hoosiers placekicker Nico Radicic (15) kicks a 42-yard field goal held by punter Mitch McCarthy (44) against the Oregon Ducks during the first quarter at Autzen Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images | Troy Wayrynen-Imagn Images

Hunter is not the only former Knight playing in the College Football Playoff.

Following his departure from UCF after three seasons, punter Mitch McCarthy transferred to Indiana for his last season of eligibility. The Hoosiers ended up winning the Big Ten Championship over Ohio State last weekend, earning the No. 1 seed in the College Football Playoff, which takes on the winner of Alabama vs. Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl.

McCarthy, for his part, punted the ball 27 times for 1,075 yards, or an average of 39.8 yards per punt, without recording a single touchback.

The Rose Bowl kicks off at 4 p.m. on New Year’s Day.

Catch up on more UCF news below:

Three Candidates For UCF's Defensive Backs Coach

The UCF Knights 2025 Transfer Portal Report Card: Defensive Tackles

UCF Kicker Declares For 2026 NFL Draft