The college football regular season is complete, and the the Playoff picture is nearly set in stone. USC is the fulcrum, and it all works around the Trojans as to whether this CFP race is going to be messy or chalky when pairings are announced on Sunday. As for the rest of the bowl picture, there are 79 teams that are bowl eligible, plus one still with a chance to clinch. A 5–7 Buffalo team can get there by winning its conference title tilt with Akron on Friday.
Rice and UNLV are waiting in the wings as the top ranked teams in APR score with 5–7 records to fill the picture out. If Buffalo loses, according to The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy, Auburn could find its way in as well, however New Mexico State and Army are waiting for NCAA waivers due to having two wins over FCS teams.
All times are Eastern.
College Football Playoff
Peach Bowl, Atlanta (Dec. 31, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Georgia vs. USC
Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, Ariz. (Dec. 31, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Michigan vs. TCU
New Year’s Six
Orange Bowl, Miami (Dec. 30, 7:30 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten/SEC/Notre Dame
Clemson vs. Tennessee
Sugar Bowl, New Orleans (Dec. 31, noon, ESPN)
SEC vs. Big 12
Alabama vs. Kansas State
Cotton Bowl, Arlington, Texas (Jan. 2, 1 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Tulane vs. Penn State
Rose Bowl, Pasadena (Jan. 2, 5 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Ohio State vs. Washington
All other bowls
Dec. 16
Bahamas Bowl, Nassau (11:30 a.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. MAC
Miami (Ohio) vs. UAB
Cure Bowl, Orlando (3 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Buffalo vs. Rice
Dec. 17
Fenway Bowl, Boston (11 a.m., ESPN)
ACC/Notre Dame vs. American
Wake Forest vs. Houston
New Mexico Bowl, Albuquerque (2:15 p.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. Mountain West
Western Kentucky vs. Utah State
Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl, Inglewood, Calif. (3:30 p.m., ABC)
Pac-12 vs. Mountain West
Boise State vs. Washington State
LendingTree Bowl, Mobile (5:45 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. Sun Belt
UConn vs. Southern Miss
Las Vegas Bowl, Las Vegas (7:30 p.m., ABC)
Pac-12 vs. SEC
UCLA vs. UNLV
Frisco Bowl, Frisco, Texas (9:15 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
BYU vs. Louisiana
Dec. 19
Myrtle Beach Bowl, Conway, S.C. (2:30 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Coastal Carolina vs. Marshall
Dec. 20
Famous Idaho Potato, Boise, Id. (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Mountain West vs. MAC
Ohio vs. Wyoming
Boca Raton Bowl, Boca Raton, Fla. (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Eastern Michigan vs. East Carolina
Dec. 21
New Orleans Bowl, New Orleans (9 p.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. Sun Belt
UTSA vs. Troy
Dec. 22
Armed Forces Bowl, Fort Worth (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
American vs. at-large
Memphis vs. Georgia Southern
Dec. 23
Independence Bowl, Shreveport, La. (3 p.m., ESPN)
American vs. Army/BYU
San Jose State vs. Cincinnati
Gasparilla Bowl, Tampa (6:30 p.m., ESPN)
ACC/SEC vs. at-large
Florida vs. SMU
Dec. 24
Hawai’i Bowl, Honolulu (8 p.m., ESPN)
Mountain West vs. C-USA
San Diego State vs. Middle Tennessee
Dec. 26
Quick Lane Bowl, Detroit (2:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. MAC
Liberty vs. Toledo
Dec. 27
Camellia Bowl, Montgomery, Ala. (Noon, ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
South Alabama vs. North Texas
First Responder Bowl, Dallas (3:15 or 6:45 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. at-large
Texas Tech vs. Air Force
Birmingham Bowl, Birmingham (3:15 or 6:45 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. ACC/SEC
Pitt vs. Missouri
Guaranteed Rate Bowl, Phoenix (10:15 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Big Ten
Oklahoma vs. Maryland
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Dec. 28
Military Bowl, Annapolis, Md. (2 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. American
Louisville vs. UCF
Liberty Bowl, Memphis (5:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Kansas vs. Mississippi State
Holiday Bowl, San Diego (8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Pac-12
Duke vs. Oregon
Texas Bowl, Houston (9 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Oklahoma State vs. Arkansas
Dec. 29
Pinstripe Bowl, the Bronx (2 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten
Syracuse vs. Wisconsin
Cheez-It Bowl, Orlando (5:30 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big 12
NC State vs. Baylor
Alamo Bowl, San Antonio (9 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Texas vs. Utah
Dec. 30
Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Charlotte (Noon, ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten
Florida State vs. Minnesota
Sun Bowl, El Paso (2 p.m., CBS)
ACC vs. Pac-12
North Carolina vs. Oregon State
Gator Bowl, Jacksonville (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Notre Dame vs. Kentucky
Arizona Bowl, Tucson (4:30 p.m., Barstool)
Mountain West vs. MAC
Fresno State vs. Bowling Green
Dec. 31
Music City Bowl, Nashville (Noon, ABC)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Iowa vs. South Carolina
Jan. 2
ReliaQuest Bowl, Tampa (Noon, ESPN2)
Big Ten/ACC vs. SEC
Illinois vs. Ole Miss
Citrus Bowl, Orlando (1 p.m., ABC)
SEC vs. Big Ten
Purdue vs. LSU