Bowl season is finally back after a long, very eventful season. There were some teams that played exceptionally well (Indiana, Texas Tech, Virginia), and some that left room for improvement (Penn State, Clemson, LSU). So, with that being said, I'm going to predict the winner for EVERY bowl game, and we'll see in January how this pans out.
Cricket Celebration Bowl: South Carolina State over Prairie View A&M
Two teams that did well this year, I give SC State the edge in this one.
LA Bowl: Washington over Boise State
This one was a close one for me. Both teams had their moments, but I have the Huskies in a close one.
Salute to Veterans Bowl: Troy over Jacksonville State
I was impressed with what I saw from Troy in the Sun Belt Championship despite the loss. They held in with JMU for a while, so I'll give them the victory here.
Cure Bowl: South Florida over Old Dominion
With a very impressive season, I don't think the Bulls should have much trouble beating the Monarchs.
Ventures Bowl: Louisiana over Delaware
I saw Louisiana play earlier this year when they played James Madison in Harrisonburg. They looked like a decently good team, and I think they can get the win here.
Myrtle Beach Bowl: Kennesaw State over Western Michigan
This game is tough. 2 G5 conference champions going after it. I have the Owls in a close one.
Gasparilla Bowl: NC State over Memphis
Another close one, I'm taking NC State as Ryan Silverfield will not be coaching for the Tigers.
CFP First Round: Alabama over Oklahoma
I think many would pick the Tide here. Despite being at home, I think Bama can handle the Sooners offense and send themselves into the next round.
CFP First Round: Miami over Texas A&M
Originally had Texas A&M, but the Aggies have cooled off some in recent games. Maybe they will bounce back after a long bye, but I have the Hurricanes in a close one.
CFP First Round: Ole Miss over Tulane
Despite Lane Kiffin not coaching, I just don't see Tulane winning this. Ole Miss won in a blowout earlier this year, I think it'll be closer, but Ole Miss still has the upper edge.
CFP First Round: Oregon over James Madison
As much as I want to see JMU win, I just don't think it's realistic. The Dukes only played one P4 team, and didn't play that well. Give me the Ducks.
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl: Washington State over Utah State
The Cougars have had their Ups and downs this season, I think they win this one however.
Boca Raton Bowl: Louisville over Toledo
Don't think this game will be that close, but not a blowout either. I think 31-14, 31-17 could be the score for this game.
New Orleans Bowl: Western Kentucky over Southern Miss
Originally had the Golden Eagles, but Charles Huff is leaving for Memphis, so give me the Hilltoppers.
Frisco Bowl: UNLV over Ohio
I like what UNLV has done this year, don't think Ohio will be a challenging opponent.
Hawai'i Bowl: California over Hawai'i
Not sure what to say here tbh, give me the Golden Bears.
Sports Bowl: Northwestern over Central Michigan
Being a P4 team, I think Northwestern has to win this, but you never know with a team like the Wildcats.
Rate Bowl: New Mexico over Minnesota
This one I think would shock most. New Mexico is known more for Basketball than they are Football, but I think with the nice season they are having, they could be the exception that I made a game above this one.
First Responder Bowl: UTSA over Florida International
I think the Roadrunners will come out on top.
Military Bowl: Pittsburgh over East Carolina
This game is kind of a weird one for me. On one hand, Pitt has shown flashes this season of being a good team, on the other hand, this is a very loseable game for the Panthers. I'm going with Pitt, but it could be a lot closer than people expect.
Pinstripe Bowl: Clemson over Penn State
Now this is a strange game. Some people picked these guys in the national championship by Week 0, but now they are playing each other in the Pinstripe Bowl. Because of James Franklin leaving and Drew Allar injured, give me the Tigers.
Fenway Bowl: UConn over Army
Joe Fagano and UConn have been impressive this season, give me the Huskies.
Pop-Tarts Bowl: BYU over Georgia Tech
Do I think Georgia Tech deserves to be in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, no. Do I still have to choose a winner, yes. Give me BYU.
Arizona Bowl: Fresno State over Miami (Ohio)
Uh, why is Snoop Dogg sponsoring this?
New Mexico Bowl: North Texas over San Diego State
Gotta pick UNT since they nearly made the CFP.
Gator Bowl: Virginia over Missouri
This may be bias, but I'm going with the Cavaliers. Fresh off a heartbreaking loss, it's clear they are hunting for that 11th win, it will be close, but if there's a team I would trust in the final minutes, it's them.
Texas Bowl: Houston over LSU
It just hasn't been LSU's year, I'm going with the Cougars here.
Birmingham Bowl: Georgia Southern over App State
They needed to find someone to play the Eagles, and finally settled on App State. Give me Georgia Southern because they earned the right to be here.
Independence Bowl: Louisiana Tech over Coastal Carolina
Not sure what to say about this one, give me the Bulldogs.
Music City Bowl: Tennessee over Illinois
Could be a competitive game, but I just don't see the Fighting Illini winning this one.
Alamo Bowl: USC over TCU
Trojans have had a nice end of season run, I got them over the Horned Frogs.
ReliaQuest Bowl: Vanderbilt over Iowa
This is actually one of my favorite matchups of the entire bowl schedule. Just the fact that this could be either close or a blowout just gets me hyped for the game. I think it could be hard fought, but give me the Commodores.
Sun Bowl: Arizona State over Duke
Am I doing this out of sheer anger? ...maybe, but I do think Arizona State has a chance to win this.
Citrus Bowl: Michigan over Texas
Many would disagree, but I actually have the Wolverines defeating the Longhorns. Both teams have been on and off this season, but I think Michigan will prevail.
Las Vegas Bowl: Utah over Nebraska
I think Utah will win this and it won't be particularly close either.
Cotton Bowl: Ohio State over Miami
I think Miami will give the Buckeyes a run for their money... in the first half. I think Ohio State should move on with a dominant second half display.
Orange Bowl: Oregon over Texas Tech
As much as I want to see Texas Tech go all the way, I think Oregon wins this. A good amount of Big Ten teams would defeat Big 12 schools, and I think that applies in this scenario.
Rose Bowl: Indiana over Alabama
This game could and should be an exciting one, but as they did with Ohio State, I believe the Hoosiers will pull this one out.
Sugar Bowl: Georgia over Ole Miss
Without Lane Kiffin, I don't think this should be a problem for Georgia.
Armed Forces Bowl: Texas State over Rice
After all this CFP predicting you would think there would be more right? Wrong, nothing like the good ole Armed Forces Bowl to throw things off. Give me Texas State over 5-7 Rice.
Liberty Bowl: Cincinnati over Navy
Despite Navy's incredible year, I feel obligated to pick the Bearcats in a close-ish game.
Duke's Mayo Bowl: Wake Forest over Mississippi State
Wake Forest is having a nice year, and I think they'll finish it off with a bowl game win.
Holiday Bowl: Arizona over SMU
This one took me a while. I almost picked Kevin Jennings' Mustangs, but ultimately went with the Wildcats.
Fiesta Bowl: Ohio State over Georgia
This one was the hardest game for me to pick. I went back and forth for about an hour trying to decide who would come out on top. This game could literally be the exact same as it was back in 2022 with the old playoff format, and my favorite ever college football playoff. Should these two make it, I WILL rush home from my basketball game because this may be the game of the year. I wish Ohio State would've won over Indiana, because this would be an insane Natty. This could be crazy... or I may be totally wrong. But I have Ohio State in a predicted thriller of a game.
Peach Bowl: Indiana over Oregon
After that whole thing over the Fiesta Bowl, this one isn't as anticipated in my eyes as their counterpart is. It will still be a great game, but nowhere close to the levels that Ohio State-Georgia could potentially reach.
College Football Playoff National Championship Game: Ohio State over Indiana
The. Rematch.
Ohio State. Indiana.
What a way to settle it all.
And there you have it, all 46 bowl games predicted. Took me a couple hours, and nearly 10,000 characters. Let the chaos commence