Each week of the college football season, the Watch Grid helps you focus on the best games.
Bowl season is always fun, for people who like football, at least. Teams who rarely play each other! One last moment for players we’ve loved for years! Oddball locations!
Even for the most devoted football enjoyers, however ... it’s a lot! Almost all of us miss at least a few of these, and not just because of holiday travel.
So to help prioritize your viewing, here are some recommendations from the Watch Grid, which seeks to sort your CFB viewing by estimated interest relative to what else is going on at the time, with some help this time around from the Bowl Watchability Rankings.
Further complicating (and improving) matters: the FCS, Division II, and Division III postseasons are wrapping up as well, including the finales of actual tournaments and the HBCU national title game. I’d argue much of that stuff is easily better than the earliest bowl games.
| Time (p.m. ET) | WATCH THIS | Maybe watch | It's football |
| Friday, December 14 | |||
| 7 | - | DIII title: UMHB vs. Mount Union, ESPNU | - |
| 8 | FCS: SDSU at NDSU, ESPN2 | - | - |
| Saturday, December 15 | |||
| Noon | - | Celebration: NC A&T vs. Alcorn State, ABC | - |
| 2 | - | FCS: Maine at Eastern Washington, ESPN2 | - |
| - | - | New Mexico: North Texas vs. Utah State, ESPN | - |
| 2:30 | - | - | Cure: UL Lafayette vs. Tulane, CBSSN |
| 3:30 | - | Vegas: Arizona State vs. Fresno State, ABC | - |
| 4 | - | DII title: Ferris State vs. Valdosta State, ESPNU | - |
| 5:30 | - | - | Camellia: EMU vs. Georgia Southern, ESPN |
| 6 | - | - | NAIA: Benedictine vs. Morningside, WatchESPN |
| 9 | - | NOLA: App State vs. MTSU, ESPN | - |
| Tuesday, December 18 | |||
| 7 | - | - | Boca: NIU vs. UAB, ESPN |
| Wednesday, December 19 | |||
| 8 | - | - | Frisco: Ohio vs. San Diego State, ESPN |
| Thursday, December 20 | |||
| 8 | - | - | Gasparilla: Marshall vs. USF, ESPN |
| Friday, December 21 | |||
| 12:30 | - | - | Bahamas: FIU vs. Toledo, ESPN |
| 4 | - | - | Potato: BYU vs. WMU, ESPN |
| Saturday, December 22 | |||
| Noon | - | Birmingham: Memphis vs. Wake Forest, ESPN | - |
| 3:30 | Armed Forces: Army vs. Houston, ESPN | - | - |
| 7 | - | Dollar General: Buffalo vs. Troy, ESPN | - |
| 10:30 | - | Hawaii: Hawaii vs. LA Tech, ESPN | - |
| Wednesday, December 26 | |||
| 1:30 | - | Dallas: Boston College vs. Boise State, ESPN | - |
| 5:15 | - | Quick Lane: Georgia Tech vs. Minnesota, ESPN | - |
| 9 | - | Cheez-It: Cal vs. TCU, ESPN | - |
| Thursday, December 27 | |||
| 1:30 | - | - | Independence: Duke vs. Temple, ESPN |
| 5:15 | - | Pinstripe: Miami vs. Wisconsin, ESPN | - |
| 9 | - | - | Texas: Baylor vs. Vanderbilt, ESPN |
| Friday, December 28 | |||
| 1:30 | - | Music City: Auburn vs. Purdue, ESPN | - |
| 5:15 | Camping World: Syracuse vs. WVU, ESPN | - | - |
| 9 | Alamo: Iowa State vs. Washington State, ESPN | - | - |
| Saturday, December 29 | |||
| Noon | - | Peach: Florida vs. Michigan, ESPN | - |
| - | - | Belk: South Carolina vs. Virginia, ABC | - |
| 1:15 | - | - | Arizona: Arkansas State vs. Nevada, CBSSN |
| 4 | Cotton: Clemson vs. Notre Dame, ESPN | - | - |
| 8 | Orange: Alabama vs. Oklahoma, ESPN | - | - |
| Monday, December 31 | |||
| Noon | - | Military: Cincinnati vs. Virginia Tech, ESPN | - |
| 2 | - | - | Sun: Pitt vs. Stanford, CBS |
| 3 | - | Redbox: Michigan State vs. Oregon, Fox | - |
| 3:45 | Liberty: Missouri vs. Oklahoma State, ESPN | - | - |
| 7 | - | - | Holiday: Northwestern vs. Utah, FS1 |
| 7:30 | - | Gator: NC State vs. Texas A&M, ESPN | - |
| Tuesday, January 1 | |||
| Noon | - | Outback: Iowa vs. Mississippi State, ESPN | - |
| 1 | Fiesta: LSU vs. UCF, ESPN | Citrus, Kentucky vs. Penn State, ABC | - |
| 5 | Rose: Ohio State vs. Washington, ESPN | - | - |
| 8:45 | Sugar: Georgia vs. Texas, ESPN | - | - |
| Saturday, January 5 | |||
| Noon | FCS Championship, ESPN2 | - | - |
| Monday, January 7 | |||
| 8 | FBS Championship, ESPN | - | - |
We start out pretty solid. Getting FCS’ best rivalry in the semifinals is about like getting Michigan-Ohio State in the CFP ... if Michigan had actually beaten Ohio State recently, at least. The Celebration Bowl is fun and meaningful, and the New Mexico Bowl has a good chance to kick off FBS bowls with one of the postseason’s best games.
(UAB is a great story, but they made a return to bowl season last year. And this game might have like 13 total points.)
The middle games during The Travel Zone are fine. Anyone who chooses not to watch Army’s clock-swallowing flexbone offense face wide-open Houston, which ranks No. 2 in S&P+’s tempo stat, just hates football.
And, as pretty much always, the games right around New Year’s are great. Except for you, Peach Bowl.
Let’s finish strong, team. Here are your S&P+ picks for every bowl.