Bowl projections in July? Of course we're going there. There are 35 bowl games outside the College Football Playoff this season, including a few new changes to Bowl Season. The Rate Bowl is now the Cactus Bowl. The Poinsettia Bowl is back. Say hello to the Puerto Rico Bowl. Don't pretend like you don't enjoy the Pop-Tarts Bowl. A total of 82 schools will participate in the 2026-27 postseason as a result, which includes the 12-team College Football Playoff. Sporting News has projections for all those games, which includes CFP semifinal matchups between Indiana and Texas and Notre Dame and Georgia. Those four schools combined for 17 players on our first 2027 NFL Draft Top 25 Big Board. The College Football Playoff begins with first-round playoff games on Dec. 18-19. The quarterfinals start at the Vrbo Fiesta Bowl on Dec. 30 before a Jan. 1 triple-header with the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl. The semifinals will be played at the Capital One Orange Bowl and Allstate Sugar Bowl on Jan. 14-15. The College Football Playoff championship game is on Jan. 25 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas. With that in mind, Sporting News takes a crack at projecting the 12-team College Football Playoff field – and the 35 other bowls that will be played during the 2026-27 college football season.MORE: Ranking all 138 college football coaches ahead of 2026 seasonCollege football bowl predictions 2026There are 35 bowls involving FBS teams outside the College Football Playoff this season. A look at those matchups. DATEBOWLMATCHUPDec. 15IS4S Salute to Veterans BowlOld Dominion vs. Kennesaw StateDec. 15Frisco Football ClassicGeorgia Southern vs Western KentuckyDec. 18Boca Raton BowlTroy vs. DelawareDec. 18Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla BowlNavy vs. Washington StateDec. 21Myrtle Beach BowlArkansas State vs. LibertyDec. 21Famous Idaho Potato BowlNorth Dakota State vs. Miami, Ohio Dec. 22Puerto Rico BowlOhio vs. UConnDec. 22Staffdna Cure BowlCentral Michigan vs. FIUDec. 22Radiance Technologies Independence BowlArmy vs. CalDec. 23New Orleans BowlJames Madison vs. Jacksonville StateDec. 23Lockheed Armed Forces BowlNebraska vs. South CarolinaDec. 23Frisco BowlTulane vs. BuffaloDec. 24Isleta New Mexico BowlUNLV vs. Kennesaw StateDec. 24Sheraton Hawai'i BowlUTSA vs. Hawai'iDec. 26Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe BowlMinnesota vs. Florida StateDec. 26Wasabi Fenway BowlEast Carolina vs. VirginiaDec. 26Duke's Mayo BowlFlorida vs. PittDec. 2668 Ventures BowlLouisiana Tech vs. ToledoDec. 26Cactus BowlIllinois vs. KansasDec. 28Freedom Mortgage Military BowlSouth Florida vs. Florida StateDec. 29JLab Birmingham BowlMemphis vs. DukeDec. 29Pop-Tarts BowlTexas Tech vs. Virginia Tech Dec. 29Valero Alamo BowlWashington vs. HoustonDec. 30TaxSlayer Gator BowlVanderbilt vs. ClemsonDec. 30Liberty Mutual Music City BowlPenn State vs. Texas A&MDec. 31ReliaQuest BowlAlabama vs. SMUDec. 31Tony the Tiger Sun BowlFresno State vs. Wake ForestDec. 31Las Vegas BowlIowa vs. Arizona StateDec. 31Kinder's Texas BowlMissouri vs. TCUJan. 2Cheez-It Citrus BowlMichigan vs. LSUJan. 2Servpro First Responder BowlWisconsin vs. Baylor Jan. 2AutoZone Liberty BowlTennessee vs. Kansas StateTBDPoinsettia BowlSan Diego State vs. Air ForceTBDTrust & Will Holiday BowlUtah vs. LouisvilleTBDSnoop Dogg Arizona BowlNew Mexico vs. Western MichiganCollege Football Playoff first-round predictions A look at the four College Football Playoff first-round matchups for the 2026-27 season. Those first-round games will be played on campus: DATEBOWLMATCHUPDec. 18First-Round CFP gameNo. 10 USC vs. No. 7 MiamiDec. 19First-Round CFP gameNo. 5 Texas vs. No. 12 Boise StateDec. 19First-Round CFP gameNo. 8 Ole Miss vs. No. 9 OklahomaDec. 19First-Round CFP gameNo. 6 Oregon vs. No. 11 BYUBYU and USC make their first College Football Playoff appearances. The Cougars are our pick to win the Big 12, and a first-round matchup at Oregon fits the late-night Saturday window. USC gets a prime-time matchup with Miami, our pick to win the ACC, in the playoff opener. This takes the pressure off Trojans coach Lincoln Riley – at least temporarily. Riley was 0-3 in the CFP at Oklahoma. Boise State would represent the Pac-12 – which has an eight-team conference this season. This round would be of interest to NFL Draft scouts with Arch Manning, Dante Moore, Darian Mensah, Trinidad Chambliss and John Mateer all in action.SCHEDULE RANKINGS: Ohio State hardest in Big Ten | Alabama easiest in SECCollege Football Playoff quarterfinal predictionsA look at the College Football Playoff quarterfinal matchups for the 2026-27 season. Those games will be played at the traditional New Year's Day Six bowl sites: DATEBOWLMATCHUPDec. 30Vrbo Fiesta BowlNo. 4 Ohio State vs. No. 5 TexasJan. 1Goodyear Cotton Bowl ClassicNo. 3 Notre Dame vs. No. 6 OregonJan. 1Rose Bowl Game presented by PrudentialNo. 1 Indiana vs. No. 8 Ole MissJan. 1Chick-fil-A Peach BowlNo. 2 Georgia vs. No. 10 USCThe SEC and Big Ten have seven of the eight teams in the quarterfinals – with Notre Dame filling out the field. Is that good for college football? Texas-Ohio State is a rematch from their Sept. 12 game in Austin, and it's the fourth matchup between the teams in three seasons. Oregon and Georgia will look to advance past the quarterfinal round in the 12-team format for the first time. Five of these schools ranked in the top 12 in scoring defense last season. Texas (28th), Ole Miss (37th) and USC (51st) were the exceptions. They will need to improve on that side of the ball to make a run to the semifinals in 2026. QB RANKINGS: Big Ten | Big 12 | ACC | SEC | Top 25 overallCollege Football Playoff semifinal predictionsA look at the College Football Playoff semifinal matchups for the 2026-27 season. Those games will be played at the traditional New Year's Day Six bowl sites: DATEBOWLMATCHUPJan. 14Capital One Orange BowlNo. 1 Indiana vs. No. 5 TexasJan. 15Allstate Sugar BowlNo. 2 Georgia vs. No. 3 Notre DameIndiana would be the lone returning team that reached the semifinals last year. Which team would face the most pressure among this group? Easy answer: Texas. The Longhorns would be in the CFP semifinals for the third time in four seasons. Notre Dame and Georgia face off in a rematch of the Sugar Bowl from 2025, when the Irish won 23-10. Would the SEC be denied an appearance in the CFP championship game for the fourth consecutive season? College Football Playoff championship pick A look at the College Football Playoff championship matchup for the 2026-27 season. That game is scheduled for Jan. 25 at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas.DATEBOWLMATCHUPJan. 25CFP championshipNo. 1 Indiana vs. No. 3 Notre DameThe hype in the "Hoosier State" would be profound for this matchup – especially with Indiana shooting for back-to-back national championships. Notre Dame won the last meeting 27-17 in the first round of the College Football Playoff on Dec. 20, 2024. Curt Cignetti and Marcus Freeman are two of the most charismatic coaches in college football, too.ORDER NOW: The Sporting News 2026 College Football Preview magazine