2015–16 NCAA football bowl games

The 2015–16 NCAA football bowl games were a series of college football bowl games. They completed the FBS football season. The games began on December 19, 2015, and, aside from the all-star games, ended with the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship which was played on January 11, 2016.
A new record total of 41 team-competitive bowl games were played in FBS, including the national championship game and the inaugural Cure Bowl and [2015 2015 Arizona Wildcats football team|Arizona Bowl|Arizona Bowl]. While bowl games had been the purview of only the very best teams for nearly a century, this was the tenth consecutive year that teams with non-winning seasons were bowl-eligible and participated in bowl games. To fill the 80 available team-competitive bowl slots, a new record 15 teams with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games—12 had a.500 season and, for another new record, three had a sub-.500 season. Those three teams each had 5–7 seasons, sharing a new record for the most regular season losses by a bowl team, which had previously been six. This situation led directly to the NCAA Division I Council imposing a three-year moratorium on new bowl games in April 2016.

Schedule

The schedule for the 2015–16 bowl games is below. All times are EST. The rankings used were the CFP rankings.

College Football Playoff and Championship Game

The 2015–16 postseason was the second to feature a College Football Playoff to determine a national champion of Division I FBS college football. Four teams were selected by a 12-member committee to participate in a single-elimination tournament, whose semifinals were held at the Orange Bowl and the [2015 2015 Cotton Bowl Classic (December)|Cotton Bowl Classic (December)|Cotton Bowl] as part of a yearly rotation of six bowls. Their winners advanced to the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship at University of Phoenix Stadium in Glendale, Arizona on January 11, 2016.
Both semifinal bowls were held on December 31, 2015. Under the TV contracts with ESPN that predate the CFP, both the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl are guaranteed exclusive TV time slots on January 1, regardless of whether they will be hosting a semifinal game. Analysts expressed concerns that the semifinal games could face reduced television viewership due to the New Year's Eve scheduling, believing that fans would not be accustomed to the scheduling, and that they would face competition from New Year's Eve events and television specials like New Year's Rockin' Eve, which is aired by ABC—a corporate sibling to CFP broadcaster ESPN. ESPN then proposed moving the semifinal games to January 2, 2016, a Saturday, arguing that the games would enjoy a higher level of prominence if held on a day of the week that is traditionally associated with college football. However, its proposal was rejected.
CFP Executive Director Bill Hancock suggested this scheduling issue would instead "change the paradigm of what New Year's Eve is all about," opining that "if you're hosting a New Year's Eve party, you better have a bunch of televisions around." Ratings for the two semifinal games were down from the prior season's equivalents, with the Orange Bowl reaching a 9.7 rating and the Cotton Bowl reaching a 9.9 rating. On the online WatchESPN streaming service, the Cotton Bowl and the Orange Bowl drew the second and third-largest streaming audiences in the service's history, behind the 2015 College Football Playoff National Championship. As a result of the reduced viewership, it was reported that ESPN was negotiating $20 million worth of credits to advertisers to compensate for the lower than expected ratings.

Date	Game	Site	Television	Teams	Affiliations	Results
Dec. 31	Peach Bowl	Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA 12:00 pm	ESPN	No. 18 [2015 2015 Houston Cougars football team\|Houston Cougars football team\|Houston Cougars] No. 9 [2015 2015 Florida State Seminoles football team\|Florida State Seminoles football team\|Florida State Seminoles]	American ACC	Houston 38 Florida State 24
Dec. 31	Orange Bowl	Sun Life Stadium Miami Gardens, FL 4:00 pm	ESPN	No. 1 [2015 2015 Clemson Tigers football team\|Clemson Tigers football team\|Clemson Tigers] No. 4 [2015 2015 Oklahoma Sooners football team\|Oklahoma Sooners football team\|Oklahoma Sooners]	ACC Big 12	Clemson 37 Oklahoma 17
Dec. 31	Cotton Bowl Classic	AT&T Stadium Arlington, TX 8:00 pm	ESPN	No. 2 [2015 2015 Alabama Crimson Tide football team\|Alabama Crimson Tide football team\|Alabama Crimson Tide] No. 3 [2015 2015 Michigan State Spartans football team\|Michigan State Spartans football team\|Michigan State Spartans]	SEC Big Ten	Alabama 38 Michigan State 0
Jan. 1	Fiesta Bowl	University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, AZ 1:00 pm	ESPN	No. 7 [2015 2015 Ohio State Buckeyes football team\|Ohio State Buckeyes football team\|Ohio State Buckeyes] No. 8 [2015 2015 Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team\|Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team\|Notre Dame Fighting Irish]	[2015 2015 Big Ten Conference football season\|Big Ten Conference football season\|Big Ten] Independent	Ohio State 44 Notre Dame 28
Jan. 1	Rose Bowl Game	Rose Bowl Pasadena, CA 5:00 pm	ESPN	No. 6 [2015 2015 Stanford Cardinal football team\|Stanford Cardinal football team\|Stanford Cardinal] No. 5 [2015 2015 Iowa Hawkeyes football team\|Iowa Hawkeyes football team\|Iowa Hawkeyes]	[2015 Pac-12 Conference\|Pac-12 Conference football season\|Pac-12] Big Ten	Stanford 45 Iowa 16
Jan. 1	Sugar Bowl	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA 8:30 pm	ESPN	No. 12 [2015 2015 Ole Miss Rebels football team\|Ole Miss Rebels football team\|Ole Miss Rebels] No. 16 [2015 2015 Oklahoma State Cowboys football team\|Oklahoma State Cowboys football team\|Oklahoma State Cowboys]	SEC [2015 2015 Big 12 Conference football season\|Big 12 Conference football season\|Big 12]	Ole Miss 48 Oklahoma State 20
Jan. 11	College Football Playoff National Championship	University of Phoenix Stadium Glendale, AZ 8:30 pm	ESPN	No. 2 Alabama Crimson Tide No. 1 Clemson Tigers	SEC ACC	Alabama 45 Clemson 40

Non-CFP bowl games

For the 2015–16 season, two new bowl games were added, the Cure Bowl and the Arizona Bowl, bringing the total number of bowl games to 41. Due to not having enough teams with a 6–6 or better record to fill available bowl slots, the increase in number of bowls had the adverse effect of allowing a record three teams with losing records to participate in bowls. The teams were selected by being the ones with the highest Academic Progress Rate among all 5–7 teams. The participating teams with a losing record were Nebraska, Minnesota, and San Jose State.

Date	Game	Site	Television	Teams	Affiliations	Results
Dec. 19	[2015 2015 New Mexico Lobos football team\|New Mexico Bowl\|New Mexico Bowl]	University Stadium Albuquerque, NM 2:00 pm	ESPN	Arizona Wildcats New Mexico Lobos	Pac-12 [2015 2015 Mountain West Conference football season\|Mountain West Conference football season\|Mountain West]	Arizona 45 New Mexico 37
Dec. 19	Las Vegas Bowl	Sam Boyd Stadium Whitney, NV 3:30 pm	ABC	No. 22 [2015 2015 Utah Utes football team\|Utah Utes football team\|Utah Utes] [2015 2015 BYU Cougars football team\|BYU Cougars football team\|BYU Cougars]	Pac-12 Independent	Utah 35 BYU 28
Dec. 19	Camellia Bowl	Cramton Bowl Montgomery, AL 5:30 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Appalachian State Mountaineers football team\|Appalachian State Mountaineers football team\|Appalachian State Mountaineers] Ohio Bobcats	Sun Belt MAC	Appalachian State 31 Ohio 29
Dec. 19	Cure Bowl	Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium Orlando, FL 7:00 pm	CBSSN	San Jose State Spartans [2015 2015 Georgia State Panthers football team\|Georgia State Panthers football team\|Georgia State Panthers]	Mountain West Sun Belt	San Jose State 27 Georgia State 16
Dec. 19	New Orleans Bowl	Mercedes-Benz Superdome New Orleans, LA 9:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team\|Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team\|Louisiana Tech Bulldogs] [2015 2015 Arkansas State Red Wolves football team\|Arkansas State Red Wolves football team\|Arkansas State Red Wolves]	C-USA Sun Belt	Louisiana Tech 47 Arkansas State 28
Dec. 21	[2015 2015 Miami Hurricanes football team\|Miami Beach Bowl\|Miami Beach Bowl]	Marlins Park Miami, FL 2:30 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team\|Western Kentucky Hilltoppers football team\|Western 2015 Kentucky Wildcats football team\|Kentucky Hilltoppers] [2015 2015 South Florida Bulls football team\|South Florida Bulls football team\|South Florida Bulls]	C-USA [2015 2015 American Athletic Conference football season\|American Athletic Conference football season\|American]	Western Kentucky 45 South Florida 35
Dec. 22	Famous Idaho Potato Bowl	Albertsons Stadium Boise, ID 3:30 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Akron Zips football team\|Akron Zips football team\|Akron Zips] [2015 2015 Utah State Aggies football team\|Utah State Aggies football team\|Utah State Aggies]	MAC Mountain West	Akron 23 Utah State 21
Dec. 22	Boca Raton Bowl	FAU Stadium Boca Raton, FL 7:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Toledo Rockets football team\|Toledo Rockets football team\|Toledo Rockets] No. 24 [2015 2015 Temple Owls football team\|Temple Owls football team\|Temple Owls]	MAC American	Toledo 32 Temple 17
Dec. 23	Poinsettia Bowl	Qualcomm Stadium San Diego, CA 4:30 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Boise State Broncos football team\|Boise State Broncos football team\|Boise State Broncos] [2015 2015 Northern Illinois Huskies football team\|Northern Illinois Huskies football team\|Northern 2015 Illinois Fighting Illini football team\|Illinois Huskies]	Mountain West MAC	Boise State 55 Northern Illinois 7
Dec. 23	GoDaddy Bowl	Ladd–Peebles Stadium Mobile, AL 8:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Georgia Southern Eagles football team\|Georgia Southern Eagles football team\|Georgia Southern Eagles] [2015 2015 Bowling Green Falcons football team\|Bowling Green Falcons football team\|Bowling Green Falcons]	Sun Belt MAC	Georgia Southern 58 Bowling Green 27
Dec. 24	Bahamas Bowl	Thomas Robinson Stadium Nassau, Bahamas 12:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Western Michigan Broncos football team\|Western Michigan Broncos football team\|Western Michigan Broncos] [2015 2015 Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team\|Middle Tennessee Blue Raiders football team\|Middle 2015 Tennessee Volunteers football team\|Tennessee Blue Raiders]	MAC C-USA	Western Michigan 45 Middle Tennessee 31
Dec. 24	Hawaii Bowl	Aloha Stadium Honolulu, HI 8:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 San Diego State Aztecs football team\|San Diego State Aztecs football team\|San Diego State Aztecs] [2015 2015 Cincinnati Bearcats football team\|Cincinnati Bearcats football team\|Cincinnati Bearcats]	Mountain West American	San Diego State 42 Cincinnati 7
Dec. 26	St. Petersburg Bowl	Tropicana Field St. Petersburg, FL 11:00 am	ESPN	[2015 2015 Marshall Thundering Herd football team\|Marshall Thundering Herd football team\|Marshall Thundering Herd] [2015 2015 Connecticut Huskies football team\|Connecticut Huskies football team\|Connecticut Huskies]	C-USA American	Marshall 16 Connecticut 10
Dec. 26	Sun Bowl	Sun Bowl Stadium El Paso, TX 2:00 pm	CBS	[2015 2015 Washington State Cougars football team\|Washington State Cougars football team\|Washington State Cougars] Miami Hurricanes	Pac-12 ACC	Washington State 20 Miami 14
Dec. 26	Heart of Dallas Bowl	Cotton Bowl Dallas, TX 2:20 pm	ESPN	Washington Huskies [2015 2015 Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team\|Southern Miss Golden Eagles football team\|Southern Miss Golden Eagles]	Pac-12 C-USA	Washington 44 Southern Miss 31
Dec. 26	Pinstripe Bowl	Yankee Stadium Bronx, NY 3:30 pm	ABC	[2015 2015 Duke Blue Devils football team\|Duke Blue Devils football team\|Duke Blue Devils] [2015 2015 Indiana Hoosiers football team\|Indiana Hoosiers football team\|Indiana Hoosiers]	ACC Big Ten	Duke 44 Indiana 41
Dec. 26	Independence Bowl	Independence Stadium Shreveport, LA 5:45 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Virginia Tech Hokies football team\|Virginia Tech Hokies football team\|Virginia Tech Hokies] [2015 2015 Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team\|Tulsa Golden Hurricane football team\|Tulsa Golden Hurricane]	ACC American	Virginia Tech 55 Tulsa 52
Dec. 26	Foster Farms Bowl	Levi's Stadium Santa Clara, CA 9:15 pm	ESPN	Nebraska Cornhuskers [2015 2015 UCLA Bruins football team\|UCLA Bruins football team\|UCLA Bruins]	Big Ten Pac-12	Nebraska 37 UCLA 29
Dec. 28	Military Bowl	Navy–Marine Corps Memorial Stadium Annapolis, MD 2:30 pm	ESPN	No. 21 [2015 2015 Navy Midshipmen football team\|Navy Midshipmen football team\|Navy Midshipmen] [2015 2015 Pittsburgh Panthers football team\|Pittsburgh Panthers football team\|Pittsburgh Panthers]	American ACC	Navy 44 Pittsburgh 28
Dec. 28	Quick Lane Bowl	Ford Field Detroit, MI 5:00 pm	ESPN2	Minnesota Golden Gophers [2015 2015 Central Michigan Chippewas football team\|Central Michigan Chippewas football team\|Central Michigan Chippewas]	Big Ten MAC	Minnesota 21 Central Michigan 14
Dec. 29	Armed Forces Bowl	Amon G. Carter Stadium Fort Worth, TX 2:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 California Golden Bears football team\|California Golden Bears football team\|California Golden Bears] [2015 2015 Air Force Falcons football team\|Air Force Falcons football team\|Air Force Falcons]	Pac-12 Mountain West	California 55 Air Force 36
Dec. 29	Russell Athletic Bowl	Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium Orlando, FL 5:30 pm	ESPN	No. 17 [2015 2015 Baylor Bears football team\|Baylor Bears football team\|Baylor Bears] No. 10 [2015 2015 North Carolina Tar Heels football team\|North Carolina Tar Heels football team\|North Carolina Tar Heels]	Big 12 ACC	Baylor 49 North Carolina 38
Dec. 29	Arizona Bowl	Arizona Stadium Tucson, AZ 7:30 pm	ASN	[2015 2015 Nevada Wolf Pack football team\|Nevada Wolf Pack football team\|Nevada Wolf Pack] [2015 2015 Colorado State Rams football team\|Colorado State Rams football team\|Colorado State Rams]	Mountain West Mountain West	Nevada 28 Colorado State 23
Dec. 29	[2015 2015 Texas Longhorns football team\|Texas Bowl\|Texas Bowl]	NRG Stadium Houston, TX 9:00 pm	ESPN	No. 20 [2015 2015 LSU Tigers football team\|LSU Tigers football team\|LSU Tigers] [2015 2015 Texas Tech Red Raiders football team\|Texas Tech Red Raiders football team\|Texas Tech Red Raiders]	SEC Big 12	LSU 56 Texas Tech 27
Dec. 30	Birmingham Bowl	Legion Field Birmingham, AL 12:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Auburn Tigers football team\|Auburn Tigers football team\|Auburn Tigers] [2015 2015 Memphis Tigers football team\|Memphis Tigers football team\|Memphis Tigers]	SEC American	Auburn 31 Memphis 10
Dec. 30	Belk Bowl	Bank of America Stadium Charlotte, NC 3:30 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team\|Mississippi State Bulldogs football team\|Mississippi State Bulldogs] [2015 2015 NC State Wolfpack football team\|NC State Wolfpack football team\|NC State Wolfpack]	SEC ACC	Mississippi State 51 NC State 28
Dec. 30	Music City Bowl	Nissan Stadium Nashville, TN 7:00 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Louisville Cardinals football team\|Louisville Cardinals football team\|Louisville Cardinals] Texas A&M Aggies	ACC SEC	Louisville 27 Texas A&M 21
Dec. 30	Holiday Bowl	Qualcomm Stadium San Diego, CA 10:30 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 Wisconsin Badgers football team\|Wisconsin Badgers football team\|Wisconsin Badgers] No. 25 [2015 2015 USC Trojans football team\|USC Trojans football team\|USC Trojans]	Big Ten Pac-12	Wisconsin 23 USC 21
Jan. 1	Outback Bowl	Raymond James Stadium Tampa, FL 12:00 pm	ESPN2	No. 23 Tennessee Volunteers No. 13 [2015 2015 Northwestern Wildcats football team\|Northwestern Wildcats football team\|Northwestern Wildcats]	SEC Big Ten	Tennessee 45 Northwestern 6
Jan. 1	Citrus Bowl	Orlando Citrus Bowl Stadium Orlando, FL 1:00 pm	ABC	No. 14 Michigan Wolverines No. 19 Florida Gators	Big Ten SEC	Michigan 41 Florida 7
Jan. 2	TaxSlayer Bowl	EverBank Field Jacksonville, FL 12:00 pm	ESPN	Georgia Bulldogs [2015 2015 Penn State Nittany Lions football team\|Penn State Nittany Lions football team\|Penn State Nittany Lions]	SEC Big Ten	Georgia 24 Penn State 17
Jan. 2	Liberty Bowl	Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium Memphis, TN 3:20 pm	ESPN	Arkansas Razorbacks [2015 2015 Kansas State Wildcats football team\|Kansas State Wildcats football team\|Kansas State Wildcats]	SEC Big 12	Arkansas 45 Kansas State 23
Jan. 2	Alamo Bowl	Alamodome San Antonio, TX 6:45 pm	ESPN	No. 11 [2015 2015 TCU Horned Frogs football team\|TCU Horned Frogs football team\|TCU Horned Frogs] No. 15 [2015 2015 Oregon Ducks football team\|Oregon Ducks football team\|Oregon Ducks]	Big 12 Pac-12	TCU 47 Oregon 41
Jan. 2	Cactus Bowl	Chase Field Phoenix, AZ 10:15 pm	ESPN	[2015 2015 West Virginia Mountaineers football team\|West Virginia Mountaineers football team\|West Virginia Mountaineers] [2015 2015 Arizona State Sun Devils football team\|Arizona State Sun Devils football team\|Arizona State Sun Devils]	Big 12 Pac-12	West Virginia 43 Arizona State 42

+ Notre Dame is eligible for any one of the bowl bids reserved for ACC teams, if Notre Dame: is bowl-eligible; and is not selected for one of the CFP Bowls. Notre Dame may not be selected for one of the bowl games having ACC tie-ins unless Notre Dame has no less than one less overall loss than the winningest-remaining ACC team which has not yet been selected for a bowl game.
BYU has an agreement with the Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl and the Hawaii Bowl for the 2015 and 2016 seasons. The Cougars will appear, in place of a Mountain West team, in the Las Vegas Bowl this season.

FCS bowl game

The FCS has one bowl game; they also have a championship bracket that began on November 28 and ended on January 9.

Date	Game	Site	Television	Participants	Affiliations	Results
Dec. 19	Celebration Bowl	Georgia Dome Atlanta, Georgia 12:00pm	ABC	North Carolina A&T Aggies Alcorn State Braves	MEAC SWAC	North Carolina A&T 41 Alcorn State 34

Results

The Southeastern Conference was the Bowl Challenge Cup winner for the 2015-16 bowl season, which is awarded to the FBS football conference with the highest winning percentage. In addition, the nine total bowl wins by the SEC were the most ever accomplished by a single conference during a single bowl season. Southeastern Conference member Alabama won the 2016 College Football Playoff National Championship game to finish the year as consensus national champions for the 2015 football season.

Selection of the teams

CFP top 25 teams

On December 6, 2015, the College Football Playoff selection committee announced their final team rankings for the year:

Rank	Team	W–L	Conference and standing	Bowl game
1	Clemson Tigers	13–0	ACC champions	Orange Bowl
2	Alabama Crimson Tide	12–1	SEC champions	Cotton Bowl Classic
3	Michigan State Spartans	12–1	Big Ten champions	Cotton Bowl Classic
4	Oklahoma Sooners	11–1	Big 12 champions	Orange Bowl
5	Iowa Hawkeyes	12–1	Big Ten West Division champions	Rose Bowl
6	Stanford Cardinal	11–2	Pac-12 champions	Rose Bowl
7	Ohio State Buckeyes	11–1	Big Ten East Division co-champions	Fiesta Bowl
8	Notre Dame Fighting Irish	10–2	Independent	Fiesta Bowl
9	Florida State Seminoles	10–2	ACC Atlantic Division second place	Peach Bowl
10	North Carolina Tar Heels	11–2	ACC Coastal Division champions	Russell Athletic Bowl
11	TCU Horned Frogs	10–2	Big 12 second place	Alamo Bowl
12	Ole Miss Rebels	9–3	SEC West Division second place	Sugar Bowl
13	Northwestern Wildcats	10–2	Big Ten West Division second place	Outback Bowl
14	Michigan Wolverines	9–3	Big Ten East Division third place	Citrus Bowl
15	Oregon Ducks	9–3	Pac-12 North Division second place	Alamo Bowl
16	Oklahoma State Cowboys	10–2	Big 12 second place	Sugar Bowl
17	Baylor Bears	9–3	Big Twelve fourth place	Russell Athletic Bowl
18	Houston Cougars	12–1	American champions	Peach Bowl
19	Florida Gators	10–3	SEC East Division champions	Citrus Bowl
20	LSU Tigers	8–3	SEC West Division third place	Texas Bowl
21	Navy Midshipmen	10–2	American West Division co-champions	Military Bowl
22	Utah Utes	9–3	Pac-12 South Division co-champions	Las Vegas Bowl
23	Tennessee Volunteers	8–4	SEC East Division second place	Outback Bowl
24	Temple Owls	10–2	American East Division champions	Boca Raton Bowl
25	USC Trojans	8–5	Pac-12 South Division co-champions	Holiday Bowl

Conference champions' bowl games

The Cotton Bowl Classic and Orange Bowl featured two conference champions playing against each other. Rankings are per the above CFP standings.

Conference	Champion	W–L	Rank	Bowl game
ACC	Clemson Tigers	13–0		Orange Bowl
American	Houston Cougars	12–1	18	Peach Bowl
	Michigan State Spartans	12–1		Cotton Bowl Classic
Big 12	Oklahoma Sooners	11–1		Orange Bowl
C-USA	Western Kentucky Hilltoppers	11–2	—	Miami Beach Bowl
MAC	Bowling Green Falcons	10–3	—	GoDaddy Bowl
Mountain West	San Diego State Aztecs	10–3	—	Hawaii Bowl
Pac-12	Stanford Cardinal	11–2		Rose Bowl
SEC	Alabama Crimson Tide	12–1		Cotton Bowl Classic
Sun Belt	Arkansas State Red Wolves		—	New Orleans Bowl

Bowl-eligible teams

ACC : Clemson, Duke, Florida State, Louisville, Miami, North Carolina, NC State, Pittsburgh, Virginia Tech
The American : Cincinnati, Connecticut, Houston, Memphis, Navy, South Florida, Temple, Tulsa
Big Ten : Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Michigan State, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Wisconsin
Big 12 : Baylor, Kansas State, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, TCU, Texas Tech, West Virginia
Conference USA : Louisiana Tech, Marshall, Middle Tennessee, Southern Miss, Western Kentucky
Independents : BYU, Notre Dame
MAC : Akron, Bowling Green, Central Michigan, Northern Illinois, Ohio, Toledo, Western Michigan
Mountain West : Air Force, Boise State, Colorado State, Nevada, New Mexico, San Diego State, Utah State
Pac-12 : Arizona, Arizona State, California, Oregon, Stanford, UCLA, USC, Utah, Washington, Washington State
SEC : Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn, Florida, Georgia, LSU, Mississippi State, Ole Miss, Tennessee, Texas A&M
Sun Belt : Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Georgia Southern, Georgia State

Number of bowl berths available: 80

'''Number of bowl-eligible teams: 77'''

Conditionally bowl-ineligible teams

The American : East Carolina*, SMU, Tulane, UCF
ACC : Boston College, Georgia Tech, Syracuse, Virginia, Wake Forest
Big Ten : Illinois*, Maryland, Minnesota*, Nebraska*, Purdue, Rutgers
Big 12 : Iowa State, Kansas, Texas*
Conference USA : Charlotte, Florida Atlantic, FIU*, North Texas, Old Dominion*, Rice*, UTSA, UTEP*
Independent : Army
MAC : Ball State, Buffalo*, Eastern Michigan, Kent State, Miami (OH), UMass
Mountain West : Fresno State, Hawaii, San Jose State*, UNLV, Wyoming
Pac-12 : Colorado, Oregon State
SEC : Kentucky*, Missouri*, South Carolina, Vanderbilt
Sun Belt : Idaho, Louisiana–Lafayette, Louisiana-Monroe, New Mexico State, South Alabama*, Texas State, Troy

Number of bowl-ineligible teams: 51
Note: Being bowl-ineligible does not, in itself, exclude a team from the chance to play in a bowl game. Tiebreaker procedures based on a school's Academic Progress Rate allowed for the possibility of 5–7 teams to play in bowl games since not enough teams qualified to fill all 80 spots with at least a 6–6 record.
Note: Teams with Asterisk have a 5–7 record. Since a maximum of 77 bowl slots were filled, 3 of these teams qualified for a bowl game. These teams were Nebraska, Minnesota, and San Jose State. Missouri would have qualified over Minnesota or San Jose State, but announced they would decline a bowl bid.
Note: There are 128 teams in FBS.