The Forgettable Bowl Games That Didn’t Deliver

Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl

Memphis vs NC State

CFN Bowl Rank: 40
Final Score: NC State 31, Memphis 6
Line: NC State -5.5, o/u: 56.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 43, 2023: 21, 2022: 21, 2021: 20, 2020: NA, 2019: 30

How Good Was Your Bowl? This was over in the first five minutes.

NC State had most of its parts around, it played like a Power Four program against a Group of Five team, and it was never interesting. It was a light scrimmage for the Wolfpack.

CFN Bowl Rankings: 10 Best | Entertaining | 10 Worst

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl

Texas State vs Rice

CFN Bowl Rank: 39
Final Score: Texas State 41, Rice 10
Line: Texas State -16.5, o/u: 55.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 10, 2023: 31, 2022: 37, 2021: 4, 2020: 8, 2019: 32

How Good Was Your Bowl? Considering it was supposed to be an ugly blowout, thanks to a five-win outmanned Rice giving it a fight, it wasn’t totally miserable for about a half - and then it was an ugly blowout.

Rice kept making mistakes and couldn’t move the ball, but it battled well until the Bobcats ripped it up with 31 straight points.

Rose Bowl Presented by Prudential (CFP Quarterfinal)

Alabama vs Indiana

CFN Bowl Rank: 38
Final Score: Indiana 34, Alabama 3
Line: Indiana -7.5, o/u: 46.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 33, 2023: 1, 2022: 3, 2021: 5, 2020: 9, 2019: 2

How Good Was Your Bowl? Too much has been made about how Alabama lost its spark in the ugly performance, but it was more about the dominance of a rested and ready Indiana team that put together a flawless game plan.

The Hoosiers held the Crimson Tide to just 193 yards and a field goal - it was over by halftime.

College Football Playoff First Round (Saturday Second Game)

Tulane at Ole Miss

CFN Bowl Rank: 37
Final Score: Ole Miss 41, Tulane 10
Line: Ole Miss -16.5, o/u: 55.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 34 (Ohio State-Tennessee)

How Good Was Your Bowl? The first meeting between these two was awful, this was supposed to be awful, and it turned out to be awful - especially with the cloud of Lane Kiffin hovering over the game.

Ole Miss was obviously better than Tulane, but this should’ve been a bit more competitive. If you can’t get more than three points on that Rebel defense until late, you shouldn’t have been in the CFP.

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (CFP Semifinal)

Oregon vs Indiana

CFN Bowl Rank: 36
Final Score: Indiana 56, Oregon 22
Line: Indiana -3, o/u: 49.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 2, 2023: 14, 2022: 1, 2021: 7, 2020: 2, 2019: 3

How Good Was Your Bowl? The College Football Playoff equivalent of a sad trombone, this was over 11 seconds in.

Oregon’s Dante Moore dropped back, Indiana’s D’Angelo Ponds jumped the route, took it 25 yards for a touchdown, and that was it.

The Ducks responded with a good touchdown drive, but that was it. The Oregon defense didn’t get off the bus, the offense couldn’t put anything together, and … America turned the game off at 42-7.

AutoZone Liberty Bowl

Navy vs Cincinnati

CFN Bowl Rank 35 
Final Score: Navy 35, Cincinnati 13
Line: Navy -7.5, o/u: 54.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 24, 2023: 24, 2022: 21, 2021: 4, 2020: 20, 2019: 6

How Good Was Your Bowl? It was a rolling, methodical blowout.

Cincinnati was missing too many parts, Navy wasn’t missing anyone, and it wasn’t all that interesting after the first 20 minutes. It was 7-7 when the Midshipmen took over with 21 straight points.

Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl

Coastal Carolina vs Louisiana Tech

CFN Bowl Rank: 34 
Final Score: Louisiana Tech 23, Coastal Carolina 14
Line: Louisiana Tech -9.5, o/u: 51.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 38, 2023: 32, 2022: 24, 2021: 11, 2020: NA, 2019: 20

How Good Was Your Bowl? Coastal Carolina was undermanned, didn’t have its coach, and wasn’t expected to do anything, but it put up a great fight for three quarters. And then Louisiana Tech finally kicked it in with 20 unanswered points in a not-that-bad, turnover-filled game that was still close until the final minute.

StaffDNA Cure Bowl

USF vs Old Dominion

CFN Bowl Rank: 33 
Final Score: Old Dominion 24, USF 10
Line: USF -6.5, o/u: 56.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 23, 2023: 20, 2022: 13, 2021: 5, 2020: 1, 2019: 24

How Good Was Your Bowl? This was the first bowl of the season that showed just how brutal the loss of a head coach and talent to the portal could be.

USF was nowhere near its normal self, Old Dominion ran well and came up with five takeaways, and this was ugly from the start.

JLab Birmingham Bowl

App State vs Georgia Southern

CFN Bowl Rank: 32
Final Score: Georgia Southern 29, App State 10
Line: Georgia Southern -9.5, o/u: 58.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 21, 2023: 25, 2022: 34, 2021: 8, 2020: NA, 2019: 40

How Good Was Your Bowl? App State was a five-win team that filled in because no one else wanted to play. It put up a good fight for a half, but Georgia Southern came up with four takeaways in a bowl with the barest minimum of drama.

Scooter’s Coffee Frisco Bowl

Ohio vs UNLV

CFN Bowl Rank: 31
Final Score: Ohio 17, UNLV 10
Line: UNLV -4.5, o/u: 62.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 25, 2023: 26, 2022: 22, 2021: 22, 2020: NA, 2019: 8

How Good Was Your Bowl? Expected to be among the highest-scoring shootouts of the bowl season, instead, it was a big dull dud with no offensive pop and five combined turnovers.

UNLV was sleepy, and a totally depleted Ohio team had no problem with that, rumbling for over 200 yards as it got up early and held on late.

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl

FIU vs UTSA

CFN Bowl Rank: 30
Final Score: UTSA 57, FIU 20
Line: UTSA -7, o/u: 63.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 16, 2023: 20, 2022: 38, 2021: 9, 2020: 5, 2019: 2

How Good Was Your Bowl? It was a blowout, but it wasn’t that bad.

FIU got off to a roaring 14-0 start, helped by a tremendous punt return for a score, and then UTSA showed up.

The Roadrunner offense ripped off 38 straight points, but just when it seemed like FIU would make things interesting, UTSA scored 12 unanswered points, starting with a coast-to-coast defensive play on a two-point conversion try.

Capital One Orange Bowl (CFP Quarterfinal)

Oregon vs Texas Tech

CFN Bowl Rank: 29
Final Score: Oregon 23, Texas Tech 0
Line: Oregon -2.5, o/u: 50.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 1, 2023: 40, 2022: 26, 2021: 33, 2020: 3, 2019: 12

How Good Was Your Bowl? Both defenses showed up large, but Texas Tech couldn’t get the O going against an Oregon defensive front that cranked up the speed to a whole other level.

The Red Raiders turned it over four times and couldn’t keep the clock moving, but it was only 6-0 at halftime. Oregon never gave Texas Tech any real hope.

College Football Playoff First Round (Saturday First Game)

James Madison at Oregon

CFN Bowl Rank: 28 
Final Score: Oregon 51, James Madison 34
Line: Oregon -21, o/u: 50.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 19 (Texas-Clemson)

How Good Was Your Bowl? You knew what was going to happen, but it was still fun-bad because James Madison just wouldn’t stop.

Oregon cranked up the firepower right away, and there was never any fear of choking this away, but several starters had to come back in after the intensity dial was at zero early in the fourth.

Okay, so this was more interesting for the investment types - America, as it turned out, tuned out fast - but a 99-yard final scoring drive by JMU was a thing.

SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl

Nebraska vs Utah

CFN Bowl Rank: 27 
Final Score: Utah 44, Nebraska 22
Line: Utah -13.5, o/u: 51.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 7, 2023: 18, 2022: 41, 2021: 17, 2020: NA, 2019: 36

How Good Was Your Bowl? Nebraska fought the good fight for a quarter, but it didn’t have the firepower or pop to keep up.

It also didn’t have an answer for Utah quarterback Devon Dampier and an attack that rumbled at will to put the game away after the first 15 minutes. There was no need to keep watching after the first half.

Trust & Will Holiday Bowl

SMU vs Arizona

CFN Bowl Rank: 26 
Final Score: SMU 24, Arizona 19
Line: SMU -2.5, o/u: 55.5
Past Post-Bowl Rankings: 2024: 28, 2023: 9, 2022: 9, 2021: T40, 2020: NA, 2019: 26

How Good Was Your Bowl? Played the day after the big CFP fun on New Year’s Day, it had the feel of a brunch the day after a wedding. The game wasn’t close to as good as the final score.

SMU got up 24-0, Arizona scored the final 19 points, but the drama ended after the Mustangs got the onside kick.

Part 3 of CFN’s complete ranking of all 47 bowl games from best to worst.
CFN Bowl Rankings: 10 Best | Entertaining | 10 Worst