2025 Bowl Projections after Week 12: Oklahoma Rising, Notre Dame Moves Closer to Playoff Field

College football’s Week 12 schedule produced several results that significantly altered the projected playoff field and bowl projections following Saturday’s action. Ohio State and Indiana remain the top two seeds after wins in Big Ten play, with Texas A&M holding at No. 3 after its big comeback to beat South Carolina. Georgia climbed to No. 4 after beating Texas, with Oklahoma joining the projected playoff field after a road victory against Alabama. After Week 12, the ACC and Big 12 look like one-bid leagues for the playoff, leaving more at-large spots available for SEC and Big Ten contenders. Notre Dame is also two wins away from the field after handling Pitt on Saturday.

Week 12 results also impacted bowl games outside of the College Football Playoff. The SEC has a shake up in the bowl outlook, as Texas drops to the Citrus Bowl, and Kentucky joins the projections after a win over Tennessee Tech to move to 5-5 this year. Clemson also returns to the predictions after a key win at Louisville on Friday night. With some conferences expected to fall short of having enough bowl-eligible squads to fill its allotted bowl slots, some shuffling among teams and conferences is likely.

Just missing the bowl projections after Week 12: Kansas, Penn State, North Carolina, Appalachian State, Utah State, Georgia Southern, Maryland, UCF, Auburn, Louisiana, Rice, Florida Atlantic, Texas State, Wyoming, Liberty, and Marshall.

How will the postseason matchups look by December? Below are Athlon Sports' preseason predictions for every bowl and playoff game in 2025-26 after Week 12:

College Football Bowl Projections for 2025-26 (After Week 12)

LA Bowl (Dec. 13)

Location: SoFi Bowl in Inglewood, Calif.
Tie-In: Mountain West vs. Pac-12
Projection: San Diego State vs. Washington

IS4S Salute to Veterans Bowl (Dec. 16)

Location: Cramton Bowl in Montgomery, Ala.
Tie-In: MAC vs. Sun Belt
Projection: Jacksonville State* vs. Coastal Carolina

Cure Bowl (Dec. 17)

Location: Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Tie-In: Sun Belt vs. AAC/CUSA/MAC
Projection: Old Dominion vs. Ohio

68 Ventures Bowl (Dec. 17)

Location: Hancock Whitney Stadium in Mobile, Ala.
Tie-In: Sun Belt/AAC/CUSA/MAC
Projection: Arkansas State vs. Western Michigan

Myrtle Beach Bowl (Dec. 19)

Location: Brooks Stadium in Conway, S.C.
Tie-In: Sun Belt vs. AAC/CUSA/MAC
Projection: FIU vs. Troy

Gasparilla Bowl (Dec. 19)

Location: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
Tie-In: ACC vs. SEC
Projection: South Florida vs. Florida State

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Dec. 22)

Location: Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho
Tie-In: MAC vs. Mountain West
Projection: Buffalo vs. UNLV

Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 23)

Location: Flagler Credit Union Stadium in Boca Raton, Fla.
Tie-In: AAC/CUSA/MAC/Sun Belt
Projection: North Texas vs. James Madison

New Orleans Bowl (Dec. 23)

Location: Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La.
Tie-In: Conference USA vs. Sun Belt
Projection: Western Kentucky vs. Southern Miss

Frisco Bowl (Dec. 23)

Location: TBD in Frisco, Texas
Tie-In: AAC/CUSA/MAC/Sun Belt
Projection: UConn vs. California

Hawaii Bowl (Dec. 24)

Location: Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in Honolulu, Hawaii
Tie-In: American vs. Mountain West
Projection: East Carolina vs. Hawaii

GameAbove Sports Bowl (Dec. 26)

Location: Ford Field in Detroit, Mich.
Tie-In: Big Ten vs. MAC
Projection: Rutgers vs. Toledo

Rate Bowl (Dec. 26)

Location: Chase Field in Phoenix, Ariz.
Tie-In: Big 12 vs. Big Ten
Projection: Iowa State vs. Northwestern

First Responder Bowl (Dec. 26)

Location: Gerald J. Ford Stadium in Dallas, Texas
Tie-In: Big 12/AAC/CUSA/ACC
Projection: UTSA vs. Boise State

Military Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: Navy-Marine Corps Stadium in Annapolis, Md.
Tie-In: ACC vs. American
Projection: Duke vs. Navy

Pinstripe Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: Yankee Stadium in Bronx, N.Y.
Tie-In: ACC vs. Big Ten
Projection: Clemson vs. Illinois

Fenway Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: Fenway Park in Boston, Mass.
Tie-In: ACC vs. American
Projection: Wake Forest vs. Temple

Pop-Tarts Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Tie-In: ACC vs. Big 12
Projection: Virginia vs. BYU

Arizona Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Ariz.
Tie-In: MAC vs. Mountain West
Projection: Central Michigan vs. Fresno State

New Mexico Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: University Stadium in Albuquerque, N.M.
Tie-In: Conference USA vs. Mountain West
Projection: Washington State* vs. New Mexico

Gator Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: EverBank Stadium in Jacksonville, Fla.
Tie-In: ACC vs. SEC
Projection: Miami vs. Vanderbilt

Texas Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas
Tie-In: Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection: TCU vs. Mississippi State

Birmingham Bowl (Dec. 29)

Location: Protective Stadium in Birmingham, Ala.
Tie-In: ACC/American vs. SEC
Projection: NC State vs. Memphis

Independence Bowl (Dec. 30)

Location: Independence Stadium in Shreveport, La.
Tie-In: Conference USA vs. Big 12
Projection: Louisiana Tech vs. Kansas State

Music City Bowl (Dec. 30)

Location: Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tenn.
Tie-In: Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Minnesota vs. LSU

Alamo Bowl (Dec. 30)

Location: Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas
Tie-In: Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Projection: Houston vs. USC

ReliaQuest Bowl (Dec. 31)

Location: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.
Tie-In: Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Nebraska vs. Tennessee

Sun Bowl (Dec. 31)

Location: Sun Bowl Stadium in El Paso, Texas
Tie-In: ACC vs. Pac-12
Projection: SMU vs. Arizona

Citrus Bowl (Dec. 31)

Location: Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.
Tie-In: Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Michigan vs. Texas

Las Vegas Bowl (Dec. 31)

Location: Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas, Nev.
Tie-In: Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Projection: Iowa vs. Arizona State

Armed Forces Bowl (Jan. 2)

Location: Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas
Tie-In: Big 12 vs. AAC/CUSA
Projection: Baylor vs. Army

Liberty Bowl (Jan. 2)

Location: Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium in Memphis, Tenn.
Tie-In: Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection: Cincinnati vs. Kentucky

Duke's Mayo Bowl (Jan. 2)

Location: Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.
Tie-In: ACC vs. SEC
Projection: Louisville vs. Missouri

Holiday Bowl (Jan. 2)

Location: Snapdragon Stadium in San Diego, Calif.
Tie-In: ACC vs. Pac-12
Projection: Pitt vs. Utah

Bahamas Bowl (TBD)

Location: TBD
Tie-In: Conference USA vs. MAC
Projection: Kennesaw State vs. Miami (Ohio)

College Football Playoff

College Football Playoff First Round

Games to be played on Dec. 19 and Dec. 20. Contests will be played at home site of higher-ranked team.

No. 5 Texas Tech vs. No. 12 Tulane
No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech
No. 7 Oregon vs. No. 10 Alabama
No. 8 Oklahoma vs. No. 9 Notre Dame

College Football Playoff Quarterfinals

Cotton Bowl (Dec. 31)

Location: AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas
Projection: No. 2 Indiana vs. No. 7 Oregon

Orange Bowl (Jan. 1)

Location: Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Projection: No. 4 Georgia vs. No. 5 Texas Tech

Rose Bowl (Jan. 1)

Location: Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif.
Projection: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 9 Notre Dame

Sugar Bowl (Jan. 1)

Location: Caesars Superdome in New Orleans, La.
Projection: No. 3 Texas A&M vs. No. 6 Ole Miss

Semifinals

Fiesta Bowl (Jan. 8)

Location: State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Ariz.
Projection: No. 1 Ohio State vs. No. 4 Georgia

Peach Bowl (Jan. 9)

Location: Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, Ga.
Projection:No. 2 Indiana vs. No. 3 Texas A&M

National Championship

Date: Jan. 19, 2026
Location: Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.
Projection: Ohio State over Texas A&M

*Indicates conference not projected to fulfill all of its bowl tie-ins. An at-large team will be selected to fill those spots.