2025 Bowl Projections after Week 11: Texas Tech Rising, ACC Chaos Shakes Up Playoff Field

College football’s Week 11 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 road wins in conference play, with Texas A&M, Alabama, and Georgia rounding out the top five. Texas Tech’s Big 12 title and playoff hopes took a massive step forward with a blowout victory over BYU, while the race to win the ACC is wide open after losses by Virginia and Louisville. Notre Dame moved one step closer to the playoff after an easy win over Navy.

Week 11 results also impacted bowl games outside of the College Football Playoff. Vanderbilt moves up in the SEC bowl pecking order after beating Auburn, while BYU drops out of the projected field to the Pop-Tarts Bowl. With the SEC 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 11: Clemson, North Carolina, Appalachian State, Utah State, Georgia Southern, South Carolina, Penn State, Rutgers, West Virginia, Maryland, UCF, Kentucky, Auburn, Louisiana, Rice, Florida Atlantic, Texas State, Wyoming, and FIU.

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 11:

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: James Madison 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: Marshall vs. Liberty

Gasparilla Bowl (Dec. 19)

Location: Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Fla.

Tie-In: ACC vs. SEC

Projection: Memphis 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. Old Dominion

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. Kansas

Hawaii Bowl (Dec. 24)

Location: Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex in Honolulu, Hawaii

Tie-In: American vs. Mountain West

Projection: California* 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: NC State 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: Louisville vs. BYU

Arizona Bowl (Dec. 27)

Location: Arizona Stadium in Tucson, Ariz.

Tie-In: MAC vs. Mountain West

Projection: Miami (Ohio) 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. Tennessee

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: East Carolina vs. Troy

Independence Bowl (Dec. 30)

Location: Independence Stadium in Shreveport, La.

Tie-In: Conference USA vs. Big 12

Projection: Kennesaw State 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. Oklahoma

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. Vanderbilt

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. Tulane*

Duke’s Mayo Bowl (Jan. 2)

Location: Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, N.C.

Tie-In: ACC vs. SEC

Projection: Virginia 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: Louisiana Tech vs. Central Michigan

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

No. 5 Georgia vs. No. 12 South Florida

No. 6 Ole Miss vs. No. 11 Georgia Tech

No. 7 Texas Tech vs. No. 10 Texas

No. 8 Oregon vs. No. 9 Notre Dame

Cotton Bowl (Dec. 31)

Location: AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas

Projection: No. 2 Indiana vs. No. 7 Texas Tech

Orange Bowl (Jan. 1)

Location: Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.

Projection: No. 4 Alabama vs. No. 5 Georgia

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 Alabama

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.

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