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ESPN Events Announces 17-Game College Football Bowl Schedule for 2025-26 Season
· Cricket Celebration Bowl Kicks Off Bowl Season on Saturday, Dec. 13
· ESPN Events' 2025 Schedule will Feature 10 FBS and Two FCS Conferences and Three Early-Season Kickoff Games
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, has unveiled its schedule of 17 owned-and-operated bowl games for the 2025-26 college football postseason, which will feature 10 FBS conferences and two FCS conferences.
Bowl Season will begin Saturday, Dec. 13, with the 10th edition of the ESPN Events' Cricket Celebration Bowl (noon ET, ABC) as the champions of the Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference (MEAC) and Southwestern Athletic Conference (SWAC) face off in the National Championship for Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) at Atlanta's Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
On December 19, the Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl (3:30 p.m., ESPN) returns to Raymond James Stadium in Tampa. The 16th edition of the game will feature teams from the American Athletic Conference, Atlantic Coastal Conference or Southeastern Conference.
Celebrating a milestone 20 years, the Isleta New Mexico Bowl (5:45 p.m., ESPN) returns to University Stadium in Albuquerque on December 27 and will see a team from the Mountain West Conference square off against a team from either Conference USA, the American Athletic Conference, the Sun Belt Conference or the Mid-American Conference.
Later on December 27, the Kinder's Texas Bowl (9:15 p.m., ESPN) marks its 20th year at NRG Stadium in Houston with a matchup featuring teams from the Big 12 and Southeastern Conference.
The SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl (3:30 p.m., ESPN) returns to Allegiant Stadium. The event takes place this year on New Year's Eve and will feature a team from the Big Ten Conference against a former Pac-12 team.
The ESPN Events bowl schedule will conclude Friday, Jan. 2, with the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl (1 p.m., ESPN) returning for its 23rd year at Amon G. Carter Stadium on the campus of TCU. This marks only the third time in event history the game will be played after New Year's Day.
ESPN Events Kickoff Games
Last week, ESPN announced its early-season schedule, which included three ESPN Events kickoff games, featuring the FCS Kickoff - UC Davis vs. Mercer in ESPN's first primetime college football telecast of the '25 season - from Montgomery, Ala., on Saturday, Aug. 23, at 7 p.m. That same night, the Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge Kickoff takes center stage in Atlanta as North Carolina Central University faces Southern University in primetime (7:30 p.m., ABC). The MEAC/SWAC Challenge and ESPN Events' Red Tails Classic - Winston-Salem State vs. Tuskegee (Sunday, Aug. 31 on ESPNU) - will celebrate the tradition, legacy and values of HBCUs and be part of ESPN's season-long commitment to HBCU football.
About ESPN Events
ESPN Events, a division of ESPN, owns and operates a portfolio of collegiate sporting events nationwide. In the 2025-26 academic year, the 35-event schedule includes three early-season college football kickoff games, 17 college bowl games, 10 college basketball events, two college volleyball events, the premiere regular season college softball and gymnastics events, as well as the Band of the Year National Championship. Collectively, these events account for over 400 hours of live programming on ESPN platforms, reaching 60 million viewers and attracting more than 650,000 annual attendees. Each year, the portfolio of events features more than 20 Division I conferences and hosts over 4,000 participating student-athletes. With satellite offices in more than 10 cities across the country, ESPN Events builds relationships with conferences, schools and local communities, as well as providing unique experiences for teams and fans.
Follow ESPN Events on Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube pages.
2025 ESPN Events College Football Bowl Schedule:
Date Time (ET) Matchup Network
Sat, Dec. 13
Noon Cricket Celebration Bowl
Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta, Ga.) ABC
Tue, Dec. 16
9 p.m. IS4S Salute to Veterans Bowl
Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.) ESPN
Wed, Dec. 17
5 p.m. StaffDNA Cure Bowl
Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Fla.) ESPN
Fri, Dec. 19
Noon Myrtle Beach Bowl
Brooks Stadium (Conway, S.C.) ESPN
3:30 p.m. Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl
Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Fla.) ESPN
Mon, Dec. 22
2 p.m. Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Albertsons Stadium (Boise, Idaho) ESPN
Tue, Dec. 23
2 p.m. Boca Raton Bowl
Flagler Credit Union Stadium (Boca Raton, Fla.) ESPN
9 p.m. Scooter's Coffee Frisco Bowl
(Frisco, Texas) ESPN
Wed, Dec. 24
8 or 9 p.m. Sheraton Hawai'i Bowl
Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex
(Honolulu, Hawaii) ESPN
Fri, Dec. 26
8 p.m. SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
Gerald J. Ford Stadium (Dallas, Texas) ESPN
Sat, Dec. 27
2:15 p.m. Wasabi Fenway Bowl
Fenway Park (Boston, Mass.) ESPN
5:45 p.m. Isleta New Mexico Bowl
University Stadium (Albuquerque, N.M.) ESPN
9:15 p.m. Kinder's Texas Bowl
NRG Stadium (Houston, Texas) ESPN
Mon, Dec. 29
2 p.m. Birmingham Bowl
Protective Stadium (Birmingham, Ala.) ESPN
Wed, Dec. 31
3:30 p.m. SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl
Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas, Nev.) ESPN
Fri, Jan. 2
1 p.m. Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl
Amon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas) ESPN
2025 ESPN Events College Football Kickoff Games:
Sat, Aug. 23
7 p.m. FCS Kickoff
Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.)
UC Davis vs. Mercer ESPN
7:30 p.m. Cricket MEAC/SWAC Challenge Kickoff
Center Parc Stadium (Atlanta)
North Carolina Central University vs. Southern University ABC
Sun, Aug. 31
7 p.m. Red Tails Classic
Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Ala.)
Winston-Salem State vs. Tuskegee ESPNU
* While the Bahamas Bowl will not be played during 2025-26 Bowl Season, league commitments will be fulfilled by ESPN Events. Date, time and location are TBD.
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