The quest to fill all 35 bowl games outside the 12-team playoff expanded to Football Bowl Subdivision teams with losing records this year, but the searching didn’t get much easier.
At least 10 teams reportedly declined invitations, raising questions about the future of the postseason games that are one of college football’s most cherished traditions even as their role has dramatically changed.
Notre Dame, Iowa State and Kansas State were the first to decide against bowl trips, with the two Big 12 teams drawing $500,000 fines for throwing a wrench into the conference’s commitment to certain games. After independent power Notre Dame was left out of the College Football Playoff bracket, the Fighting Irish rejected an appearance in the Pop-Tarts Bowl, which is held at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Florida.
In the second year of the CFP having a 12-team bracket after a first decade as a four-team event, some bowls — even established ones with long histories — are being reduced to optional status. The chance to hold more practices, get away to a warmer locale, and give fans the chance to book a holiday trip with a little more football alongside fellow alumni doesn’t seem to hold the same appeal for every program.
Bowl organizers have said there is no need to panic and believe the sprawling schedule of bowls — they begin Saturday, within an hour of the Army-Navy game that signals the end of the regular season — remains valuable.