Why are college football teams turning down bowl games? These are the universities that have declined to play

The 2025-26 bowl season opens this Saturday December 13 with Boise State taking on Washington in the LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium - the first of 47 games, 36 of which are bowl games and 11 playoffs.

The 84 participating programs were confirmed on Sunday but this year’s bowl season is different to others as organizers have discovered. Several teams notified the Big 12 Conference of their option to turn down their invitation to take part.

Coaching changes

Kansas State were the first to decline an invitation, partly because of a change in coaching staff, with Collin Klein coming in to replace Chris Klieman who has retired after seven seasons with the program.

Iowa State followed after players voted to opt out of the postseason because they have so many players out injured. Both K-State and Iowa State face $500,000 fines by the Big 12 for their decisions.

Notre Dame Fighting Irish finished 10-2 but also won’t be involved in the postseason for a different reason. They decided to skip a bowl game after being left out of the 12-team bracket. What’s the point of taking part if you don’t get a shot at the championship?

Seven teams turn down Birmingham Bowl invitation

All of the bowl matchups were confirmed Sunday except one. Organizers had a headache finding an opponent for Georgia Southern at the Birmingham Bowl in Birmingham, Alabama, on December 29. Seven teams declined the offer.

Teams with a losing record are usually not invited to play in bowl games but several who ended the season 5-7 were asked to participate in the Birmingham Bowl after eligible teams opted out. Florida State, Temple, Rutgers, Baylor, Kansas, UCF and Auburn were not bowl eligible, received invitations which they turned down.

Appalachian State, familiar rivals for the Eagles, saved the day by accepting the vacant spot.

Why bowl season has lost its appeal for some teams

The reasons why bowl season is less attractive to teams are varied and include coaching changes, and players who could be heading to NFL teams that are keen to stay fit and injury-free for the Draft - sometimes, it’s a combination of both.

Another factor was the introduction of the four-team playoff format in 2014. Now there is simply no desire to take part in what is viewed as a glorified exhibition game over the Christmas period, if there is no chance of making it to the championship game.

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