NCAA FOOTBALL
Why aren’t there any College Football games on New Year’s Eve this year?
The College Football Playoff games will not be played on New Year’s Eve but rather the evening of the first this season for a simple fluke of the calendar.
The tradition of playing college football bowl games on New Year’s Eve is a time honored one, going back more than a century. Traditionally, the games are played over both the 31st and the 1st, although this year, they will fall on the later date.
The New Year’s Six
The holiest of holies in college football is the New Year’s Six, which refers to six of the ten oldest bowl games presently being played at the Football Bowl Subdivision level. These games are played every year on or around New Year’s Eve.
In 2023, there won’t be any bowl games taking place on the last day of the year. This is for a simple fluke of the calendar where New Year’s Eve happened to fall on a Sunday this year. Sunday is reserved for NFL coverage, so the bowl games had to be rescheduled.
The Cotton Bowl was played on the 30th and the other five will be played on the first of January. The Missouri Tigers defeated the Ohio State Buckeyes by a score of 14-7 in a thrilling Cotton Bowl this year.
Here are the first college football bowl games for 2024.
| GAME | VENUE | TIME | TV & ONLINE |
|---|---|---|---|
| ReliaQuest Bowl Wisconsin vs LSU | Raymond James Stadium Tampa, Florida | 12 p.m. ET | ESPN2, ESPN App |
| VRBS Fiesta Bowl Liberty vs Oregon | State Farm Stadium Glendale, Arizona | 1 p.m. ET | ESPN, ESPN App |
| Cheez-It Citrus Bowl Iowa vs Tennessee | Camping World Stadium Orlando, Florida | 1 p.m. ET | ESPN, ESPN App |
| Allstate Sugar Bowl Texas vs Washington | Caesars Superdome New Orleans, Louisiana | 8:45 p.m. ET | ABC, ESPN App |
| Rose Bowl Alabama vs Michigan | Rose Bowl Stadium Pasadena, California | 5 p.m. ET | ESPN, ESPN App |