EmailPrintOpen Extended ReactionsWeek 7 raised havoc, but Week 8 continued the mayhem as we witnessed more big wins and surprising upsets.Five ranked teams fell to unranked opponents Saturday. The Big 12 got a big shake-up as No. 8 Texas Tech and No. 2 BYU suffered their first losses of the season. The Cougars fell in a double-overtime thriller against UCF. In the SEC, No. 19 Texas rebounded from back-to-back conference losses to pull off a big league victory over No. 7 Ole Miss.Following all the chaos, we take a look at how the postseason picture shifted after Week 8.New to the 2026 season, the Power 4 conference champions will receive automatic bids to the CFP along with the highest-ranked Group of 6 team regardless of whether it is a league champ. The remaining slots in the 12-team field will go to the next seven highest-ranked teams. Notre Dame is guaranteed a spot in the field if it is among the top 12 teams.The four highest-ranked teams (not necessarily conference champions) will be awarded first-round byes. The other eight teams will meet in first-round games at the campus sites of seeds 5 through 8.The festivities of bowl season kick off with the Cricket Celebration Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Dec. 12 and wrap up with the CFP National Championship at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Jan. 25.ESPN bowl gurus Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach will make their predictions for all the postseason matchups every week of the season until the actual matchups are set Dec. 6.All times EasternJump to:First-round games | QuarterfinalsSemis, title game | Bowl seasonCollege Football PlayoffFirst-round games (at campus sites)Friday, Dec. 188 p.m., ESPNSaturday, Dec. 19Noon, ABC/ESPN3:30 p.m., TNT7:30 p.m., TNTBonagura: No. 12 Boise State at No. 5 GeorgiaSchlabach: No. 12 Boise State at No. 5 UCLABonagura: No. 11 Alabama at No. 6 IndianaSchlabach: No. 11 Ole Miss at No. 6 IndianaBonagura: No. 10 Wake Forest at No. 7 BYUSchlabach: No. 10 Texas at No. 7 KentuckyBonagura: No. 9 Kentucky at No. 8 Notre DameSchlabach: No. 9 BYU at No. 8 UtahCFP quarterfinalsWednesday, Dec. 30 Vrbo Fiesta BowlState Farm Stadium (Glendale, Arizona)7:30 p.m., TNT Bonagura: No. 5 Georgia vs. No. 4 UtahSchlabach: No. 5 UCLA vs. No. 4 Notre DameFriday, Jan. 1Time slots for quarterfinals at the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl to be determined on Selection Day (Dec. 6) Quarterfinals Game 2Noon, TNTBonagura: No. 6 Indiana vs. No. 3 UCLASchlabach: No. 8 Utah vs. No. 1 MiamiQuarterfinals Game 34 p.m., ABC/ESPNBonagura: No. 7 BYU vs. No. 2 Ohio StateSchlabach: No. 11 Ole Miss vs. No. 3 GeorgiaQuarterfinals Game 48 p.m., ESPN Bonagura: No. 8 Notre Dame vs. No. 1 MiamiSchlabach: No. 10 Texas vs. No. 2 Ohio StateCFP semifinals, national championship gameThursday, Jan. 14 Capital One Orange BowlHard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)7:30 p.m., TNTBonagura: No. 3 UCLA vs. No. 2 Ohio StateSchlabach: No. 4 Notre Dame vs. No. 1 MiamiFriday, Jan. 15Allstate Sugar BowlCaesars Superdome (New Orleans)7:30 p.m., ABC/ESPNBonagura: No. 4 Utah vs. No. 1 MiamiSchlabach: No. 10 Texas vs. No. 3 GeorgiaMonday, Jan. 25CFP National ChampionshipAllegiant Stadium (Las Vegas)7:30 p.m., ABC/ESPNBonagura: No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 1 MiamiSchlabach: No. 3 Georgia vs. No. 1 MiamiBowl season scheduleSaturday, Dec. 12Cricket Celebration Bowl presented by ToyotaMercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)Noon, ABCBonagura: South Carolina State vs. Jackson StateSchlabach: South Carolina State vs. Alabama A&MTuesday, Dec. 15 IS4S Salute to Veterans BowlCramton Bowl (Montgomery, Alabama)5:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: South Carolina vs. Miami (Ohio)Schlabach: Buffalo vs. LouisianaFrisco Football ClassicThe Star (Frisco, Texas)9 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Buffalo vs. LouisianaSchlabach: Tulsa vs. Florida InternationalWednesday, Dec. 16 TransPerfect San Juan BowlHiram Bithorn Stadium (San Juan, Puerto Rico)7:30 p.m. ET, TBDBonagura: Clemson vs. Georgia StateSchlabach: Boston College vs. Appalachian StateFriday, Dec. 18 Boca Raton BowlFlagler Credit Union Stadium (Boca Raton, Florida)11 a.m., ESPNBonagura: Liberty vs. TulsaSchlabach: South Florida vs. Western MichiganUnion Home Mortgage Gasparilla BowlRaymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)2:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Auburn vs. South FloridaSchlabach: Virginia vs. South CarolinaMonday, Dec. 21 Myrtle Beach BowlBrooks Stadium (Conway, South Carolina)11 a.m., ESPNBonagura: Minnesota vs. Arkansas StateSchlabach: Liberty vs. South AlabamaFamous Idaho Potato BowlAlbertsons Stadium (Boise, Idaho)2:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Western Michigan vs. UNLVSchlabach: Toledo vs. Air ForceTuesday, Dec. 22 Puerto Rico BowlJuan Ramn Loubriel Stadium (Bayamn, Puerto Rico)1:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: UMass vs. South AlabamaSchlabach: FAU vs. Western KentuckyStaffDNA Cure BowlAcrisure Bounce House (Orlando, Florida)5 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Ohio vs. James MadisonSchlabach: Louisiana Tech vs. Middle TennesseeRadiance Technologies Independence BowlIndependence Stadium (Shreveport, Louisiana)8:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: UConn vs. West VirginiaSchlabach: Washington vs. West VirginiaWednesday, Dec. 23 New Orleans BowlCaesars Superdome (New Orleans)2 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Jacksonville State vs. Appalachian StateSchlabach: Jacksonville State vs. James MadisonLockheed Martin Armed Forces BowlAmon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas)5:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Kansas State vs. North TexasSchlabach: UCF vs. ArmySan Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia BowlSnapdragon Stadium (San Diego)7:30 p.m., The CWBonagura: Fresno State vs. Arizona StateSchlabach: Texas State vs. Arizona StateFrisco BowlThe Star (Frisco, Texas)9 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Illinois vs. MemphisSchlabach: UConn vs. New MexicoThursday, Dec. 24 Isleta New Mexico BowlUniversity Stadium (Albuquerque, New Mexico)2:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Wyoming vs. UTSASchlabach: UNLV vs. TulaneSheraton Hawai'i BowlClarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex (Honolulu)7 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Texas State vs. North Dakota StateSchlabach: Fresno State vs. North Dakota StateSaturday, Dec. 26 Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe BowlYankee Stadium (New York)Noon, ABCBonagura: North Carolina vs. IowaSchlabach: Pittsburgh vs. MinnesotaWasabi Fenway BowlFenway Park (Boston)2 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Florida State vs. East CarolinaSchlabach: Duke vs. MemphisDuke's Mayo BowlBank of America Stadium (Charlotte, North Carolina)3:30 p.m., ABCBonagura: Duke vs. Penn StateSchlabach: North Carolina vs. Northwestern68 Ventures BowlHancock Whitney Stadium (Mobile, Alabama)5:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Louisiana Tech vs. Air ForceSchlabach: UAB vs. Miami (Ohio)Cactus BowlMountain America Stadium (Tempe, Arizona)7:30 p.m., ABCBonagura: Michigan vs. CincinnatiSchlabach: Michigan vs. CincinnatiMonday, Dec. 28 Freedom Mortgage Military BowlNavy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (Annapolis, Maryland)2 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Virginia vs. ArmySchlabach: Louisville vs. UTSATrust & Will Holiday BowlSnapdragon Stadium (San Diego)5 p.m., The CWBonagura: Louisville vs. Oregon StateSchlabach: Wake Forest vs. OregonTuesday, Dec. 29 JLab Birmingham BowlProtective Stadium (Birmingham, Alabama)2 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Mississippi State vs. TulaneSchlabach: Illinois vs. AuburnPop-Tarts BowlCamping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)5:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: SMU vs. HoustonSchlabach: SMU vs. HoustonValero Alamo BowlAlamodome (San Antonio)9 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Texas Tech vs. OregonSchlabach: Texas Tech vs. USCWednesday, Dec. 30 TaxSlayer Gator BowlEverBank Stadium (Jacksonville, Florida)11:30 a.m., ESPNBonagura: Pittsburgh vs. FloridaSchlabach: Virginia Tech vs. TennesseeLiberty Mutual Music City BowlNissan Stadium (Nashville, Tennessee)3 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Nebraska vs. Ole MissSchlabach: Wisconsin vs. AlabamaThursday, Dec. 31 ReliaQuest BowlRaymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)Noon, ESPNBonagura: Wisconsin vs. TexasSchlabach: Nebraska vs. FloridaOld El Paso Sun BowlSun Bowl Stadium (El Paso, Texas)2 p.m., CBSBonagura: Virginia Tech vs. ArizonaSchlabach: Clemson vs. Oregon StateLas Vegas BowlAllegiant Stadium (Las Vegas)3:45 p.m., ESPNBonagura: USC vs. OklahomaSchlabach: Arizona vs. MissouriKinder's Texas BowlReliant Stadium (Houston)7:30 p.m., ESPNBonagura: Oklahoma State vs. TennesseeSchlabach: Oklahoma State vs. OklahomaSaturday, Jan. 2 Citrus BowlCamping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)Noon, ABCBonagura: Northwestern vs. LSUSchlabach: Iowa vs. LSUSERVPRO First Responder BowlGerald J. Ford Stadium (Dallas)3:30 p.m., ABCBonagura: Baylor vs. Florida AtlanticSchlabach: Kansas State vs. North TexasSnoop Dogg Arizona BowlCasino Del Sol Stadium (Tucson, Arizona)4:30 p.m., The CWBonagura: Toledo vs. New MexicoSchlabach: Ohio vs. WyomingAutoZone Liberty BowlSimmons Bank Liberty Stadium (Memphis, Tennessee)7:30 p.m., ABCBonagura: UCF vs. MissouriSchlabach: Baylor vs. Mississippi State
