Despite the most disrupted year in recent history, we’ve reached the most wonderful time of the year. There may not be as many, and some teams have opted to decline their invite, but college football bowl season is upon us. For two weeks, we have football almost every day, culminating with the national championship on Monday, January 11th. Which teams are in action, and which college football bowl games can you watch on TV today?
What college football bowl games are on today?
*All start times are in ET time zone
College Football Playoff National Championship | Alabama vs. Ohio State
- Date: January 11, 2021
- Channel: ESPN
- Start time: 8:00 PM
- Location: Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida
Today’s college football bowl game isn’t just any bowl game. It’s the culmination of a grueling season of disruption, cancellations, and uncertainty. Today’s college football bowl game is the reward for hard work, persistence, and excellence. Originally, 127 teams contested the 2020 college football season, and just two remain. Today’s college football bowl game on TV today is Alabama versus Ohio State. It’s the College Football Playoff National Championship.
Prediction for Alabama vs. Ohio State
When the College Football Playoffs began last weekend, many people (myself included), presumed they were just a formality. The undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide would sweep past Notre Dame, which they inevitably did. They would be joined in the title game by the Clemson Tigers who would effortlessly dispose of the Ohio State Buckeyes, which they did not.
That surprise demise of Trevor Lawrence’s bid for a second championship has left us with an unexpected matchup. However, while it is unexpected, there are many reasons to be excited by the matchup in today’s college football bowl game.
These two teams have met just four times before. Although the head-to-head record is heavily skewed in Alabama’s favor, all but the 1978 Sugar Bowl have been close-fought affairs. Ohio State also has the advantage of recent history, beating Alabama 42-35 in the 2015 College Football Playoffs.
Two explosive offenses collide in the College Football Playoff National Championship
The Crimson Tide are an early favorite, and it’s easy to see why. Alabama is in possession of one of college football’s most potent offenses. Their offense involves the best wide receiver in the nation in DeVonta Smith and the Davey O’Brien Award best quarterback in the nation in Mac Jones. How do you even begin to decide who you stop between Smith and Najee Harris? They’re even expected to return Jaylen Waddle for this game.
However, Ohio State is no offensive slouch themselves. Justin Fields set fire to the Clemson defense in the semifinal with six touchdowns. Wide receiver Chris Olave is legitimately one of the best wide receivers in the game, and running back Trey Sermon may well be the most in-form player in the nation. Despite improvements since the start of the season, Alabama’s defense is hardly watertight.
We could be in for an explosive, high-scoring game in today’s college football bowl game on TV.
Final score prediction: Alabama Crimson Tide 38, Ohio State Buckeyes 34
NFL Draft-eligible players to watch in today’s college football bowl game on TV
Today’s college football bowl game on TV is awash with NFL Draft-eligible talent on both teams. One intriguing battle to watch out for is DeVonta Smith versus Shaun Wade. The Ohio State cornerback intimated this week that he wanted to take on Smith, which could be an unmitigated disaster given how poorly Wade has played in his transition to outside cornerback this season. However, an impressive performance could help recover his dwindling stock.
On his latest big board for Pro Football Network, Tony Pauline has DeVonta Smith ranked as his fifth overall prospect for the upcoming 2021 NFL Draft. He also has eight Alabama players and seven Ohio State players inside his Top 100 prospects.
- Justin Fields, QB, Ohio State
- Wyatt Davis, G, Ohio State
- Shaun Wade, CB, Ohio State
- Chris Olave, WR, Ohio State
- Pete Werner, LB, Ohio State
- Josh Myers, C, Ohio State
- Baron Browning, LB, Ohio State
- DeVonta Smith, WR, Alabama
- Alex Leatherwood, OT, Alabama
- Dylan Moses, LB, Alabama
- Patrick Surtain II, CB, Alabama
- Jaylen Waddle, WR, Alabama
- Najee Harris, RB, Alabama
- Mac Jones, QB, Alabama
- Christian Barmore, DT, Alabama
2020-21 College football bowl schedule
Full college football bowl schedule
Myrtle Beach Bowl | December 21st
Appalachian State vs. North Texas
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl | December 22nd
Nevada vs. Tulane
Boca Raton Bowl | December 22nd
UCF vs. BYU
R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl | December 23rd
Louisiana Tech vs. Georgia Southern
Montgomery Bowl | December 24th
Memphis vs. FAU
New Mexico Bowl | December 24th
Hawaii vs. Houston
Camellia Bowl | December 25th
Buffalo vs. Marshall
Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl | December 26th
South Carolina vs. UAB
Cure Bowl | December 26th
Liberty vs. Coastal Carolina
SERVPRO First Responder Bowl | December 26th
UTSA vs. Louisiana
LendingTree Bowl | December 26th
Western Kentucky vs. Georgia State
Games from December 28-31
Cheez-It Bowl | December 29th
Oklahoma State vs. Miami
Valero Alamo Bowl | December 29th
Texas vs. Colorado
Duke’s Mayo Bowl | December 30th
Wake Forest vs. Wisconsin
TransPerfect Music City Bowl | December 30th
Iowa vs. Missouri
Goodyear Cotton Bowl | December 30th
Oklahoma vs. Florida
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl | December 31st
Tulsa vs. Mississippi State
AutoZone Liberty Bowl | December 31st
West Virginia vs. Tennessee
Arizona Bowl | December 31st
Ball State vs. San Jose State
Games in January before the college football playoffs begin
Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl | January 1st
Cincinnati vs. Georgia
Vrbo Citrus Bowl | January 1st
Auburn vs. Northwestern
Rose Bowl (College Football Playoff Semifinal) | January 1st
Notre Dame vs. Alabama
Allstate Sugar Bowl (College Football Playoff Semifinal) | January 1st
Ohio State vs. Clemson
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl | January 2nd
NC State vs. Kentucky
Outback Bowl | January 2nd
Ole Miss vs. Indiana
PlayStation Fiesta Bowl | January 2nd
Oregon vs. Iowa State
Capital One Orange Bowl | January 2nd
Texas A&M vs. North Carolina
College Football Playoff National Championship | January 11th
Alabama vs. Ohio State
Oliver Hodgkinson is an NFL Draft and NFL analytics contributor for the Pro Football Network. You can follow him on Twitter at @ojhodgkinson.