2020 bowl season: Canine schools in college football earn invites
The 2020 bowl season will see a lot of college football’s canine schools.
The 2020 bowl season will see a lot of college football’s canine schools and vet schools taking part.
It seems unlikely that schools with live canine mascots will actually allow their pups to travel to the big games during 2020 bowl season this year, but football dogs across the nation will be cheering on their favorite teams from the kitchen, living room or backyard, hoping to intercept some snacks and not mess up their team T-shirt, bandanna, collar or jersey too much.
Going in chronological order, the 2020 bowl season for our purposes begins on Tuesday, December 22 at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN as the Nevada Wolf Pack (7-2, 6-2 Mountain West) will take on the Tulane Green Wave (6-6, 3-5 American) in the Famous Idaho Potato Bowl at Boise State’s home field of Albertsons Stadium in Boise, Idaho.
On Wednesday, December 23, the R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl (2 p.m. ET on ESPN) will see the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs (5-4. 4-2 Conference USA) taking on the Georgia Southern Eagles (7-5, 4-4 Sun Belt). That game will be held at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome, home of the NFL Saints.
The next game we’re interested in is the Cheez-It Bowl at Camping World Stadium at 5:30 p.m. ET in Orlando, Florida, on Tuesday, December 29, where the No. 21 Oklahoma State Cowboys (7-3, 6-3 Big 12) will face the No. 18 Miami Hurricanes (8-2, 7-2 ACC) on ESPN.
Wednesday, December 30 will see a trio of games on ESPN all featuring vet med programs, as the Duke’s Mayo Bowl at the NFL Panthers’ home of Bank of America Stadium in Charlotte, North Carolina will feature the Wisconsin Badgers (3-3 Big Ten) against the Wake Forest Demon Deacons (4-4, 3-4 ACC) at noon ET.
The TransPerfect Music City Bowl is held at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee (home to Doug the Pug’s Titans), pitting the Missouri Tigers (5-5 SEC) against the No. 16 Iowa Hawkeyes (6-2 Big Ten. That game kicks off at 4 p.m. ET.
Finally, the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic pits Holland the Pup‘s Florida Gators (8-3, 8-2 SEC) against the Oklahoma Sooners (8-2, 6-2 Big 12) in a rematch of the 2008 BCS National Championship, which saw Tim Tebow’s Gators taking on Sam Bradford’s Sooners. This game is held at the Cowboys’ home of “Jerryworld,” AT&T Stadium in the Dallas area, at 8 p.m. ET.
Thursday, December 31 sees a ton of games taking place. It begins with Bully’s Mississippi State Bulldogs (3-7 SEC) taking on the Tulsa Golden Hurricane (6-2, 6-0 American) in the Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl at Amon Carter Stadium in Forth Worth, Texas (TCU’s home field, kickoff at noon ET, ESPN).
Brad Paisley’s schools were supposed to clash in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl, as Smokey the Coonhound’s Tennessee Volunteers (3-7 SEC) were scheduled to face the West Virginia Mountaineers (5-4, 4-4 Big 12) at the Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium (Memphis’ home field, kickoff at 4 p.m. ET, ESPN). But since Tennessee dropped out, they’ll be replaced by the Army Black Knights (9-2 independent) instead.
Friday, January 1 sees Uga’s Georgia Bulldogs (7-2 SEC) in the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium at noon ET in Atlanta (home of the Falcons and Spike’s Atlanta United) against the Cinicinnati Bearcats (9-0, 6-0 American), champions of the American.
The Vrbo Citrus Bowl will be shown on ABC at 1 p.m. ET, featuring the Auburn Tigers (6-4 SEC) against the Big Ten runners-up in the No. 14 Northwestern Wildcats (6-2, 6-1 Big Ten). That game also takes place at Camping World Stadium in Orlando.
In one of the College Football Playoff semifinals, the Big Ten champion No. 3 Ohio State Buckeyes (6-0. 5-0 Big Ten) will face the ACC champion No. 2 Clemson Tigers (10-1, 8-1 ACC) in the Allstate Sugar Bowl at 7 p.m. ET on ESPN at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
Saturday, January 2 opens with the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl at the Jaguars’ territory of TIAA Bank Stadium in Jacksonville, Florida, at noon ET on ESPN, matching the No. 23 North Carolina State Wolfpack (8-3, 7-3 ACC) against the Kentucky Wildcats (4-6 SEC).
The PlayStation Fiesta Bowl (4 p.m. ET on ESPN) has the Big 12 runners-up No. 10 Iowa State Cyclones (8-3, 8-1 Big 12) taking on the Pac-12 champion No. 25 Oregon Ducks (4-2, 3-2 Pac-12) at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona (home of both the Cardinals and San Francisco 49ers this season).
Reveille the Collie’s No. 5 Texas A&M Aggies (8-1 SEC) take on the No. 13 North Carolina Tar Heels (8-3, 8-1 ACC) in the Capitol One Orange Bowl at 8 p.m. ET on ESPN at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida (Dolphins’ home field).
Because of the pandemic,much of the 2020 bowl season is unable to be played at the scheduled site. The Bahamas Bowl, TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl, Guaranteed Rate Bowl, Hawaii Bowl, Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl, San Diego County Credit Union Holiday Bowl, LA Bowl, Las Vegas Bowl, Military Bowl presented by Perspecta, New Era Pinstripe Bowl, Quick Lane Bowl, Redbox Bowl, and the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl were all canceled outright, and the CFP semifinal Rose Bowl Game presented by Capitol One was moved from Pasadena for the first time since World War II, taking place in Dallas instead. The New Mexico Bowl was also moved from Albuquerque to Dallas.
Next. 2020 Championship Saturday canine college football scores roundup. dark
For more on the college football landscape with the latest news, analysis and opinons, see our sister site Saturday Blitz, or the school-specific site tracking your favorite team.