U.S. College Football Bowl Games

 Bowling For Dollars
   Someone asked me yesterday about the upcoming bowl games, of which there are more than a few. Two years ago, I offered a "Bowl Games Primer", since one is needed, but this year I am less interested. If you are interested, everything you require is found here: "2025-26 NCAA Football Bowl Games".

Big Stadiums
   To make up for what I didn't offer, here is a list of the biggest football stadiums, which provides another indication that college football is far more popular down there than it is up here. The stadium pictured is close by. The ones listed are over 10 times as large.

10 Largest U.S. College Football Stadiums

1.Michigan Stadium (Ann Arbor, Michigan): 107,601
2.Beaver Stadium (University Park, Pennsylvania): 106,572
3.Ohio Stadium (Columbus, Ohio): 102,780
4.Kyle Field (College Station, Texas): 102,733
5.Tiger Stadium (Baton Rouge, Louisiana): 102,321
6.Neyland Stadium (Knoxville, Tennessee): 101,915
7.Bryant-Denny Stadium (Tuscaloosa, Alabama): 101,821
8.Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium (Austin, Texas): 100,119
9.Sanford Stadium (Athens, Georgia): 92,746
10. Rose Bowl (Pasadena, California): 91,136

The Bonus:
  Although the professional football stadiums are smaller than the collegiate ones listed, they have the same purposes: 
   "Stadiums are secular megachurches, where believers gather to share communion, to exalt and mourn, and to don the vestments of faith. There’s nothing like the oceanic feeling of celebrating a touchdown or a home run or a classic guitar solo with tens of thousands of people who are having the same fan experience as you. Jonathan Mallie, a managing director of Populous, the largest stadium designer in the country, calls these venues “cathedrals for memories.” (The firm, which is headquartered in Kansas City, Missouri, is building the Buffalo Bills’ new shrine, New Highmark Stadium, alongside its predecessor; it will open in 2026.) The difference is that in stadiums, unlike in cathedrals, every inch of the space, and every sight line—not only to the field but also to the sponsors’ logos—is monetized. Stadiums may be the most rigorously monetized spaces on earth."
  That is from: "How the Sports Stadium Went Luxe: Is the race to create ever more lavish spectator offerings in America’s largest entertainment venues changing the fan experience?," John Seabrook, The New Yorker, Dec. 1, 2025.
  The list of stadiums is from, USA Today, Nov. 19, 2024.

Bowl Games Primer

   This is another rainy day effort created for those who want an excuse to not go Christmas shopping and who are not interested in watching all of those football games on TV, many of which are played in bowls. Here is a convenient list of them, only in that I have alphabetized it. It may be useful if you want to pretend to know something about what others are watching. It is not so useful if you do want to watch them since (spoiler alert) some of them have already been played. 

   Fifty are listed below, forty-four in the 'major' category and six lesser ones. There are many more. You can easily find information about them, but here are a few remarks for the perplexed. The first two numbered ones are a gas company and an investment firm from Daphne, Alabama. Food is often related and you will notice first the Avocados and then find that you can have Cheez-It with citrus or Chick-Fil-A with peaches, and also enjoy Potatoes and Mayo. Pop-Tarts, perhaps for dessert. The Wasabi one, however, is not about eating. Arranging the bowl names alphabetically leads one to recognize that two have military connections - Lockheed followed by the Military one, which encourages bowling. The Isleta one probably promotes gambling since it is the name of a New Mexico resort and casino.  Since we are nearing year's end, it is useful that two of the bowls are sponsored by companies that will help you with your taxes. Two of the bowls are "Famous." Glancing back up the list I noticed Bad Boy Mowers which allows one to "mow with an attitude." I will put some "local" information at the end, but will note here that London recently lost its "Bad Boy" store, but got its first Chick-Fil-A.

68 VENTURES BOWL 

76 BIRMINGHAM BOWL

ALLSTATE SUGAR BOWL

​​AUTOZONE LIBERTY BOWL  

AVOCADOS FROM MEXICO CURE BOWL

BAD BOY MOWERS PINSTRIPE BOWL 

BARSTOOL SPORTS ARIZONA BOWL 

CAMELLIA BOWL

CAPITAL ONE ORANGE BOWL 

CHEEZ-IT CITRUS BOWL     

CHICK-FIL-A PEACH BOWL 

COLLEGE FOOTBALL PLAYOFF NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIP BY AT&T

CRICKET CELEBRATION BOWL

DIRECTV HOLIDAY BOWL 

DUKE'S MAYO BOWL

EAST-WEST SHRINE BOWL

EASYPOST HAWAI'I BOWL

FAMOUS IDAHO POTATO BOWL

FAMOUS TOASTERY BOWL

GOODYEAR COTTON BOWL CLASSIC  

GUARANTEED RATE BOWL  ISLETA NEW MEXICO BOWL

LOCKHEED MARTIN ARMED FORCES BOWL MILITARY BOWL PRESENTED BY GOBOWLING.COM MYRTLE BEACH BOWL POP-TARTS BOWL QUICK LANE BOWL RADIANCE TECHNOLOGIES INDEPENDENCE BOWL RELIAQUEST BOWL ROOFCLAIM.COM BOCA RATON BOWL ROSE BOWL GAME PRESENTED BY PRUDENTIAL R+L CARRIERS NEW ORLEANS BOWL SCOOTER'S COFFEE FRISCO BOWL SERVPRO FIRST RESPONDER BOWL SRS DISTRIBUTION LAS VEGAS BOWL STARCO BRANDS LA BOWL HOSTED BY GRONK TAXACT TEXAS BOWL

TAXSLAYER GATOR BOWL TONY THE TIGER SUN BOWL TRANSPERFECT MUSIC CITY BOWL UNION HOME MORTGAGE GASPARILLA BOWL VALERO ALAMO BOWL VRBO FIESTA BOW WASABI FENWAY BOWL

OTHER BOWLS

BAHAMAS BOWL

BIRMINGHAM BOWL

THE COUSINS SUBS LAKEFRONT BOWL

FLORIDA BEACH BOWL

HAWAII BOWL

TEXAS BOWL

Canadian Content:

Football is not so popular up here. Western University is a large one with a football stadium that would be considered small by many Texas football high school coaches. Still it is usually less than half full. Or, perhaps half empty.

Simon Fraser University out on the West Coast used to play some football down south in NCAA Division II, but last year it dropped its football program and plays not at all.

Source: The graph is from: "A Perfect Day For Football," Miles Bolton, The Gazette, Sept. 11, 2023.

Tailgating

    I thought of this subject yesterday while watching the Vanier Cup, which was played in Quebec City and won by the Western Mustangs. Although it was the national championship game, the crowd was a small and shivering one. University football is not as important here as it is in the United States, only partially because it is played in much colder conditions.  The temperatures during the game had a - in front of them and catching a football and being tackled after doing so while freezing, is surely very difficult. So is tailgating. 

Tailgrillin'

   In Baton Rouge, when the LSU Tigers play the Florida Gators, gator is on the menu and it looks like it would be fun sampling it under such balmy conditions. It would also be interesting to know how the guys hooked up the windshield motor to the barbecue and what they would do on the ride home if it rains.  The finished product looks like this:

 It was caught in a ditch and carried to the game where it was rubbed in Tony Chachere's Original Creole Seasoning. Even Gator fans are invited to feast on the gator. “Laissez les bons temps rouler.”

High Livin'

   I mentioned that the Americans take their college football seriously and as proof, I offer the photograph above. The fellow giving the thumbs up is Brian Kelly who was the highly paid football coach at Notre Dame. He is now paid more highly at LSU where he will pocket about $100 million over the next few years. He is only being given a salary of $9 million for the first year, but there are some bonuses - for example: 

Kelly will earn an additional $500,000 if LSU makes a bowl game. LSU has been bowl eligible for 20 seasons straight, earning them the fourth-longest active streak in the NCAA and the second-longest in the SEC.

For his first SEC championship, Kelly will receive a $250,000 salary increase for the remainder of his contract. He will receive a one-time $75,000 bonus if LSU appears in an SEC championship, and $150,000 if they win the game. If LSU wins a national title, his base salary will increase by $500,000 for the remainder of his contract....

He will also receive two courtesy vehicles or two car allowances worth $1,000 a month along with an interest free home loan of up to $1.2 million to buy a house. LSU will also cover 50 hours per year of travel on private planes, relocation funds, and the cost of his buyout at Notre Dame, which remains unspecified due to the school being private.

Unfortunately he left his daughter behind in South Bend to finish her classes at Notre Dame and her fellow students there are not too happy about his sudden departure. 

Sources, etc.

  For more about LSU and gators see: "The Gator Finds a Place at the Tailgate: Alligator, long a food source for Louisianians, has become more popular nationally. But its big moment comes at an annual football matchup in Baton Rouge, By Christina Morales, New York Times, Nov. 30, 2021.  The Cajuns are also mentioned. 

  For details about the Kelly contract see: "Inside Brian Kelly's 9-figure Deal: New LSU Coach Set to Make $100 Million by 2031," Gabby Jimenez, Dec.1, 2021, lsureveille.com.

  For the few of you who are wondering if it is okay to eat alligators or to buy some new shoes or a belt, it is. They were classified as endangered back in 1967, but "In the last 50 years, farming and hunting regulations have helped to increase the alligator population to about two million, from 100,000, according to the Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries." For more details, the image above comes from the USGS.