Twelve Big Ten Schools Slated for Postseason Action

ROSEMONT, Ill. – Twelve Big Ten schools were selected for postseason competition on Sunday, highlighted by invitations to the College Football Playoff for Indiana, Ohio State and Oregon.

The undefeated Hoosiers were ranked No. 1 by the College Football Playoff selection committee and clinched one of four first-round byes with their 13-10 win against Ohio State in the 2025 Discover Big Ten Championship Game. Indiana will face the winner of No. 9 Alabama vs. No. 8 Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1 at 4 p.m. ET at Rose Bowl Stadium in Pasadena, Calif.

The Buckeyes were ranked No. 2 by the committee and earned a first-round bye to the quarterfinals. Ohio State will face the winner of No. 10 Miami vs. No. 7 Texas A&M in the Cotton Bowl Classic on Dec. 31 at 7:30 p.m. ET at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas.

The Ducks earned a No. 5 ranking and will host No. 12 seed JMU in a first-round game at Autzen Stadium. The game will kick off at 7:30 p.m. ET on Saturday, Dec. 20 and will be televised by TNT. A win would send Oregon to the Orange Bowl against Texas Tech on Jan. 1 at noon ET at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

The full Big Ten bowl lineup is as follows (final CFP rankings are listed):
 
Rose Bowl Game (College Football Playoff National Quarterfinal)

• No. 1 Indiana vs. No. 9 Alabama or No. 8 Oklahoma
• Jan. 1, 2026 – 4 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Pasadena, Calif. (Rose Bowl Stadium)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Rose Bowl for the 76th time.
• Indiana will make its second all-time appearance in the Rose Bowl, and its first since 1967.  

Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic (College Football Playoff National Quarterfinal)

• No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 10 Miami or No. 7 Texas A&M
• Dec. 31, 2025 – 7:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Cotton Bowl for the seventh time.
• Ohio State will make its third all-time appearance in the Cotton Bowl, and its second in as many years.
• Last season, the Buckeyes defeated Texas, 28-14, in the Cotton Bowl Classic when the game served as a College Football Playoff Semifinal.

Valero Alamo Bowl

• No. 16 USC vs. TCU
• Dec. 30, 2025 – 9 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Alamodome (San Antonio)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Alamo Bowl for the 17th time.
• This will be USC's first-ever appearance in the Alamo Bowl.
• The Trojans are 2-3 all-time against TCU, most recently falling to the Horned Frogs 19-28 in the 1998 Sun Bowl in El Paso, Texas.

Cheez-It Citrus Bowl

• No. 18 Michigan vs. No. 13 Texas
• Dec. 31, 2025 – 3 p.m. ET (ABC)
• Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Citrus Bowl for the 34th time.
• The Wolverines make their seventh appearance in the Citrus Bowl and will face the Longhorns for the second time in the postseason.

ReliaQuest Bowl

• No. 23 Iowa vs. No. 14 Vanderbilt
• Dec. 31, 2025 – 12 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)
• A Big Ten school will play in the ReliaQuest Bowl for the 37th time.
• The Hawkeyes will be making their 38th bowl game appearance and their seventh Reliaquest Bowl appearance, formerly known as the Outback Bowl.

Liberty Mutual Music City Bowl

• Tennessee vs. Illinois
• Dec. 30, 2025 – 5:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Nissan Stadium (Nashville, Tennessee)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Music City Bowl for the 12th time.
• Illinois qualified for the 22nd bowl game in program history and the third under head coach Bret Bielema.
• The Fighting Illini will play in the Music City Bowl for the first time in program history.

Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl

• Penn State vs. Clemson
• Dec. 27, 2025 – 12 p.m. ET (ABC)
• Yankee Stadium (Bronx, New York)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Pinstripe Bowl for the 11th time.
• This will be the second matchup between the Nittany Lions and the Tigers, who last met in the 1988 Citrus Bowl.
• The Nittany Lions last played in the Pinstripe Bowl in 2014, earning a 31-30 overtime win over Boston College.

Rate Bowl

• New Mexico vs. Minnesota
• Dec. 26, 2025 – 4:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Chase Field (Phoenix)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Rate Bowl for the third time.
• This marks the 26th all-time bowl game for Minnesota and the first-ever meeting with New Mexico.
• The Gophers most recently played in the Rate Bowl in 2021 when they beat West Virginia 18-6 on Dec. 28.

SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl

• Nebraska vs. Utah
• Dec. 31, 2025 – 3:30 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas)
• A Big Ten school will play in the Las Vegas Bowl for the fourth time.
• This marks Nebraska’s first-ever appearance in the Las Vegas Bowl and the Huskers’ 55th bowl game in school history.
• This will be the fifth meeting in school history with Utah and the first since 1992.
• Nebraska holds a 4-0 advantage in the series with all four matchups played at Memorial Stadium between 1968 and 1992.

GameAbove Sports Bowl

• Central Michigan vs. Northwestern
• Dec. 26, 2025 – 1 p.m. ET (ESPN)
• Ford Field (Detroit)
• A Big Ten school will play in the GameAbove Sports Bowl, formerly the Quick Lane Bowl, for the sixth time.
• This will be Northwestern's second trip to Detroit for a bowl game, with its last trip coming for the 2003 Motor City Bowl in which the Wildcats fell to Bowling Green, 28-24.
• Northwestern has won five straight bowl games (2016 Pinstripe Bowl, 2017 Music City Bowl, 2018 Holiday Bowl, 2021 Citrus Bowl, 2023 Las Vegas Bowl), tied for the third-longest streak in the nation behind Minnesota (8) and Ohio (6).

L.A. Bowl

• Boise State vs. Washington
• Dec. 13, 2025 – 8 p.m. ET (ABC)
• SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, Calif.)
• A Big Ten school will play in the L.A. Bowl for the second time.
• The game marks the Huskies' first-ever trip to the L.A. Bowl and will be the Dawgs' seventh game vs. Mountain West Conference champion Boise State.
• The two have twice met in bowl games – the 2012 and 2019 Las Vegas Bowls.

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