As we approach the most celebratory time of the year, a multitude of games unfolds, featuring matchups between teams that might seldom cross paths in the regular season. All of these games will be part of the often amusingly named, advertisement-driven extravaganza that is college football bowl season.
Then there are others, like the Capital One Orange Bowl (okay, it's smothered in advertisements, too), that is one of the all-time classic bowl games and considered one of the coveted New Year's Six. But there's definitely nothing amusing about this year's matchup between No. 6 Georgia and No. 5 Florida State since no one was smiling after both were left out of the College Football Playoff.
That's what makes it one of the most intriguing bowl games, not to mention a couple more.
Capital One Orange Bowl: No. 6 Georgia vs. No. 5 Florida State
For weeks, this was looking like a playoff matchup instead of just a regular bowl game. That was until Georgia football was upset by Alabama in the SEC Championship Game, and Florida State was… upset by the playoff committee.
The Seminoles won their conference title game against Louisville, finished the season 13-0, and yet were still left out of the College Football Playoff because the committee deemed them not one of the four best teams without their quarterback Jordan Travis. The consolation prize is they have to face the Bulldogs, who won 29 straight games prior to the loss against Alabama, not to mention the winners of the last two national titles.
It's hard to say how this will play out. Heck, some are even calling for Florida State football to opt-out of the game entirely, or at least that's what some pundits like Josh Pate believe could happen. But if both teams do show up in Miami Gardens, there will definitely be player opt-outs. The intriguing part of this game may just be to see who shows up. Either way, the talking point will be Florida State, either in a win or loss.
Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl: No. 11 Ole Miss vs. No. 10 Penn State
Another New Year's Six bowl to look at will be the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl in Atlanta between Ole Miss and Penn State. What makes this matchup intriguing is that, for one, it's the SEC versus the Big Ten, the two biggest conferences in college football. But also, it will be the Ole Miss offense against the stout Penn State defense.
Of course, the Nittany Lions are going to look a little different as a staff, with James Franklin firing offensive coordinator Mike Yurich late in the season, and this week lost defensive coordinator Manny Diaz to Duke after taking the head coaching job there.
This will be an opportunity for both teams to reach 11 wins, although only one can accomplish that feat. It would be Penn State's second straight season with 11 wins and the fifth time in the last eight seasons. It would be a much larger accomplishment for Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss, who would post 11 wins for the first time in school history.
Valero Alamo Bowl: No. 14 Arizona vs. No. 12 Oklahoma
No. 14 Arizona hasn't been ranked this high since 2014 when they got as high as seventh and finished 10th in the country under Rich Rodriguez. Now under Jedd Fisch, they've become one of the most surprising teams in the country in 2023 and will look to get to 10 wins for the first time in nearly 10 years.
To do that, Brent Venables and Oklahoma stand in their way. However, it will be a Sooners team without Dillon Gabriel who just transferred to Oregon. That means that freshman Jackson Arnold will be making the start for Oklahoma. His counterpart in the matchup will be Arizona's Noah Fifita, who has really elevated the Wildcats since taking over at quarterback.
Fifita will obviously have more experience, getting plenty of playing time this season, but having two talented freshman quarterbacks battling each other adds intrigue to this game.
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