The Holiday Bowl Is The Fifth College Bowling Game To Be Canceled

At least the Tigers and their fans were stranded in Honolulu, which may have softened the blow. Virginia had not yet made it to Boston for the Fenway Bowl against Southern Methodist when the coronavirus test on Christmas morning revealed a string of positive results and the game was drawn.

While the relative bloat of bowl season is in the eyes of the audience—after all, the number of matches continues to rise as fans continue to watch—this year in particular, bowls higher up the food chain have benefited.

After the Miami filming, the Sun Bowl looked dead. But after Boise State withdrew from the Arizona Bowl, the Broncos’ former rival in that game, Central Michigan, was promoted to the Sun Bowl to face Washington State.

Rutgers, who didn’t even qualify for a 5-7 year old bowl, was invited to the Gator Bowl after Texas A&M pulled out. McGarity said it was the result of a frenzied process where teams like Illinois and Utah State reached out to see if they would play.

On Tuesday, Rutgers landed in Jacksonville, Fla. to prepare for Friday’s game.

“Now they’re here and if they can stay healthy for a few days it looks like we have a game,” McGarity said. “This isn’t the game everyone thought it would be, but it’s better than dark.”

More than a dozen games remain on schedule, including Wednesday’s Cheez-It Bowl, which is expected to include Iowa State’s Rose Bowl on New Year’s Day and Iowa State, when Ohio State’s final match against Utah is scheduled for last season. Playing for a Clemson team with a rare playoff absence.

Executives believe that most of the remaining games will proceed as planned.

Then they agree again, they also thought they would need 42 bowling games.