In order to be bowl eligible in college football, a Division I program needs to win at least six games in the regular season. This year, there are 80 bowl-eligible teams and 41 bowl games. Six of those bowl games are part of the College Football Playoff: Cotton Bowl Classic (Dec. 31), Capital One Orange Bowl (Jan. 1), Rose Bowl Game (Jan. 1), Allstate Sugar Bowl (Jan. 1), Vrbo Fiesta Bowl (Jan. 8) and Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl (Jan. 9).
A bowl game is considered a reward for a winning season. However, for several reasons, teams have declined to play a bowl game. Let’s take a look at teams that have refused to play bowl games.
College Football Bowl Game Rejections
- Iowa State
According to On3’s Brett McMurphy, the Iowa State Cyclones have become the second Big 12 team to decline to play a bowl game. This comes after head coach Matt Campbell left to take the job at Penn State, with the Cyclones hiring Washington State’s Jimmy Rogers as his replacement.
“My family and I are excited to be joining the Iowa State University community and the Cyclone football program,” Rogers said. “Iowa State has been one of the nation’s top programs for the last decade and we look forward to building upon its upward trajectory. I’m extremely grateful for the opportunity that Jamie Pollard has given me to lead the Cyclones.
“From the administration, to the alumni and current student-athletes, this University has everything needed to compete at the highest level in college football. I am honored to be given this opportunity and responsibility and cannot wait to get started!”
Iowa State could face a fine for declining the bowl bid.
2. Kansas State
According to The Athletic, the Kansas City Wildcats (6-6) will not accept a bowl invitation for this season. This was confirmed by the athletic director on Dec. 7.
The Wildcats are in the middle of a coaching transition. Their longtime head coach, Chris Klieman, retired, and Collin Klein will take over. Due to uncertainty about the unavailability of players and staff, the program made this decision.
3. Baylor
The University announced on Sunday that it won’t be playing a Bowl game this year.
“We have declined the opportunity to play in a Bowl, as we’ve already progressed deeply into the offseason timeline of preparation for the 2026 season.”
It remains to be seen if any more teams bow out of bowl bids in the coming days.
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