Oh, you thought there were already too many bowl games? In the case, the NCAA Competition Committee reportedly has some bad news for you.
According to Brett McMurphy in a Facebook post, the NCAA Competition Committee will add three new bowl games to the bowl schedule beginning with the 2020 season. Chicago and Myrtle Beach are expected to be the destinations for two of the new bowl games, but the location of the third potential new bowl game is considered up in the air. Per McMurphy, Wrigley Field would host the bowl game in Chicago and host a team from the Big Ten and a team from the ACC (the home of the Chicago Cubs will also host a Northwestern vs. Wisconsin game in 2020). The Big Ten and ACC already have a bowl agreement with the Pinstripe Bowl to play a bowl game in Yankee Stadium. A bowl game in Myrtle Beach would likely include teams from Conference USA, the Sun Belt Conference or the MAC.
In addition to three new bowl games being included in the future bowl schedule, the NCAA Football Oversight Committee is expected to approve a limit on the number of bowl tie-ins any one conference can have. That tie-in cap is determined by the size of a conference. According to the report, the ACC and SEC would be limited to 10 bowl tie-ins (the ACC would also include Notre Dame). The Big Ten would be limited to eight tie-ins, the Pac-12 limited to seven, and the Big 12 restricted to no more than six tie-ins. Why those numbers for the ACC, SEC, and Big Ten vary despite having the same number of conference members in each is unconfirmed. The American and Conference USA can have seven bowl tie-ins, and MAC and Mountain West can have six, and the Sun Belt can have five. Keep in mind, each conference could end up sending more teams to a bowl game if space allows for it. These are just restrictions on the automatic tie-ins to bowl games that can be arranged by the conference.
With three new bowl games and no subtractions from the current bowl line-up, the total of bowl games will be brought to 43 including the College Football Playoff and national championship game. That leaves 84 spots to fill among the 130 FBS programs. It’s worth noting last week the Pac-12 announced a new rule that will prohibit five-win teams from the conference to participate in a bowl game regardless of APR qualifications if vacancies remain. This seems like poor timing for the Pac-12.