A one-time replacement bowl game is expected to be developed this college football season after the Division I Football Oversight Committee on Thursday approved a request to waive the April 1 bowl game certification application deadline, according to a document obtained by ESPN.
This summer, the San Francisco Bowl told the NCAA, the Big Ten and the Pac-12 that it would not conduct a game this year. The bowl system entered this season anticipating 41 games with 82 teams needed to fill all of the available spots — but there are now 84 “deserving” teams after Hawaii finished the season 6-7.
Hawaii is an alternate ahead of any 5-7 teams because it participated in 13 regular-season games and finished the season with six wins that count toward meeting the definition of a “deserving team.”
Conference USA, the Mid-American Conference and the Mountain West Conference made the request to the Football Oversight Committee to provide flexibility in the system and utilize two previously approved spots to create a one-time bowl game. In order for that to happen, a waiver of the April 1 bowl certification application deadline was required.
The conferences plan to partner with ESPN Events to develop a game consistent with other postseason bowl experiences.