After the College Football Playoff games, the 2021-2022 bowl schedule peaks on New Year’s Day. Five matchups are set between some of the country’s top teams, many of which were national title contenders for a large portion of the season.

Saturday’s action starts at noon EST on ESPN2 when Penn State takes on No. 21 Arkansas in the Outback Bowl. The Nittany Lions are no longer ranked after losing five of their last seven games. The Razorbacks’ only loss in their last five games came at the hands of No. 1 Alabama.

The Fiesta Bowl starts at 1 p.m. EST on ESPN in arguably the best game on New Year’s Day. No. 5 Notre Dame is a short favorite against No. 9 Oklahoma State. The Fighting Irish and Cowboys have a combined 22-3 record. The teams entered conference championship weekend as the first two teams outside of the CFP field.

Marcus Freeman makes his head coaching debut for Notre Dame after being the team’s defensive coordinator during the regular season. Oklahoma State came up inches shy of scoring the game-winning touchdown in the Big 12 Championship Game.

No. 15 Iowa and No. 22 Kentucky will also play at 1 p.m. EST. They’ll face off in the Citrus Bowl on ABC. The Hawkeyes were defeated by No. 2 Michigan in the Big Ten Championship Game. Kentucky has won three straight games by 77 total points.

No. 11 Utah challenges No. 6 Ohio State in the Rose Bowl at 5 p.m. EST on ESPN. The Utes earned this matchup by blowing out No. 14 Oregon 38-10 in the Pac-12 Championship Game. Heisman Trophy finalist C.J. Stroud has 38 touchdowns for Ohio State and leads all Power Five quarterbacks with a 182.2 passer efficiency rating. Ohio State has the nation’s top-ranked offense.

The New Year’s Day schedule culminates with the Sugar Bowl between No. 7 Baylor and No. 8 Oles Miss at 8:45 p.m. EST on ESPN. Baylor won the Big 12. Both teams have seven victories in their last eight games.

Every New Year’s Day game can be streamed live with WatchESPN and the ESPN app.

Ryan Day Ohio State Football
Head Coach Ryan Day of the Ohio State Buckeyes watches his team during the Spring Game at Ohio Stadium on April 17, 2021 in Columbus, Ohio. Jamie Sabau/Getty Images
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