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Every college football season is capped by annual bowl games, giving teams and players one last chance to close out the year on a positive note. While the significance of those postseason appearances has changed in recent years, the bowl games remain.
Many take pride in the opportunity to represent their schools in one final game. For seniors, it can be especially meaningful.
This year, 82 teams will compete in the postseason. That represents a much higher number than what was seen decades ago.
The College Football Playoff has also added a new wrinkle as there is now an opportunity for teams to play three, and even four postseason contests in a single campaign.
Schools with the most bowl game appearances.
There are a handful of teams have played in at least 50 bowl games. Many would be considered blue bloods in the sport.
Some have had greater postseason success than others in terms of wins and losses. That can be said of national championship achievement, too.
Nonetheless, there are no others with more bowl game appearances than these 13 schools. Here, we’ll count those programs down from 13 to 1.
Florida Gators
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The Gators started playing college football back in the early 1900s. They’ve been to 50 bowl games in their history.
Across those postseason matchups, Florida’s posted a 26-24 overall mark. Included in the contests are three national championship wins, the last of which came in 2008.
The school’s most recent bowl appearance came in 2024 when the Gators beat Tulane in the Gasparilla Bowl in Tampa. The first came all the way back in 1952.
Clemson Tigers
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The Tigers are the first program on the list with College Football Playoff experience, being a mainstay in the event since its inception. Only one team owns more CFP trips.
Clemson’s most recent postseason matchup came against Texas in the 2024 playoff field, a game it lost to the Longhorns. The program’s last bowl game win came the year prior against Kentucky in the Gator Bowl.
In all, the Tigers boast 51 bowl game appearances with a 27-24 overall record. Their first came in 1939, a Cotton Bowl win over Boston College.
Michigan Wolverines
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The Wolverines boast one of the winningest programs in college football history. It’s no surprise to see them on the list of bowl game competitors, too.
Michigan has not had as much postseason success as others on this list. In fact, they are the only team of the top 13 with a losing record in bowl games.
The program has played in 53 bowl matchups, winning 24 and losing 29. It has won its last three postseason games, one of which resulted in a national championship.
Nebraska Cornhuskers
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The Cornhuskers have played college football for more than 125 years. They’ve been to 54 bowl games over that time. That included a lengthy streak that saw the program play in the postseason each season between 1969 and 2003.
Nebraska owns a .500 all-time mark in its postseason contests, boasting a 27-27 overall record. Five have been national title wins.
It’s first appearance came in 1940 where it lost to Stanford in the Rose Bowl. The latest was a Pinstripe Bowl win over Boston College in 2024.
USC Trojans
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USC is one of the most successful teams on this postseason list, both in terms of overall appearances and winning percentage.
The Trojans have played in 56 bowl games. They’ve won 36 to go with just 20 losses. That’s good for a success rate of more than 64%.
The program’s most recent appearance came in 2024, a win over Texas A&M in the Las Vegas Bowl. The first came back in 1922 which resulted in a Rose Bowl win over Penn State.
Penn State Nittany Lions
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Speaking of the Nittany Lions, they match USC in terms of bowl game appearances with 56. They’ve gone 33-21-2 in those contests.
Penn State last appeared in the 2024 Orange Bowl where it lost to Notre Dame to narrowly miss out on a national championship game appearance. That came after postseason wins in the opening round and in the Fiesta Bowl.
The school’s first bowl game was that previously mentioned 1922 Rose Bowl appearance vs. USC.
LSU Tigers
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The Tigers represent the third school on the list with 56 bowl game appearances. They’ve had the least amount of win-loss success in that trio but still own a respectable 31-24-1 all-time record.
LSU last made the postseason in 2024 when it beat the Baylor Bears in the Texas Bowl. The Tigers have missed out on a bowl game just once since the turn of the century (2020 COVID year).
The school’s first bowl game was played in 1935, the first of three straight Sugar Bowl appearances. It lost those first three postseason matchups before winning its first in the 1943 Orange Bowl.
Tennessee Vols
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The Vols rank sixth on the list of most bowl game appearances with 57. They’ve posted a 31-26 all-time record in those contests.
Tennessee first made a bowl game in 1938 when it capped a perfect 11-0 season with a win in the Orange Bowl. Their most recent postseason matchup came in the 2024 College Football Playoff.
The Vols lost to eventual national champion Ohio State in that opener. They were able to turn two other bowl game appearances into titles, though, in 1951 and 1998.
Oklahoma Sooners
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Oklahoma has fielded a college football program for more than 115 seasons. They have played in 58 bowl games over that time.
The Sooners currently boast one of the lengthier postseason streaks in the sport, last being shut out of a bowl game invite in 1998.
The school last played in the 2024 Armed Forces Bowl where it lost a third straight postseason matchup. The first bowl game bid came in 1938 when Oklahoma was invited to the Orange Bowl.
Ohio State Buckeyes
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Ohio State has 59 bowl game appearance across its 100+ year history. It’s most recent came in the 2024 national title game.
The Buckeyes beat Notre Dame after knocking out Tennessee, Oregon, and Texas. In doing so, the program secured its sixth college football championship.
Ohio State’s bowl game history dates back to 1920 when it played in the seventh Rose Bowl on record. The Buckeyes lost that debut 28-0 to California.
Texas Longhorns
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The Longhorns lost to national champion Ohio State in the 2024 Cotton Bowl after having won a pair of College Football playoff matchups. It fell one game shy of a title opportunity.
In all, Texas has appeared in 62 bowl games, making it one of just three teams to cross the 60-game threshold though Ohio State will soon join that list.
In those matchups, the Longhorns are 33-27-2. They made their first ever bowl game trip in 1942 when they won the Cotton Bowl.
Georgia Bulldogs
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The Bulldogs have played in the second-most bowl games in college football history with 63 invites. They have been one of the most successful teams in the postseason.
Georgia is 38-22-3 in those contests, good for a winning percentage just under 63%. The most recent bowl appearance came in the 2024 College Football Playoff when the school lost to Notre Dame in the Sugar Bowl.
The Bulldogs made their postseason debut in the 1942 Orange Bowl. They’ve played in a bowl game each year since 1997.
Alabama Crimson Tide
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Alabama is far and away the top team on this list. The Crimson Tide boast 77 bowl game appearances. That number has been bolstered by a soon-to-be eight College Football Playoff invites.
In those postseason contests, the school is 45-29-3. Those 45 wins also rank first all-time.
Unfortunately, the Tide haven’t been able to add to the number of late. They’ve lost three of their last four bowl games dating back to 2021. Prior to that, they’d gone 10-2 in a postseason run that included three national championships.