Arizona is bowl eligible for the first time in two seasons under head coach Brent Brennan. The Wildcats will find out their postseason destination on December 7. A new bowl projection emerged for Arizona from two sites ahead of week 12.
Athlon Sports changed its projection for Arizona to the Sun Bowl against SMU. CBS Sports also projects Arizona to play SMU in the Sun Bowl. Arizona has two losses and a tie in three Sun Bowl appearances. Arizona is 1-1 versus SMU all-time, with a win in 1985 and a loss in 1938.
Kyle Bonagura of ESPN continues to project Arizona to play San Diego State in the L.A. Bowl on December 13. Mark Schlabach of ESPN and On3 project Arizona to play to play Army in the Armed Forces Bowl on January 2, 2026. Those are the first projections this season for Arizona to the Armed Forces Bowl.
Arizona has never played Army or in the Armed Forces Bowl, which will be played for the 23rd time this season. The Armed Forces Bowl is played on the campus of TCU. Arizona lost 49-28 at TCU in 2024 in the first game they played at Amon Carter Stadium in Fort Worth.
Media Outlet | Bowl | Location | Opponent | Date |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Athlon Sports | Sun Bowl | El Paso | SMU | December 31 |
Kyle Bonagura-ESPN | L.A. Bowl | Los Angeles | San Diego State | December 13 |
Mark Schlabach-ESPN | Armed Forces Bowl | Fort Worth, Texas | Army | January 2, 2026 |
CBS Sports | Sun Bowl | El Paso | SMU | December 31 |
College Football News | L.A. Bowl | Los Angeles | San Diego State | December 13 |
On3 | Armed Forces Bowl | Fort Worth, Texas | Army | January 2, 2026 |
USA Today | L.A. Bowl | Los Angeles | San Diego State | December 13 |
The College Football News and USA Today also project Arizona to play San Diego State in the L.A. Bowl. Arizona has never played in the L.A. Bowl, which is hosted by Wildcats' Ring of Honoree Rob Gronkowski. Arizona has 11 wins and six losses all-time versus San Diego State.
How well Arizona finishes in its final three games will determine which tier of bowl it plays in. Arizona is at Cincinnati on Saturday, hosts Baylor in its final 2025 home game on November 22 and finishes the season at San Diego State on November 29. Arizona is still part of the former Pac-12 bowl tie-ins, which end after the 2025 season.