Bowl projections for Washington following the end of the 2025 regular season

The conclusion of the regular season for most college football teams means conference championship games and bowl season are right around the corner. The Washington Huskies ended their season in disappointing fashion, losing 26-14 to No. 6 Oregon, but still saw a two-win improvement from last season for an 8-4 finish (5-4 Big Ten).

That record is more than good enough to be bowl-eligible, and although non College Football Playoff bowl games have seemingly become less meaningful year after year, Washington's will be a great opportunity for its young roster to play against a tough, non-conference opponent.

So, who will that opponent be? And where will the game be played? Bowl games are scheduled based on the ties or affiliation a specific bowl has with a particular conference. For example, before the birth of the CFP, the Rose Bowl Game was historically always between a Big Ten program and a Pac-12 program.

This means Washington will be considered for any bowl games affiliated with the Big Ten, but it's more likely that the Huskies get assigned to a bowl game based on their former ties with the Pac-12. There’s still a long list of Pac-12–affiliated bowl games on the schedule, despite the fact that only two teams technically remain in the conference, and only one of them (Washington State) is bowl-eligible.

As a result, the slate will largely be filled by the former Pac-12 members for one final season before the conference returns in a fuller form next year. This happened last season for the Huskies, who played in the Pac-12-vs-ACC matchup in the Sun Bowl against Louisville. Here's a full list of the bowl games Washington will be eligible for, followed by an explanation of the three most-likely candidates:

Cheez-It Citrus Bowl: Big Ten vs SEC
Guaranteed Rate Bowl: Big Ten vs Big 12
GameAbove Sports Bowl: Big Ten vs MAC
Las Vegas Bowl: Big Ten vs Pac-12
Music City Bowl: Big Ten vs SEC
Pinstripe Bowl: Big Ten vs ACC
ReliaQuest Bowl: Big Ten vs SEC
Holiday Bowl: Pac-12 vs ACC
LA Bowl: Pac-12 vs Mountain West
Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl: Pac-12 vs Big 12
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl: Pac-12 vs ACC
Valero Alamo Bowl: Pac-12 vs Big 12

1. LA Bowl (Pac-12 vs Mountain West)

The LA Bowl has been the most popular bowl projection for Washington, albeit not one that fans are in love with. That's because the LA Bowl is seen as a lower-tier game, as it's a relatively new addition to the postseason slate -- first played in 2021 -- and has featured only one ranked team among the eight total participants in its short history.

Last season, the program that represented the former Pac-12 in the game was the 6-6 California Golden Bears, a team that's a considerable step below this year's Huskies. Additionally, playing against a Mountain West school, even if it's the best one in the conference, is far less exciting than playing another power conference program.

If the Huskies do get the bid to the LA Bowl, the MWC opponent they will face will either be 8-4 Boise State or 10-2 UNLV, who play each other in the conference title game this Friday. The LA Bowl is held in the shiny new SoFi Stadium, and is one of the earliest games on the bowl season schedule -- Dec. 13 at 5 p.m. PST.

2. Holiday Bowl (Pac-12 vs ACC)

The Holiday Bowl is probably the most highly-touted game Washington has been projected to this season, as it's been a bowl-season staple since 1978 and has featured a handful of top-10 teams over the years. Of course, the fact that it's played in San Diego on Jan. 2 also helps the attraction of the game.

However, Washington isn't the favorite to land the Pac-12 bid in this one. Right now, it seems like ranked Arizona is the favorite to take on the ACC, as the Wildcats likely have the upper hand over the Huskies in the eyes of the Holiday Bowl organizers. Other former Pac-12 programs like Utah and USC would also likely be considered before UW.

If Washington does somehow get the nod, the ACC team it will likely face could be 8-4 Pittsburgh, 8-4 SMU, or 9-3 Georgia Tech -- all of which have been ranked at some point this season. The Huskies have played in the Holiday Bowl four previous times, holding a record of 1-3 in the game with their most recent appearance being in 2010 against Nebraska.

3. Las Vegas Bowl (Big Ten vs Pac-12)

While a return to the Sun Bowl is probably a more likely outcome for this third spot, wishful thinking has the Huskies playing in Las Vegas rather than El Paso again. Although it may seem like the Huskies have double the chances of qualifying for the game since they can do so as a Big Ten team or a Pac-12 team, in actuality, they would have to be the Big Ten bid since they wouldn't be allowed to play a conference opponent during bowl season.

The Las Vegas Bowl was first played in 1992, and now has a pretty high profile with the game being held at Allegiant Stadium on New Year's Eve. The Huskies have appeared in the game twice, including Chris Petersen's final game in 2019: a 38-7 win over Boise State.

A bid to the Las Vegas Bowl could be a fun throwback to the glory days of the Pac-12, with some high-level potential matchups for Washington. The most likely ones would be with 8-4 Arizona State, 10-2 Utah, or what would be a highly-intriguing showdown between Jedd Fisch and his former team, 9-3 Arizona.