The long wait is nearly over as another college football season approaches. ESPN bowl gurus Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach are projecting every postseason matchup across the 46-game schedule, including how the 12-team College Football Playoff will play out. Weekly picks will be updated until official brackets are set.

The festivities of bowl season kick off with the Cricket Celebration Bowl at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Dec. 12 and wrap up with the CFP National Championship at Allegiant Stadium in Las Vegas on Jan. 25. The first round features campus-site games on Dec. 18-19, followed by quarterfinals at Vrbo Fiesta Bowl, Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic, Rose Bowl Game, and Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl.

Semifinal action shifts to the Capital One Orange Bowl in Miami Gardens and the Allstate Sugar Bowl in New Orleans on Jan. 14-15. Both analysts heavily project top seeds like No. 1 Ohio State and No. 2 Notre Dame advancing deep into the tournament. Regular season thrills give way to bowl season excitement from December through January.