College football bowls open thread, December 21: Hello, old friend

Did you know that bowl season started Friday? I sure didn’t! And that’s why you didn’t see an open thread up for the day’s games — the Bahamas and Frisco Bowls, as well as the Celebration Bowl — around these parts yesterday.

But bowl season continues with one of its single biggest days this Saturday, featuring six games that you could not pay me to watch.

Florida fans who are not so constitutionally opposed to watching bowl games outside the College Football Playoff purview and that don’t feature Florida might be intrigued by a couple of today’s games, too. Former Florida coach Jim McElwain leads Central Michigan against San Diego State in the day’s first game — pretty neat, right? — and the Florida Atlantic program that has passed from Lane Kiffin’s stewardship to Willie Taggart plays (on ABC!) in the 3:30 p.m. window that has long been used for Saturday’s biggest games.

And this Saturday’s marquee matchup, a meeting of Washington and its departing coach Chris Petersen and the Boise State program he used to coach, is the day’s other ABC game.

But you probably have Christmas shopping to do, or NFL games to watch, or plans to sit and enjoy (?) Florida’s basketball game against Utah State, and so I don’t expect this post to be particularly poppin’.

I’m just putting it up because you asked.

2019 Bowl Schedule: Saturday, December 21

• New Mexico Bowl: Central Michigan vs. San Diego State, 2 p.m., ESPN
• Cure Bowl: Liberty vs. Georgia Southern, 2:30 p.m., CBS Sports
• Boca Raton Bowl: SMU vs. Florida Atlantic, 3:30 p.m., ABC
• Camellia Bowl: Florida International vs. Arkansas State, 5:30 p.m., ESPN
• Las Vegas Bowl: Boise State vs. Washington, 7:30 p.m., ABC
• New Orleans Bowl: Appalachian State vs. UAB, 9 p.m., ESPN