2008–09 NCAA football bowl games
The 2008–09 NCAA football bowl games, which concluded the 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season, contained a record number of bowl games scheduled in college football history. A total of 37 bowl games, 34 team-competitive games and three all-star games, were played starting on December 20, 2008, with four contests and concluding with the Texas vs. The Nation Game in El Paso, Texas, played on January 31, 2009, at Sun Bowl Stadium. For the first time in 62 years, however, the Hula Bowl was not a part of the post-season as it was cancelled indefinitely.
| 2008–09 NCAA football bowl games | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Bowl sites by state | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2008 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular season | August 28–December 6 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Number of bowls | 34 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| All-star games | 3 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowl games | December 20, 2008 – January 31, 2009 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| National Championship | 2009 BCS Championship | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location of Championship | Dolphin Stadium, Miami Gardens, Florida | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Champions | Florida Gators | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Bowl Challenge Cup winner | Pac-10 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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A new record of 34 team-competitive bowls, plus three all-star games, were played, including the inaugural St. Petersburg Bowl and EagleBank Bowl. While bowl games had been the purview of only the very best teams for nearly a century, this was the third consecutive year that teams with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games. To fill the 68 available team-competitive bowl slots, a new record total of 9 teams (13% of all participants) with non-winning seasons participated in bowl games—all 9 had a .500 (6-6) season.