INDIANAPOLIS -- Three new bowl games - to be played in San Francisco, Honolulu and Charlotte, N.C. - were certified by the NCAA on Thursday, bringing the number of Division I postseason football games to 28.
The decision to add the games came one week after a two-year moratorium limiting the maximum number of bowl games to 26.
The new bowl games will be the San Francisco Bowl, Hawaii Bowl and Queen City Bowl. All three will be televised by ESPN.
Teams from the Mountain West Conference and Big East Conference will play in the San Francisco Bowl at Pacific Bell Park on Dec. 31. In the Hawaii Bowl, teams will compete from Conference USA and the Western Athletic Conference will meet in Aloha Stadium on Dec. 25.
A date has not been set for the Queen City Bowl, which will be held at Ericsson Stadium in Charlotte, between teams in the Big East and Atlantic Coast Conference.
Schools in the NCAA are not allowed to participate in postseason games that the NCAA has not certified. The process ensures that bowls meet specific standards for officiating, insurance and the distribution of funds.
"We had several new bowl organizations that came to us very well prepared with conference and television commitments, as well as good facilities and support from their communities," Tim Curley, athletics director at Penn State and chair of the Football Certification Subcommittee said in a statement. "We believe they will sponsor events that will be good experiences for student-athletes."
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