Dec. 29, 2025, 6:07 a.m. ET
In Birmingham they love the governor – and afternoon football apparently.
In all honesty, this Monday matinee in Birmingham, Alabama, is a college football bowl game that only a certain group – dare we say committee – of diehard followers of the sport will be awaiting with anticipation.
Regular visitors to these pages might recall that we ranked this contest the least attractive matchup in the entire postseason lineup. Then again, if you just happen to be flipping through channels on a likely day off and come across this contest, you’ll want to know who’s involved.
In that spirit then, we present this quick look at the lone bowl on the Monday calendar.
Time/TV: 2 p.m. ET, ESPN.
Why watch: This Sun Belt rematch came to pass thanks to several eligible programs and a few other 5-7 finishers turning down postseason invitations. Appalachian State might not have been the first choice, but the Mountaineers were happy to get this chance to avenge a 25-23 loss to the Eagles on Nov. 6. Georgia Southern will again count on the backfield tandem of QB J.C. French IV and RB OJ Arnold to lead the offense. Appalachian State has battled inconsistency in its passing game all season but will hope for a good performance from QB JJ Kohl with veteran CJ Swann announcing his intention to enter the portal.
Why it could disappoint: As we said, this probably isn’t appointment television for anyone outside of Statesboro, Georgia, or Boone, North Carolina. Then again, this was a close game the first time around, so it might at least be worth a peek.