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ESPN unveiled its broadcasting schedule for the 2017-18 college football bowl season, which will kick off Dec. 16 with five games.

Fans will be happy to see both of the College Football Playoff semifinals—the Rose Bowl and Sugar Bowl—moved from New Year's Eve to New Year's Day. The College Football Playoff National Championship is set for Jan. 8. All three games will air on ESPN.

2017-18 Bowl Schedule Date Time (ET) Bowl TV Info Dec. 16 12 p.m. Air Force Reserve Celebration Bowl ABC Dec. 16 1 p.m. R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl ESPN Dec. 16 3:30 p.m. Las Vegas Bowl ABC Dec. 16 4:30 p.m. Gildan New Mexico Bowl ESPN Dec. 16 8 p.m. Raycom Media Camellia Bowl ESPN Dec. 19 7 p.m. Boca Raton Bowl ESPN Dec. 21 8 p.m. St. Petersburg Bowl ESPN Dec. 22 12:30 p.m. Bahamas Bowl ESPN Dec. 22 4 p.m. Famous Idaho Potato Bowl ESPN Dec. 23 12 p.m. Birmingham Bowl ESPN Dec. 23 3:30 p.m. Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl ESPN Dec. 23 7 p.m. Dollar General Bowl ESPN Dec. 24 8:30 p.m. Hawai’i Bowl ESPN Dec. 26 TBD Quick Lane Bowl ESPN Dec. 26 TBD Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl ESPN Dec. 26 TBD Cactus Bowl ESPN Dec. 27 1:30 p.m. Independence Bowl ESPN Dec. 27 5:15 p.m. New Era Pinstripe Bowl ESPN Dec. 27 9 p.m. Texas Bowl ESPN Dec. 28 1:30 p.m. Military Bowl Presented by Northrop Grumman ESPN Dec. 28 5:15 p.m. Camping World Bowl ESPN Dec. 28 9 p.m. Valero Alamo Bowl ESPN Dec. 29 1 p.m. Belk Bowl ESPN Dec. 29 4:30 p.m. Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl ESPN Dec. 29 8:30 p.m. Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic ESPN Dec. 30 12 p.m. TaxSlayer Bowl ESPN Dec. 30 12:30 p.m. AutoZone Liberty Bowl ABC Dec. 30 4 p.m. PlayStation Fiesta Bowl ESPN Dec. 30 8 p.m. Capital One Orange Bowl ESPN Jan. 1 12 p.m. Outback Bowl ESPN2 Jan. 1 12:30 p.m. Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl ESPN Jan. 1 1 p.m. Citrus Bowl ABC Jan. 1 5 p.m. College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game ESPN Jan. 1 8:45 p.m. College Football Playoff Semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl ESPN Jan. 8 8 p.m. College Football Playoff National Championship ESPN Source: ESPN

The Clemson Tigers enter the 2017 season as defending champions after they beat the Alabama Crimson Tide for the national championship.

Repeating the feat will be difficult. The Tigers have to replace leading passer Deshaun Watson, leading rusher Wayne Gallman and leading receiver Mike Williams. Clemson sits seventh in ESPN's preseason Football Power Index.

Anything less than a national title will be a disappointment for Alabama, which reloads on the recruiting trail every year. Head coach Nick Saban assembled the No. 1 class in 2017 on Scout, the second year in a row the Crimson Tide have topped the team rankings.

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Even with Brian Daboll facing an adjustment period in his first year as Alabama's offensive coordinator, the Tide should be even more potent with quarterback Jalen Hurts and the running back duo of Damien Harris and Bo Scarbrough all returning.

Speaking of coordinators, the Ohio State Buckeyes made one of the best assistant hires during the winter when they brought former Indiana Hoosiers head coach Kevin Wilson into the fold.

Wilson worked wonders with the Oklahoma Sooners offense and had Indiana punching above its weight before his departure. Wilson should be able to get the most out of quarterback J.T. Barrett, and if the Buckeyes offense is firing on all cylinders, Ohio State is one of the most balanced teams in FBS.

The Sooners, Florida State Seminoles, Auburn Tigers, LSU Tigers, Penn State Nittany Lions, Washington Huskies and USC Trojans will be among the others harboring national championship dreams heading into the 2017 campaign.