The New Year's Day parade with Grand Marshal Magic Johnson is followed by the 2026 Rose Bowl Game between Indiana and Alabama.

The Rose Bowl 2026 airs on Thursday, January 1, 2026, at 4 p.m. ET on ESPN. If you don’t have cable, you can still catch the game through streaming services that carry ESPN and offer free trials.

Rain will be likely on New Year’s Day. Showers are very likely Thursday morning with scattered showers possible for the second round of the College Football Playoff. Temperatures will remain cool in the upper 50s Thursday morning with temperatures warming into the lower 60s by kickoff.

College football bowl games are a sports staple every holiday season. Learn more about their evolution since the first Rose Bowl now.

The Rose Bowl Game will begin an hour earlier this year, a change that was long in the making as College Football Playoff expands.

The start time of the Rose Bowl game is famous for its sunset on the San Gabriel mountains going into the fourth quarter. But it may not be visible for IU's game.

From paid players to the playoff structure, the changes in college football mean big shifts for the Tournament of Roses, which has long enjoyed a measure of control over the revenue that bowl

It’s not looking like too heavy of a storm, but some time after the clock chimes in the new year, light rain is expected to move in, and it will get heavier during New Year’s Day, with likely a half to 1 inch expected in this storm, said NWS Meteorologist David Gomberg.

Alabama Crimson Tide vs Indiana Hoosiers picks, predictions, odds, win probabilities for College Football Playoff Orange Bowl game Jan. 1. Who wins?

UCLA and SoFi Stadium officials discussed detailed terms for the Bruins playing their home games at the Inglewood venue in 2024, according to court records.