The final battle of the season is set. Bowl season has officially come to an end.

This year’s round of games was more limited than past extravaganzas, with teams ending their seasons early instead of accepting bowl invites, contests getting canceled, and the usual chaos we’ve come to expect in 2020.

Still, the entertainment of the final few weeks of college football was in full force-- seemingly in everything except the College Football Playoff.

It was an up-and-down bowl season for the Big Ten, Florida was manhandled on the national stage, and Cincinnati was oh-so-close to bringing home its much-anticipated marquee win.

Let’s take a gander at a few of the most meaningful games (not involving Dabo Swinney) from this year’s bowl festivities in the final edition of Around the NCAA.

One week until a champion is crowned.

In what appeared to be a glorified practice for Nick Saban and his team, No. 1 Alabama took down an over-matched No. 4 Notre Dame team in the Rose Bowl, 31-14.

The game was neither as close as the final score appears nor in the location one might expect. It was moved to Dallas after California protocol prohibited any family of the teams from attending.

It was about as uneventful a Playoff game as we've ever seen. Notre Dame played at a snail’s pace, failing to capitalize on chances given, while Alabama piled it on early and coasted through the second half.

Mac Jones threw for 297 yards and four touchdowns, Najee Harris ran for 125 yards (and one beautiful hurdle) on just 15 carries, and DeVonta Smith was spectacular again, catching seven passes for 130 yards and three scores.

Notre Dame had nowhere near the level of talent of its opponents at nearly every position. Ian Book posted 284 yards of offense and one touchdown in his final game for the Irish but failed to match Alabama's scoring output.

“Today was about making the plays,” Notre Dame head coach Brian Kelly said. “They made them on the perimeter. Their skill players showed up today as they have all year.”

Alabama (12-0) travels to Miami to take on No. 3 Ohio State in the CFP National Championship on Jan. 11. Notre Dame drops its eighth-straight New Year’s Six bowl game and ends its season with two straight blowout losses.

Speaking of a game that was over before the second quarter started-- No. 6 Oklahoma annihilated No. 7 Florida in the Cotton Bowl, leading wire-to-wire in a 55-20 dismantling.

Up 17-0 before the halfway point of the first period, the Sooners had plenty of breathing room throughout.

Florida would come as close as 17-13 with 6:05 remaining in the first half, but Spencer Rattler and company scored the next 38 points to take a 55-13 lead.

Rattler completed only 14 passes but registered 247 yards and three touchdowns through the air. Both the freshman quarterback and his Oklahoma team have looked mighty dangerous following an 0-2 start in the Big 12.

“I feel like this win specifically is going to get us going into next year,” Rattler said. “This is a game we wanted to come out here, and coach Riley said we want to make a statement.”

Just before he placed his name in the NFL Draft, Florida quarterback Kyle Trask sent his collegiate career out with a clunker, completing 16-of-28 passes for 158 yards, zero touchdowns, and three interceptions.

To be fair, Trask was missing a huge chunk of his normal receiving corps and Florida was shorthanded all around. But it was still an embarrassing performance for a team that stayed toe-to-toe with Alabama in the SEC Championship.

Rhamondre Stevenson, Marcus Major, and Seth McGowan combined for 369 yards rushing on just 28 carries for the Sooners, which put up 684 total yards of offense.

The Gators end an inconsistent season at 8-4. Oklahoma picked up its seventh-consecutive win on the year to finish its campaign 9-2.

After an undefeated season and countless cries for CFP consideration, No. 8 Cincinnati crumbled to the turf in a 24-21 loss to No. 9 Georgia in the Peach Bowl.

Up 21-10 entering the fourth quarter, the Bearcats appeared in control. They wouldn’t score again.

On its four drives in the final frame, Georgia went touchdown, field goal, punt, field goal. Cincinnati fumbled once in the fourth quarter, punted three times, and gave up a safety on the final play of the game.

It wasn't a great showing in the clutch from Luke Fickell and his team in their biggest game of the season.

Following a questionable third-and-two pass from the Bearcats with 1:34 remaining in a one-point game, Georgia took possession and quickly drove to the Cincinnati 36-yard line.

Kicker Jack Podlesny played hero, essentially ending the game with a 53-yard field goal to make the score 22-21 with three seconds remaining.

Georgia out-gained Cincinnati 449-305 in this game. Quarterback J.T. Daniels threw for 392 yards and one touchdown, and the Bulldogs defense sacked Desmond Ridder eight times.

It was a tragedy of massive proportions for this previously-undefeated Cincinnati team.

“We’re not there yet,” Fickell said. “That’s what keeps motivating you, and I think that there’s a lot of things we’re going to take from this that we know we can do.”

After Daniels took over at QB, Georgia appeared to become one of the best teams in the SEC, finishing the year at 8-2. Cincinnati will be back and hungry for more come next season after a near-perfect 2020 campaign.

Indiana and Northwestern, the Big Ten’s other two ranked bowl participants, ended their seasons with a mixed bag of results.

On the positive side, No. 14 Northwestern sent defensive coordinator Mike Hankwitz to retirement in style, taking down Auburn 35-19 in a Citrus Bowl it controlled throughout.

The Wildcats held Auburn to 361 yards and dominated the time of possession in this game.

“There’s a lot to be thankful for — our seniors, to Hank and our players down here,” Northwestern head coach Pat Fitzgerald said.

Peyton Ramsey threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns for Northwestern, which also rushed for 166 yards and a pair of scores.

Auburn finishes its season 6-5 after firing head coach Gus Malzahn before this game. Northwestern leaves 2020 as one of the biggest surprises of the season, ending up 7-2.

Elsewhere, No. 11 Indiana could not back up all of the talk about it being the true Big Ten East champion, falling 26-20 to Ole Miss in the Outback Bowl.

Jack Tuttle struggled to generate offense for the Hoosiers, completing 26 passes for 201 yards and an interception. Stevie Scott ended his season with a 99-yard, two-score afternoon on the ground for Indiana.

Ole Miss was too much to handle through the air, however, throwing for 346 yards and two touchdowns in the win.

“I’m disappointed for our players,” Indiana head coach Tom Allen said. “They have been through so much, sacrificed so much and worked hard.”

Indiana is still certainly on an upward trajectory in the Big Ten, finishing the 2020 season with six wins. Ole Miss made it to .500 with the bowl victory, ending a tough SEC slate at 5-5.

That was what went down around college football’s postseason.

It was a strange and sometimes unpleasant ride, but football persevered.

Buckle up for Alabama-Ohio State in Miami.