Instead of a head coaching carousel in college football this year, it looks like we’ll have a bowl game carousel instead.
As of Tuesday morning, there officially have been six bowl cancelations: Bahamas, Fenway, Hawaii, Holiday, Redbox and Quick Lane. Sources told Stadium they also expect the Las Vegas Bowl to be canceled and it is “iffy” that the Los Angeles Bowl will debut this season.
What else? Oh yeah, the Montgomery Bowl was created for this season only – to replace the Fenway Bowl, which has never been played – and the New Mexico Bowl won’t be played in New Mexico. Got that straight? Me neither. But if you’ve ever wanted to host a bowl game – and don’t live in New Mexico – contact ESPN to inquire about hosting this year’s New Mexico Bowl.
With those bowl additions and subtractions, we will plod along with this week’s bowl projections. We are not including the Las Vegas Bowl until an official announcement is made as to whether the game will be played (it won’t be).
College Football Playoff
Championship – Jan. 10 (CFP semifinal winners)
Projection: Alabama vs. Ohio State
Semifinals
Sugar Bowl – Jan. 1 (CFP semifinal)
Projection: Alabama (CFP No. 1) vs. Oregon (CFP No. 4)
Rose Bowl – Jan. 1 (CFP semifinal)
Projection: Ohio State (CFP No. 2) vs. Clemson (CFP No. 3)
New Year’s 6 Bowls
Orange Bowl – Jan. 2 (ACC vs. SEC/Big Ten)
Projection: Notre Dame vs. Texas A&M
Fiesta Bowl – Jan. 2 (at-large vs. at-large)
Projection: USC vs. Wisconsin
Peach Bowl – Jan. 1 (at-large vs. at-large)
Projection: Georgia vs. Cincinnati*
Cotton Bowl – Dec. 30 (at-large vs. at-large)
Projection: Oklahoma State vs. Florida
Other Bowls
Alamo Bowl (Big 12 vs. Pac-12)
Projection: Iowa State vs. Arizona State
Arizona Bowl (MAC vs. Mountain West)
Projection: Toledo vs. San Diego State
Armed Forces Bowl (AAC vs. Big 12)
Projection: Houston vs. TCU
Birmingham Bowl (AAC vs. SEC)
Projection: UCF vs. Ole Miss
Boca Raton Bowl (AAC vs. C-USA/BYU/Liberty/MAC)
Projection: Memphis vs. FAU
Camellia Bowl (MAC vs. Sun Belt)
Projection: Buffalo vs. Troy
Cheez-It Bowl (ACC vs. Big 12)
Projection: Miami vs. Oklahoma
Citrus Bowl (Big Ten vs. SEC)
Projection: Indiana vs. Auburn
Cure Bowl (C-USA vs. Sun Belt)
Projection: Louisiana Tech vs. South Alabama
Duke’s Mayo Bowl (ACC vs. Big Ten)
Projection: North Carolina vs. Penn State
First Responder Bowl (ACC vs. AAC)
Projection: Pitt vs. Tulsa
Frisco Bowl (AAC vs. C-USA)
Projection: SMU vs. UTSA
Gasparilla Bowl (ACC vs. SEC)
Projection: Virginia vs. Missouri
Gator Bowl (ACC vs. SEC)
Projection: Virginia Tech vs. South Carolina
Guaranteed Rate Bowl (Big Ten vs. Big 12)
Projection: Michigan vs. West Virginia
Idaho Potato Bowl (Mountain West vs. BYU/Liberty/MAC)
Projection: Nevada vs. BYU
Independence Bowl (Army vs. Pac-12)
Projection: Army vs. Washington
LendingTree Bowl (MAC/C-USA vs. Sun Belt)
Projection: Central Michigan vs. Appalachian State
Liberty Bowl (Big 12 vs. SEC)
Projection: Texas vs. Arkansas
Los Angeles Bowl (Pac-12 vs. Mountain West)
Projection: Utah vs. Boise State
Military Bowl (ACC vs. AAC)
Projection: Wake Forest vs. Navy
**Montgomery Bowl (Group of Five, Liberty or BYU)
Projection: Liberty vs. UAB
Music City Bowl (Big Ten vs. SEC)
Projection: Michigan vs. Tennessee
Myrtle Beach Bowl (C-USA vs. Sun Belt)
Projection: Marshall vs. Coastal Carolina
New Mexico Bowl (Mountain West vs. C-USA/BYU/Liberty/MAC)
Projection: San Jose State vs. Ball State
New Orleans Bowl (C-USA vs. Sun Belt)
Projection: Charlotte vs. Louisiana
Outback Bowl (Big Ten vs. SEC)
Projection: Northwestern vs. Kentucky
Pinstripe Bowl (ACC vs. Big Ten)
Projection: NC State vs. Purdue
Sun Bowl (ACC vs. Pac-12)
Projection: Boston College vs. Cal
Texas Bowl (Big 12 vs. SEC)
Projection: Kansas State vs. LSU
Bowls that have been canceled this year:
• Bahamas Bowl
• Fenway Bowl
• Hawaii Bowl
• Holiday Bowl
• Redbox Bowl
• Quick Lane Bowl
Teams in bold have already officially accepted bid.
*The highest rated champion from the Group of Five conferences (American, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West and Sun Belt) will be selected to play in either the Cotton, Fiesta or Peach Bowl.
**Replacing Fenway Bowl for this season only.