College football bowl projections for Week 7 of the 2016 season. After yet another crazy weekend, here's how the postseason could shake out.
College football bowl projections for Week 7 of the 2016 season. After yet another wacky weekend, here’s how the postseason could shake out.
Week 6 of the college football season is almost in the books, and once again we saw games play out that will have a direct influence on the College Football Playoff race as well as other major bowl games.
We won’t ever know how much consideration Houston would have received from the selection committee for a CFP bid because the Cougars were knocked off by AAC foe Navy. Now, Tom Herman’s team is going to have to fight other Group of Five squads such as Boise State and Western Michigan for a New Year’s Six spot. It will be difficult for the Cougars to even play for their conference title, but I am still projecting Houston to make a NY6 game because there is plenty of football left to be played. But Saturday was certainly a tough blow for the Cougars.
Notre Dame, meanwhile, is in great danger of not even making a bowl game after its loss to NC State. The Fighting Irish dropped to 2-4 with a loss in Raleigh, and the schedule only gets tougher as the weeks progress.
Where is your favorite team slated to play this postseason?
Note: An asterisk (*) denotes that the respective league did not have enough teams eligible to fill its bowl slot, thus it went to a team from a different league.
Date: Dec. 17
Location: Orlando, Florida
Tie-ins: AAC/Sun Belt
Cure Bowl Projection: East Carolina (AAC) vs. Arkansas State (Sun Belt)
Date: Dec. 17
Location: Las Vegas, Nevada
Tie-ins: Mountain West/Pac-12
Las Vegas Bowl Projection: Boise State (MW) vs. Arizona (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 17
Location: Montgomery, Alabama
Tie-ins: MAC/Sun Belt
Camellia Bowl Projection: Akron (MAC) vs. Appalachian State (Sun Belt)
Date: Dec. 17
Location: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Tie-ins: Conference USA/Mountain West
New Mexico Bowl Projection: Western Kentucky (C-USA) vs. UNLV (MW)
Date: Dec. 17
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Tie-ins: Conference USA/Sun Belt
New Orleans Bowl Projection: Louisiana Tech (C-USA) vs. Georgia Southern (Sun Belt)
Date: Dec. 19
Location: Miami, Florida
Tie-ins: AAC/MAC
Miami Beach Bowl Projection: Memphis (AAC) vs. Central Michigan (MAC)
Date: Dec. 20
Location: Boca Raton, Florida
Tie-ins: AAC/Conference USA
Boca Raton Bowl Projection: Tulsa (AAC) vs. Old Dominion (C-USA)
Date: Dec. 21
Location: San Diego, California
Tie-ins: MAC/Mountain West/BYU (BYU tied to bowl if not in CFP)
Poinsettia Bowl Projection: BYU vs. San Diego State (MW)
Date: Dec. 22
Location: Boise, Idaho
Tie-ins: MAC/Mountain West
Idaho Potato Bowl Projection: Ohio (MAC) vs. Air Force (MW)
Date: Dec. 23
Location: Nassau, Bahamas
Tie-ins: AAC/MAC
Bahamas Bowl Projection: UCF (AAC) vs. Toledo (MAC)
Date: Dec. 23
Location: Fort Worth, Texas
Tie-ins: AAC/Big 12/Navy (automatically takes spot if eligible)
Armed Forces Bowl Projection: West Virginia (Big 12) vs. Navy
Date: Dec. 23
Location: Mobile, Alabama
Tie-ins: MAC/Sun Belt
Dollar General Bowl Projection: Western Michigan (MAC) vs. Troy (Sun Belt)
Date: Dec. 24
Location: Honolulu, Hawaii
Tie-ins: Conference USA/Mountain West
Hawaii Bowl Projection: Middle Tennessee (C-USA) vs. Utah State (MW)
Date: Dec. 26
Location: Detroit, Michigan
Tie-ins: ACC/Big Ten
Quick Lane Bowl Projection: Georgia Tech (ACC) vs. Indiana (Big Ten)
Date: Dec. 26
Location: St. Petersburg, Florida
Tie-ins: ACC/AAC
St. Petersburg Bowl Projection: South Alabama* (Sun Belt) vs. Temple (AAC)
Date: Dec. 26
Location: Shreveport, Louisiana
Tie-ins: ACC/SEC
Independence Bowl Projection: Wake Forest (ACC) vs. Colorado* (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 27
Location: Annapolis, Maryland
Tie-ins: ACC/AAC
Military Bowl Projection: Pittsburgh (ACC) vs. Cincinnati (AAC)
Date: Dec. 27
Location: San Diego, California
Tie-ins: Big Ten/Pac-12
Holiday Bowl Projection: Minnesota (Big Ten) vs. Arizona State (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 27
Location: Dallas, Texas
Tie-ins: Big Ten/Conference USA
Heart of Dallas Bowl Projection: Northwestern (Big Ten) vs. Southern Miss (C-USA)
Date: Dec. 27
Location: Tempe, Arizona
Tie-ins: Big 12/Pac-12
Cactus Bowl Projection: Texas (Big 12) vs. USC (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 28
Location: Houston, Texas
Tie-ins: Big 12/SEC
Texas Bowl Projection: Baylor (Big 12) vs. Arkansas (SEC)
Date: Dec. 28
Location: Orlando, Florida
Tie-ins: ACC/Big 12
Russell Athletic Bowl Projection: Miami (ACC) vs. TCU (Big 12)
Date: Dec. 28
Location: New York, New York
Tie-ins: ACC/Big Ten
Pinstripe Bowl Projection: NC State (ACC) vs. Maryland (Big Ten)
Date: Dec. 28
Location: Santa Clara, California
Tie-ins: Big Ten/Pac-12
Foster Farms Bowl Projection: Penn State (Big Ten) vs. UCLA (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 29
Location: Birmingham, Alabama
Tie-ins: AAC/SEC
Birmingham Bowl Projection: USF (AAC) vs. Missouri (SEC)
Date: Dec. 29
Location: Charlotte, North Carolina
Tie-ins: ACC/SEC
Belk Bowl Projection: Virginia Tech (ACC) vs. Auburn (SEC)
Date: Dec. 29
Location: San Antonio, Texas
Tie-ins: Big 12/Pac-12
Alamo Bowl Projection: Oklahoma State (Big 12) vs. Stanford (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 30
Location: Tucson, Arizona
Tie-ins: Mountain West/Sun Belt
Arizona Bowl Projection: Colorado State (MW) vs. Louisiana-Lafayette (Sun Belt)
Date: Dec. 30
Location: El Paso, Texas
Tie-ins: ACC/Pac-12
Sun Bowl Projection: North Carolina (ACC) vs. Oregon (Pac-12)
Date: Dec. 30
Location: Memphis, Tennessee
Tie-ins: Big 12/SEC
Liberty Bowl Projection: Texas Tech (Big 12) vs. Mississippi State (SEC)
Date: Dec. 31
Location: Nashville, Tennessee
Tie-ins: ACC/Big Ten vs. SEC
Music City Bowl Projection: Iowa (Big Ten) vs. Georgia (SEC)
Date: Dec. 31
Location: Jacksonville, Florida
Tie-ins: ACC/Big Ten vs. SEC
TaxSlayer Bowl Projection: Florida State (ACC) vs. LSU (SEC)
Date: Dec. 31
Location: Orlando, Florida
Tie-ins: ACC/Big Ten vs. SEC
Citrus Bowl Projection: Wisconsin (Big Ten) vs. Tennessee (SEC)
Date: Jan. 2
Location: Tampa, Florida
Tie-ins: Big Ten/SEC
Outback Bowl Projection: Michigan State (Big Ten) vs. Florida (SEC)
Date: Dec. 30
Location: Miami, Florida
Tie-ins: ACC vs. Big Ten/SEC/Notre Dame
Orange Bowl Projection: Louisville (ACC) vs. Nebraska (Big Ten)
Date: Jan. 2
Location: Pasadena, California
Tie-ins: Big Ten/Pac-12
Rose Bowl Projection: Michigan (Big Ten) vs. Utah (Pac-12)
Date: Jan. 2
Location: New Orleans, Louisiana
Tie-ins: Big 12/SEC
Sugar Bowl Projection: Oklahoma (Big 12) vs. Texas A&M (SEC)
Date: Jan. 2
Location: Arlington, Texas
Tie-ins: At-Large/At-Large
Cotton Bowl Projection: Ole Miss (SEC) vs. Houston (AAC)
Date: Dec. 31
Location: Glendale, Arizona
Tie-ins: CFP No. 2/CFP No. 3
Fiesta Bowl Projection: No. 2 Clemson vs. No. 3 Ohio State
The Tigers are finally looking like a complete outfit, and we’ll see how much of a test Florida State can give them when the teams meet in Tallahassee later this month. Dabo Swinney’s squad is finding its rhythm at the right time.
Urban Meyer’s Buckeyes may be young, but they’re as talented as any team in the country. They may face their toughest challenge thus far, though, next week when they play Wisconsin on the road.
Date: Dec. 31
Location: Atlanta, Georgia
Tie-ins: CFP No. 1/CFP No. 4
Peach Bowl Projection: No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 4 Washington
The Crimson Tide are getting strong play from quarterback Jalen Hurts, whose performances are far exceeding the expectations for a true freshman. After Saturday’s win over Arkansas, Alabama now has 55 non-offensive touchdowns in Nick Saban’s nine-plus seasons at the school.
The Huskies are the best out West, and they finally ended their 12-game skid to Oregon in a big way. Chris Petersen’s team returns home for a bye next week before hosting Oregon State on Oct. 22.
Date: Jan. 9
Location: Tampa, FL
Tie-ins: Semifinal winners
Championship Game Projection: No. 1 Alabama vs. No. 2 Clemson