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Bowl Projections After Week 13

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The top part of the puzzle is going to be easy to put together, but trying to
figure out which teams will fill in all the vacant spots is a massive guess.

With Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Minnesota, Nebraska, Old Dominion and East Carolina losing, there won’t be nearly enough bowl eligible teams.

The NCAA will likely make an allowance based on the Academic Progress Report (APR). So here’s the deal, in order, these are the 5-7 teams with the highest APR. Nebraska, Missouri, Kansas State (if it doesn’t beat West Virginia next week), Minnesota, San Jose State, Illinois, Rice. So, in theory, these teams would fill the available slots in that order.

So
keeping the geographic challenges in mind, and looking at what the bowl people
are going to want to try putting together, here we go …  

College Football Playoff

College Football Playoff Championship

Monday, January 11, ESPN
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ
Playoff Winner vs. Playoff Winner
Projection: Michigan State vs. Alabama

Goodyear Cotton Bowl

College Football Playoff Semifinal
Thursday, December 31, 4:00 or 8:00 pm ET, ESPN
AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
Playoff vs. Playoff
Projection: Alabama vs. Oklahoma

Will Alabama complain if it’s No. 2 and it has to play in Arlington against an
Oklahoma team with a fan base that’ll invade Jerry World? It’ll be just fine.

Capital One Orange Bowl

College Football Playoff Semifinal
Thursday, December 31, 4:00 or 8:00 pm ET, ESPN
Sun Life Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL
Playoff vs. Playoff
Projection: Clemson vs. Michigan State

If Iowa wins the Big Ten championship, it’ll be either No. 2 or 3. If Michigan
State wins – as projected – it’ll be No. 4. If Clemson gets the No. 1 spot,
it’ll get the break of playing in the Orange. It’s not that much closer, but
it’s a few hundred miles closer than Arlington.

New Year’s Six Bowls

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl

Thursday, December 31, 12:00 pm ET, ESPN
Georgia Dome, Atlanta, GA
CFP Top 12 vs. CFP Top 12
Projection: North Carolina vs. Notre Dame

Fiesta Bowl

Friday, January 1, 1:00 pm ET, ESPN
University of Phoenix Stadium, Glendale, AZ
CFP Top 12 vs. CFP Top 12
Projection: Houston vs. Ohio State  

Rose Bowl Game presented by Northwestern Mutual

Friday, January 1, 5:00 pm ET, ESPN
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Projection: Iowa vs. Stanford  

Allstate Sugar Bowl

Friday, January 1, 8:30 pm ET, ESPN

Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection: Baylor vs. Florida

2015-2016 Bowl Schedule

AutoNation Cure Bowl

Saturday, December 19, 12:00 pm ET, CBSSN
Citrus Bowl Stadium, Orlando, FL
American vs. Sun Belt
Projection: Connecticut vs. California*
*No Sun Belt
team projected available

Gildan New Mexico Bowl

Saturday, December 19, 2:00 pm ET, ESPN
University Stadium, Albuquerque, NM
Conference USA vs. Mountain West
Projection: Arizona* vs. New Mexico
*No Conference USA team available

Royal Purple Las Vegas Bowl

Saturday, December 19, 3:30 pm ET, ABC
Sam Boyd Stadium, Las Vegas, NV
BYU or Mountain West vs. Pac-12
Projection: BYU vs. Utah

Raycom Media Camellia Bowl

Saturday, December 19, 5:30 pm ET, ESPN
Cramton Bowl, Montgomery, AL
MAC vs. Sun Belt
Projection: Ohio vs. Georgia Southern  

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl

Saturday, December 19, 9:00 ET, ESPN
Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Conference USA vs. Sun Belt
Projection: Louisiana Tech vs. Arkansas State

Miami Beach Bowl

Monday, December 21, 2:30 pm ET, ESPN
Marlins Park, Miami, FL
American Athletic vs. Conference USA
Projection: Memphis vs. WKU

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl

Tuesday, December 22, 3:30 pm ET, ESPN
Bronco Stadium, Boise, ID
MAC vs. Mountain West
Projection: Akron vs. Boise State

Boca Raton Bowl

Tuesday, December 22, 7:00 pm ET, ESPN
FAU Stadium, Boca Raton, FL
American Athletic vs. MAC
Projection: Temple vs. Toledo

San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl

Wednesday, December 23, 4:30 pm ET, ESPN
Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
MAC vs. Mountain West
Projection: Northern Illinois vs. San Diego State

GoDaddy Bowl

Wednesday, December 23, 8:00 pm ET, ESPN
Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile, AL
MAC vs. Sun Belt
Projection: Bowling Green vs. Appalchian State

Popeyes Bahamas Bowl

Thursday, December 24, 12:00 pm ET, ESPN
Thomas Robinson Stadium, Nassau, Bahamas
Conference USA vs. MAC
Projection: Middle Tennessee vs. Western Michigan

Hawai’i Bowl

Thursday, December 24, 8:00 pm ET, ESPN
Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, HI
American Athletic vs. Mountain West or BYU
Projection: Cincinnati vs. Utah State

St. Petersburg Bowl

Saturday, December 26, 11:00 am ET, ESPN
Tropicana Field, St. Petersburg, FL
American Athletic vs. Conference USA
Projection: South Florida vs. Marshall

Hyundai Sun Bowl

Saturday, December 26, 2:00 pm ET, CBS
Sun Bowl Stadium, El Paso, TX
ACC or Notre Dame vs. Pac-12
Projection: Pitt vs. UCLA

Zaxby’s Heart of Dallas Bowl

Saturday, December 26, 2:20 pm ET, ESPN
Cotton Bowl Stadium, Dallas, TX
Big 12 vs. Conference USA
Projection: Colorado State* vs. Southern Miss
*No Big 12 team projected available.  

New Era Pinstripe Bowl

Saturday, December 26, 3:30 pm, ABC
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
ACC or Notre Dame vs. Big Ten
Projection: Miami vs. Indiana

Independence Bowl

Saturday, December 26, 5:35 pm ET, ESPN
Independence Stadium, Shreveport, LA
ACC or Notre Dame vs. SEC
Projection: Duke vs. LSU

Foster Farms Bowl

Saturday, December 26, 9:15 pm ET, ESPN
Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Projection: Nebraska* vs. Washington State

*Nebraska a guess to get in on APR

Military Bowl presented by Northrop Grumman

Monday, December 28, 2:30 pm, ESPN
Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
ACC or Notre Dame vs. American Athletic
Projection: Virginia Tech vs. Navy

Quick Lane Bowl

Monday, December 28, 5:00 pm, ESPN2
Ford Field, Detroit, MI
ACC or Notre Dame vs. Big Ten
Projection: Central Michigan* vs. Minnesota*

*No ACC or Big Ten team available. Minnesota a
guess to get in on exception

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl

Tuesday, December 29, 2:00 pm ET, ESPN
Amon G. Carter Stadium, Fort Worth, TX
Big Ten vs. Mountain West
Projection: Washington* vs. Air Force

*No Big Ten team projected available

Russell Athletic Bowl

Tuesday, December 29, 5:30 pm ET, ESPN
Orlando Citrus Bowl, Orlando, FL
ACC or Notre Dame vs. Big 12
Projection: Florida State vs. TCU

NOVA Home Loans Arizona Bowl

Tuesday, December 29, 7:30 pm ET, Campus Insiders
Arizona Stadium, Tucson, AZ
Conference USA vs. Mountain West (Sun Belt alternative)
Projection: Rice* vs. Nevada

*No Conference USA or Sun Belt team projected available, but exception
could be made for Rice

AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl

Tuesday, December 29, 9:00 pm ET, ESPN
NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection: Texas Tech vs. Texas A&M

Birmingham Bowl

Wednesday, December 30, 12:00 pm ET, ESPN
Legion Field, Birmingham, AL
American Athletic vs. SEC
Projection: Tulsa vs. Missouri*

*Missouri projected to get in on APR

Belk Bowl

Wednesday, December 30, 3:30 pm ET, ESPN
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
ACC or Notre Dame vs. SEC
Projection: NC State vs. Auburn

Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl

Wednesday, December 30, 7:00 pm ET, ESPN
LP Field, Nashville, TN
ACC or Notre Dame or Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Louisville vs. Arkansas

National University Holiday Bowl

Wednesday, December 30, 10:30 pm ET, ESPN
Qualcomm Stadium, San Diego, CA
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Projection: Wisconsin vs. USC

Outback Bowl

Friday, January 1, 12:00 pm ET, ESPN2
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Michigan vs. Mississippi State

Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl

Friday, January 1, 12:00 pm ET, ABC
Orlando Citrus Bowl, Orlando, FL
Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Northwestern vs. Ole Miss

TaxSlayer Bowl

Saturday, January 2, 12:00 pm ET, ESPN
EverBank Field, Jacksonville, FL
ACC or Notre Dame or Big Ten vs. SEC
Projection: Penn State vs. Georgia

AutoZone Liberty Bowl

Saturday, January 2, 3:20 pm ET, ESPN
Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, Memphis, TN
Big 12 vs. SEC
Projection: West Virginia vs. Tennessee

Valero Alamo Bowl

Saturday, January 2, 6:45 pm ET, ESPN
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Projection: Oklahoma State vs. Oregon

Cactus Bowl

Saturday, January 2, 10:15 pm ET, ESPN
Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Projection: Kansas State vs. Arizona State