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    • College football preseason bowl projections: Playoff picks, bowl games and Pac-12 impact
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    College football preseason bowl projections: Playoff picks, bowl games and Pac-12 impact

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    Get ready for a new era in college football, filled with more season-long intrigue than ever before. It will culminate in as many debates in December as it did in 1966, 1997 and 2016.

    In our first attempt at selecting a 12-team College Football Playoff field, it’s clear that teams will be pitted against each other — even teams in the same league. Michigan, Penn State and Iowa are projected to finish the season at 9-3, but none play each other. How do their seasons compare? How do they compare to Kansas State (10-2), Virginia Tech (10-2) or LSU (9-3), and who deserves the final CFP spot? For starters, a predicted loss to Kansas State in the Big 12 title game sends the Wildcats to 10-3, allowing the Wolverines to sneak in.

    We’ve also projected the other 34 bowls, which have become unclear with the dissolution of the Pac-12. Check out our preseason CFP and bowl matchups, which were determined in part by Stewart Mandel’s ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC previews.

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    CFP data

    As before, a committee will select the CFP participants. Starting on November 5 (yes, election night), the committee will publish its rankings each week. The committee will reveal the CFP field and the final top 25 on Sunday, December 8.

    The CFP field consists of the five highest-ranked conference champions and seven at-large teams. The top four conference champions receive a bye in the first round. The lowest-ranked conference champion and the seven at-large teams compete on campus Dec. 20-21. Seeds 5-8 receive seeds 9-12.

    We predict Notre Dame will finish 11-1, with a better record than ACC champion Miami or Big 12 champion Utah, but because the Irish cannot win a conference championship, the fourth-seeded ‘Canes get a bye and the fifth-seeded Irish do not.

    For teams that earn byes, the committee will place them in bowl order, prioritized by historical conference affiliation. In our predictions, the Sugar Bowl will host SEC champion Georgia, as it has in the past. The same goes for Big Ten champion Ohio State in the Rose Bowl.

    The Orange Bowls and Cotton Bowls will host the CFP semi-finals on January 9 and 10 respectively.

    College American Football Playoffs

    Bowl/Play-offs Date Location Team Team Time (ET) Network

    Play-offs

    December 20

    Austin, Texas

    7. Texas (general)

    10. Tennessee (general)

    8:00 p.m.

    ABC/ESPN

    Play-offs

    December 21st

    South Bend, Indiana.

    5. Notre Dame (general)

    12. Memphis (G5)

    Afternoon

    TNT

    Play-offs

    December 21st

    Eugene, Oregon.

    8. Oregon (general)

    9. Ole Miss (general)

    4:00 p.m.

    TNT

    Play-offs

    December 21st

    Tuscaloosa, Alabama.

    6. Alabama (general)

    11. Michigan (general)

    8:00 p.m.

    ABC/ESPN

    Party

    December 31st

    Glendale, Arizona.

    3. Utah (Big 12)

    Alabama-Michigan winner

    7:30 pm

    ESPN

    Peach

    January 1st

    Atlanta

    4. Miami (ACC)

    Winner ND-Memphis

    Afternoon

    ESPN

    Rose

    January 1st

    Pasadena, California

    1. Ohio State (Big Ten)

    Winner Oregon-Ole Miss

    5:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Sugar

    January 1st

    New Orleans

    2. Georgia (SEC)

    Texas-Tennessee Winner

    8:45 pm

    ESPN

    Orange

    January 9th

    Miami, Florida

    Quarter final winner

    Quarter final winner

    7:30 pm

    ESPN

    Cotton

    January 10th

    Arlington, Texas

    Quarter final winner

    Quarter final winner

    7:30 pm

    ESPN

    Championship

    January 20

    Atlanta

    Winner of the semi-final

    Winner of the semi-final

    7:30 pm

    ESPN

    Other bowls

    When it comes to non-CFP bowl games, the realignment has complicated the slotting process. The power conferences have contracts with non-CFP bowls that expire after the 2025 season.

    Over the next two years, the Pac-12’s previous bowls will select from current (Oregon State and Washington State) and former members of the league. Those bowls include the Alamo, Vegas, Holiday, Sun, LA Bowl and Independence. Despite now playing in the Big Ten, 7-5 USC lands in the Pac-12-affiliated Sun Bowl in our predictions.

    Once again, Academic Progress Rate (APR) data will determine which, if any, 5-7 teams qualify for a bowl game. In our lineup, that consists of Minnesota and Stanford.

    Leftover bowls

    Dish Date Location Team Team Time (ET) Network

    Bahamas

    January 4th

    Nassau, Bahamas

    NIU (MAC)

    Jacksonville State (CUSA)

    11 o’clock in the morning

    ESPN2

    Duke’s Mayo

    January 3rd

    Charlotte, North Carolina

    Penn State (Big Ten 4)

    NC State (ACC 5-7)

    7:30 pm

    ESPN

    First aid worker

    January 3rd

    University Park, Texas

    Texas Tech (ESPN)

    UTSA (ESPN)

    4:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Crocodile

    January 2nd

    Jacksonville, Florida.

    Virginia Tech (ACC 2-4)

    LSU (SEC 3-8)

    7:30 pm

    ESPN

    Texas

    December 31st

    Houston

    Iowa State (Big 12 4)

    Oklahoma (SEC 3-8)

    3:30 pm

    ESPN

    Citrus

    December 31st

    Orlando, Florida

    Nebraska (Big Ten 2)

    Texas A&M (SEC 2)

    3:00 p.m.

    ABC

    Sun

    December 31st

    El Paso, Texas

    North Carolina (ACC 5-7)

    USC (Pac-12 5)

    2:00 p.m.

    CBS

    ReliaQuest

    December 31st

    Tampa, Florida.

    Iowa (Big Ten 3)

    Reddish brown (SEC 3-8)

    Afternoon

    ESPN

    Music City

    December 30th

    Nashville, Tennessee

    Wisconsin (Big Ten 5)

    Missouri (SEC 3-8)

    2:30 pm

    ABC

    Independence

    December 28

    Shreveport, Louisiana.

    Army

    Arkansas State* (Pac-12 7)

    9:15 pm

    ESPN

    Alamo

    December 28

    San Antonio, Texas

    Kansas State (Big 12 2)

    Washington St. (Pac-12 2)

    9:15 pm

    ABC

    Military

    December 28

    Annapolis, Maryland.

    East Carolina (AAC)

    Louisville (ACC 8)

    5:45 pm

    ESPN

    Arizona

    December 30th

    Tucson, Arizona.

    UNLV (MWC)

    Miami-Ohio (MAC)

    4:30 pm

    CW

    Pop Tarts

    December 28

    Orlando, Florida

    Kansas (Big 12 3)

    Florida State (ACC 2-4)

    3:30 pm

    ABC

    New Mexico

    December 28

    Albuquerque, New Zealand

    Wyoming (MWC)

    Rice** (ESPN)

    2:15 PM

    ESPN

    Chalk Stripe

    December 28

    Bronx, New York

    Northwest (Big Ten 6)

    Georgia Tech (ACC 5-7)

    Afternoon

    ABC

    Fenway

    December 28

    Boston

    Syracuse (ACC 9)

    Tulane (AAC)

    11 o’clock in the morning

    ESPN

    Vegas

    December 27

    Las Vegas

    Arizona (Pac-12 3)

    Kentucky (SEC 3-8)

    10:30 pm

    ESPN

    Freedom

    December 27

    Memphis, Tennessee

    Oklahoma State (Big 12 5)

    Florida (SEC 3-8)

    7:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Birmingham

    December 27

    Birmingham, Alabama.

    SMU (ESPN)

    UCF (ESPN)

    12/15:30 hrs

    ESPN

    Armed Forces

    December 27

    Fort Worth, Texas

    West Virginia (Big 12 7)

    Air Force (ESPN)

    12/15:30 hrs

    ESPN

    68 companies

    December 26

    Mobile, Ala.

    Texas State (Sun Belt)

    Freedom (CUSA)

    9:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Guaranteed rate

    December 26

    Phoenix

    Rutgers (Big Ten 7)

    TCU (Big 12 6)

    5:45 pm

    ESPN

    Detroit

    December 26

    Detroit

    Minnesota** (Big Ten 8)

    Central Michigan (MAC)

    2:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Hawaii

    December 24

    Honolulu

    Colorado State (MWC)

    FIU (CUSA)

    8:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Idaho potato

    December 23

    Boise, Idaho

    Fresno State (MWC)

    Toledo (MAC)

    2:30 pm

    ESPN

    Myrtle Beach

    December 23

    Myrtle Beach, SC

    USF (ESPN)

    Western Michigan (ESPN)

    11 o’clock in the morning

    ESPN

    Gasparilla

    December 20

    Tampa, Florida.

    Wakebos (ACC)

    Coastal Carolina (ESPN)

    3:30 pm

    ESPN

    Healing

    December 20

    Orlando, Florida

    James Madison (ESPN)

    Ohio (ESPN)

    Afternoon

    ESPN

    New Orleans

    December 19

    New Orleans

    Appalachian State (Sun Belt)

    Western Kentucky (C-USA)

    7:00 p.m.

    ESPN2

    LA-come

    December 18

    Inglewood, California.

    Stanford** (Pac-12 6)

    Boise State (MWC 1)

    9:00 p.m.

    ABC

    Frisco

    December 17

    Frisco, Texas

    Louisiana (ESPN)

    Sam Houston (ESPN)

    9:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Boca Raton

    December 17

    Boca Raton, Florida.

    Marshal (ESPN)

    FAU (ESPN)

    5:30 pm

    ESPN

    Camellia

    December 14

    Montgomery, Alabama.

    Georgia South (ESPN)

    Bowling Green (ESPN)

    9:00 p.m.

    ESPN

    Holiday

    December 27

    San Diego

    Clemson (ACC 2-4)

    Oregon State (Pac-12 4)

    8:00 p.m.

    Fox

    * = Replacement team
    ** = Expected 5-7 team

    (Photo: David Rosenblum/Icon Sportswire via Getty)

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