Bowl projection roundup: Is Notre Dame vs. LSU still possible?
Believe it or not, Alabama’s upset over Georgia on Saturday in the Southeastern Conference Championship affected Notre Dame. It made it unlikely that the Irish will get a shot at their former head coach, Brian Kelly.
Before championship weekend, Notre Dame was widely expected to face LSU in the ReliaQuest Bowl at Noon ET on Jan. 1 in Tampa, Fla. Ohio State was expected to be the highest-ranked Big Ten or SEC team outside the College Football Playoff, which would delete the Big Ten’s right to place a team in the ReliaQuest Bowl. Its spot, in that scenario, would go to the ACC or Notre Dame.
However, because Alabama beat Georgia, the SEC is expected to take that Orange Bowl spot. If Alabama is the first team out of the playoff or the Crimson Tide makes the playoff and Georgia does not fall behind Ohio State, that would happen. In that case, a Big Ten team would face an SEC team in the ReliaQuest Bowl.
“The ripple effect of Georgia’s loss also caused us to revise our entire ACC and Big Ten bowl lineups,” The Athletic’s Stewart Mandel and Scott Dochterman wrote. “That’s because the Big Ten would reclaim its spot in the ReliaQuest Bowl if it doesn’t place a team in the Orange Bowl, bumping every ACC team beneath that down a spot and every Big Ten team up a spot.”
Action Network’s Brett McMurphy agreed.
Goodbye, Brian Kelly revenge game.
With that in mind, here are the experts’ final bowl projections before the College Football Playoff Committee announces the final four and the remaining games start trickling out on Sunday.
The Athletic (Stewart Mandel and Scott Dochterman)
Projection: Holiday Bowl (8 p.m. ET on Dec. 27 at Petco Park in San Diego, Calif.) vs. Oregon State
Oregon State is in flux, with its head coach leaving for Michigan State and its quarterback entering the transfer portal. The Beavers are more than just Jonathan Smith and D.J. Uiagalelei, but they’re certainly in a tough spot.
San Diego would be a welcome destination for Notre Dame players and fans alike.
Source: College football bowl projections: Alabama, FSU in the Playoff, Georgia, Texas out
ESPN (Mark Schlabach)
Projection: Pop-Tarts Bowl (5:45 p.m. ET on Dec. 28 at Camping World Stadium in Orlando, Fla.) vs. Kansas State
The inaugural Pop-Tarts Bowl — formerly Cheez-It Bowl and Camping World Bowl — will be historic. It will be the first-ever bowl game with an edible mascot.
According to The Athletic’s Nicole Auerbach, the winning team will take a bite of the mascot, which will be a very large Pop-Tart, after the game. I know there’s a lot of talk these days about bowl games being ”meaningless,” but if that’s not motivation, I don’t know what is.
Source: College football bowl projections: Matchups after conference title games
CBS (Jerry Palm)
Projection: Pop-Tarts Bowl vs. Oklahoma State
To partake in this new tradition, Notre Dame will have to play a football game first. The Big 12 is the Pop-Tarts Bowl’s other conference tie-in, and Oklahoma State and Kansas State are two likely opponents.
The Cowboys are 9-4, coming off a blowout loss to Texas in the Big 12 Championship. The Wildcats are 8-4 and they have one of the offensive coordinators Notre Dame coveted last year, Collin Klein. But starting quarterback Will Howard entered the transfer portal earlier this week.
Source: CBS Sports Bowl Expert Jerry Palm projects the matchups for every bowl game
Action Network (Brett McMurphy)
Projection: Pop-Tarts Bowl vs. Kansas State
It looks like Notre Dame might be going to Disney World.
Source: Updated Bowl Game Projections: Brett McMurphy’s New Week 14 College Football Bowl Predictions
