Bowl Projections
BCS Title Game (vs. Oklahoma State): LSU – The Tigers are #1 and undefeated, they will be in New Orleans if they continue to win.
Sugar Bowl (vs. Houston): Alabama – The Tide could possibly force a rematch if Oklahoma State loses, but since they play Oklahoma in Stillwater I’ll assume they go undefeated and Bama lands here.
Capitol One (vs. Wisconsin): Georgia – If UGA beats Georgia Tech in Atlanta they will end up here, if not they may go to the Outback Bowl. This is, of course, assuming they lose in the SEC Championship Game. If they are able to win the SEC Championship they will go to the Sugar Bowl and force either Bama or LSU to the Capitol One. If they win the SEC and Oklahoma State loses then the SEC would probably get 3 teams in the BCS (Bama vs. LSU in BCS Title) and everyone would move up in the bowl pecking order.
Cotton Bowl (vs. Kansas State): Arkansas – If the Hogs lose at LSU then they land here. How about this scenario: 1. Arkansas beats LSU 2. Alabama wins the West by virtue of head to head between two top SEC teams in BCS 3. Georgia beats Alabama in SEC Championship and Arkansas ends up in BCS Title Game vs. Oklahoma State OR 4. Okie State loses to Oklahoma and Arkansas plays LSU or Oregon in BCS Title Game.
Outback Bowl (vs. Michigan State): South Carolina – If USC can beat Clemson at home and Georgia loses to GT then the Gamecocks could be in the Capitol One bowl…otherwise they land in Tampa.
Chick-Fil-A Bowl (vs. Virginia Tech): Auburn – The records fall off quite a bit after USC, but Auburn is likely to be the only 7-5 team.
Gator Bowl (vs. Penn State): Florida – The Gators end their worst season in many years with a trip to Jacksonville. This is an easy choice for the Gator Bowl…the University of Florida is the ‘Gators’ and their campus is about 70 miles away.
Music City Bowl (vs. Miami (FL): Mississippi State – If Tennessee is available, they might pick them…but UT came there last year and their fans aren’t crazy about a 6-6 season, while MSU fans are happy to go bowling and travel well. Even though Vanderbilt seems like a logical choice being in Nashville, their fans can’t even fill up their own 40,000 seat stadium. Plus Music City Bowl representatives were in Starkville for the Alabama game last weekend and were very high on the Dawgs.
Liberty Bowl (vs. Southern Miss): Tennessee – This is only if the Vols can get to 6-6…they have to beat Vandy this week. This would give UT fans in Memphis a chance to see the team in person, and a down year for them is still a better draw than an excellent year from Vanderbilt.
BBVA Compass Bowl (vs. Louisville): Vanderbilt – If Vandy can beat Tennessee and Wake Forest then they can wind up in the Gator Bowl and push everyone else down a rung. But if they are 6-6 then they will get last choice since their fans don’t show up.
Best Case Scenario for MSU:
1. Beat Arkansas on Saturday
2. Win the Egg Bowl
3. LSU and Alabama win out
4. Florida State beats Florida in the Swamp
5. Georgia beats LSU in the SEC Championship Game
6. Oklahoma beats Oklahoma State in the Bedlam Series
7. Georgia goes to the Sugar Bowl, LSU vs. Alabama in the BCS Title Game
8. South Carolina goes to the Capitol One Bowl, Arkansas to the Cotton Bowl, Auburn to the Outback Bowl and MSU goes to the Chick-Fil-A Bowl vs. the loser of the ACC Championship Game.