College Football Bowl Projections: Which Teams Got Screwed and Who'll Be Angry?
As a diehard Boston College fan, I’m used to seeing my team get squeezed out of high-profile bowls. Because our fans don’t travel well and we lack the name recognition of a Notre Dame, we often end up in low-level bowl games.
In 2008 the Eagles went 9-4, including a loss in the ACC Championship Game, yet somehow ended up playing Vanderbilt in the Gaylord Hotels Music City Bowl (how prestigious).
The year before Matt Ryan led the team to a 10-3 record, including an appearance in the ACC title game. Their reward? A matchup against Michigan State in the Champs Sports Bowl.
The list goes on for my beloved Eagles, but they’re not alone. Every year some deserving team gets relegated to a second-rate bowl game, and this season will prove to be no different.
Which teams are most likely to get screwed over? Read on to find out.
Boise State
1 of 9
After losing in heartbreaking fashion on Friday, Boise State not only took themselves out of consideration for the national championship, they took themselves out of the BCS picture altogether.
Now the ninth-ranked Broncos could end up playing the MAC champion in the less than illustrious UDrove Humanitarian Bowl.
With such immense ramifications stemming from last week’s loss to Nevada, you can’t help but feel for Broncos kicker Kyle Brotzman. This situation epitomizes what is wrong with the current bowl system.
Alabama
2 of 9
It’s entirely possible that Arkansas and LSU get overlooked for a BCS bowl in favor of Alabama, but in all likelihood the Crimson Tide will not land a premier bowl game.
At 9-3, ‘Bama ranks 16th in BCS voting and sits in fifth in the SEC behind South Carolina, Auburn, Arkansas and LSU. With close losses to three ranked teams, Alabama had far more talent than a few teams who will sneak into a BCS bowl (Virginia Tech and West Virginia, for example).
After having such high aspirations before the season, Alabama will likely have to settle for either the Chick-fil-A bowl or the Outback Bowl. The best part? A spot in the Outback Bowl could pit them against fellow shaftee Michigan State.
Mississippi State
3 of 9
Despite a 4-4 conference record, the Bulldogs hold the nation's No. 22 ranking and a tie for sixth in the SEC. Their four losses came against Alabama, Arkansas, Auburn and LSU—four of the nation’s elite teams.
Still, they will likely have to settle for a berth in the Music City Bowl against the ACC’s No. 6 team.
Despite such success in the nation’s most competitive conference, they could end up playing a middle of the road team from a very weak ACC (possibly a 6-6 Georgia Tech team that has struggled all season).
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
Michigan State
4 of 9
As mentioned previously, Michigan State looks as if it will land in the Outback Bowl against the No. 3, 4 or 5 team from the SEC (probably Alabama).
If that happens, the Spartans will play a worthy adversary, but it doesn’t compensate for their absence from a BCS bowl game.
Currently fellow Big Ten members Wisconsin and Ohio State are ranked above MSU by the computers, meaning the 11-1 Spartans could be the team to get squeezed. The oddest part about that? The Spartans actually defeated the Badgers 34-24 in their fifth game of the season.
Kirk Cousins has looked fantastic all season, and Edwin Baker has established himself as one of the nation’s top backs, yet Michigan State will count itself amongst the unlucky come bowl season.
LSU
5 of 9
With Auburn a BCS lock and either Arkansas or South Carolina looking like a good bet, the 10-2 Tigers may be up an unpleasant creek without a paddle.
Despite wins against Florida, Alabama and Mississippi State, LSU will likely end up in a second-rate bowl. In fact, in their fourth game of the season they knocked off the very same West Virginia team that could keep them out of a BCS bowl.
They could end up with a bid in the Cotton Bowl against the Big 12’s second-ranked team, but that’s far from ideal for a team that started the season 7-0.
Missouri
6 of 9
At 10-2 overall and 6-2 in the conference, the Tigers tied with Nebraska for the Big 12 North lead.
Unfortunately they lost their matchup against the Cornhuskers in Lincoln and won’t play in the conference championship against Oklahoma. It’s a shame too, because this Missouri team has flown under the radar all season.
Blaine Gabbert may be one of the most underrated quarterbacks in the country, and the Tigers have three backs who run for better than five yards per carry.
With wins over Oklahoma and at Texas A&M, the Alamo, Holiday or Insight Bowl seems like a poor reward for a terrific season.
South Carolina
7 of 9
Let’s assume for a second that the Gamecocks get dropped by Auburn (after all, the Tigers are five-point favorites). That loss could bump SC out of the Top 25 and would push the ‘Cocks to a 9-4 record and push Steve Spurrier's team into the SEC’s No. 5 spot.
That would mean despite playing in the SEC championship, South Carolina could face Florida State in the Chick-fil-A Bowl. Not a terrible matchup, but certainly not the bowl game they would prefer.
Oklahoma State / Texas A&M
8 of 9
These two teams face very similar conundrums. Both teams sit on 6-2 conference records, although the Cowboys sport a 10-2 record to the Aggies' 9-3.
Based on what has happened in the Big 12 this season, Missouri is most deserving of the top non-BCS bowl, meaning State and A&M could get the shaft.
Oklahoma State has one of the most exciting offenses in the country, led by Big 12 player of the year Justin Blackmon (102 catches, 1,665 yards and the most fun you can have watching television without needing a credit card).
Assuming the Cowboys get the conference's fourth best bowl, they would play the likes of Penn State in Insight Bowl, while the Aggies would take on the Pac-10’s No. 4 team (right now only Oregon, Stanford and Arizona are bowl eligible.)
If Washington defeats in-state rival Washington State, the supremely talented Aggies would play the 6-6 Huskies (the same team that has allowed 15 more touchdowns than they have scored). Absolutely tragic.
TCU
9 of 9
Some teams will be screwed over. Other teams will receive an undeserving bowl bid. Then there are the teams that will be undeservingly angry—and this year that’s TCU.
Every season some non-BCS conference school complains when it goes undefeated but doesn’t get a shot to play for the national championship. This year that team is the Big East-bound Horned Frogs.
Assuming Auburn and Oregon win this weekend, TCU will have to settle for another BCS bowl game. For me that’s perfect justice. TCU defeated an overrated Utah team and a 5-6 Oregon State team for their most impressive wins of the season.
In order for a team with such a low strength of schedule to get a shot at the title, there can’t be any undefeated teams, and you need to schedule at least one marquee matchup. Boise State did that this season with Virginia Tech, and even that wasn’t enough in the minds of many fans.
Hopefully they’re not as bitter as the 2008-2009 Utah team that claimed the BCS violated antitrust laws, but I suspect a laundry list of complaints will come out of Texas.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
