College Football Bowl Projections: 5 Likely Destinations for Florida Gators
College Football Bowl Projections are still a very fluid thing. With games to be played this week, it is anyone's guess where your favorite team will land.
The Florida Gators' future is still up in the air, but that does not mean we don't have some semblance of where they will most likely head.
The Gators had a lackluster season, and they have only one good bowl game in which they qualify for. If they fail to make it there, you will see that they could drop very far in bowl prestige.
Here is a list of the most possible bowl destinations for your Florida Gators, listed from most probable to least likely. But keep in mind that if their first bowl aspirations are not met, they could very well fall to any of these bowls.
The Gator Bowl: New Year's Day
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After the major bowls take the best of the bunch, the Gator Bowl gets its pick. This bowl annually pits a mediocre SEC darling against a similar Big Ten foe.
This is the best that the Gators can hope for. It is also the most likely. The other teams that could trump Florida are Georgia, Tennessee or Kentucky, who all lost to the Gators.
Potential Opponent: Penn State
Outcome: While the Gators have had a rough go this season. They should be able to take care of the Nittany Lions in their own back yard.
Penn State 28, Florida 35
The Music City Bowl: December 30th
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How far have the Gators fallen out of favor with fans? If Florida is dissed by the bowl committee for the Gator Bowl, then their drop will be extreme.
The next best bowl they could get is the Music City Bowl. They get the next pick after the much more prestigious Gator Bowl. The only issue for Florida here is that the good people of Nashville have other teams they would want to see.
Tennessee or Kentucky would get the call for their proximity to the bowl. Florida could even lose out on this bid.
Potential Opponent: Maryland
Outcome: Florida may be a better squad but the Maryland program has a way of winning the bigger games this season. They will take this one at the very end.
Marylans 24, Florida 20
BBVA Compass Bowl: January 8th
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The Gators better hope that this scenario does not happen, but their fall from grace could drive them to the pit of despair. They very well could play January 8th in the Compass Bowl.
That kind of drop is not what the Gators had in mind when they started the season. It could be worse though.
Potential Opponent: Pittsburgh
Outcome: If their hopes are indeed dashed and they have to play in the Compass Bowl, they will at least get a poor opponent. Pittsburgh can in no way stop the Gators offense. This will be a rough game to watch.
Pittsburgh 10, Florida 35
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AutoZone Liberty Bowl: December 31st
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They could be on the road for New Year's Eve. Not only would the Gators sink to the outer reaches of bowl games, but they would also have to find a party in Memphis to celebrate the New Year.
That is of course assuming they win this throwaway game.
Potential Opponent: UCF
Outcome: UCF barely lost to North Carolina State and absolutely murdered UAB. So there is a hot for them to pull the upset, but I doubt it. UCF and their prolific offense will fall to Florida.
UCF 24, Florida 30
Chick-Fil-A Bowl: December 31st
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Playing on New Year's won't be that bad if you are playing in a slightly better bowl than the Liberty Bowl. As it stands now, Mississippi State would trump Florida for this spot.
But the long shot is the bowl committee taking the rivalry game instead. I said it was a long shot, but wouldn't Florida State vs. Florida II be something?
Potential Opponent: Florida State
Outcome: The cliche that comes to mind here is that you do not want to play a good team twice. There is too much learning that goes on. The Gators will fix what went wrong in the first go around and make it work.
Florida State 24, Florida 28
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