* Wanted to see how Stanford-Oregon played out before posting any bowl projections. Good thing. Here's how SI's Stewart Mandel sees it at the moment (go here for full list, then here for one from CBSSports):
-- BCS championship -- LSU-Oklahoma State
-- Sugar Bowl -- Alabama-Houston
-- Music City Bowl -- Vanderbilt-Miami
-- Liberty Bowl -- Mississippi State-Southern Miss
-- Chick-fil-A Bowl -- Auburn-Virginia Tech
-- Capital One Bowl -- Georgia-Michigan
-- Outback Bowl -- South Carolina-Nebraska
-- Gator Bowl -- Florida-Ohio State
-- Cotton Bowl -- Arkansas-Kansas State
That's assuming Vanderbilt and Mississippi State get themselves bowl-eligible. Vandy can do so by beating Tennessee or Wake Forest; MSU will need an Egg Bowl win over Ole Miss to get there (notice I didn't even entertain the possibility of the Bulldogs beating Arkansas this weekend). Tennessee could still get there, too, by winning out against Vanderbilt and Kentucky.
2. The site Pre-Snap Read re-ranks all 120 teams every week. If you're an Ole Miss fan, hide your eyes: the Rebs come in at 105. Full list here.
3. And a couple of fun reads from the time capsule, proving there's not much new under the SEC sun:
-- Tigers Put On Probation Because of Recruiting (February 14, 1956)
-- 'Bama Violates Scholarship Rule (February 8, 1966)
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1 comments:
OK, let's get out the drill once again.
From an Auburn perspective: A ranking of 36 is one I can live with. If they are honest, most AU fans would say "I'll take it" if they were told in August they would be about the 36th-best team at this point. The only thing that really upsets me about this season is how easily our guys got intimidated by LSU and UGA. Also of note - Auburn's first 4 opponents are ranked 81, 61, 9 and 120. No wonder we started 3-1.
From an SEC perspective:
-We have 6 in the top 20, which to me makes the whole "the SEC isn't very good, just top-heavy" argument a bunch of garbage.
-What about the "why add Missouri, they have no chance of ever competing for a title" discussion? Well, they are ranked 33. Not elite by any means, but 9th of the 14 teams that will make up the SEC next year, which would put them solidly in line for a good bowl. Of course everyone wants to win championships. But if Mizzu is the same next year as they are this year, that will mean one more SEC team with a legitimate claim to a January 1 bowl. They're already light-years ahead of Kentucky, Tennessee and Misipi. And what of Texas A&M? They are ranked 45, ahead of Florida every other established East team except SC and UGA. All they have to do is figure out how to hold a 4th quarter league and they are not too far behind LSU, 'Bama and Ar-Kansas in the West. It seems clear to me that this round of expansion is going to make the SEC even better.
One question, looking at the site's bowl projections. Doesn't the #2 SEC team obligated to the Chick-Fil-A Bowl? If so, that means UGA gets that spot (sorry, Tommy, UGA ain't beating LSU). I can't imagine the bowl passing that up, getting UGA in essentially a home game, guaranteeing a sellout.
Auburn in the Capital One Bowl? OK, although I still have bad dreams about the last time we played in that bowl and got obliterated by Wisconsin...
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