Final 2019 College Football Bowl Projections

Finally, with all of the college football games (aside from Army-Navy) complete, we can look ahead to the bowl season. Teams will find out where they’re going bowling at some point on Sunday, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t try to tell you where …

Finally, with all of the college football games (aside from Army-Navy) complete, we can look ahead to the bowl season. Teams will find out where they’re going bowling at some point on Sunday, but that doesn’t mean that we can’t try to tell you where every team will be going. We’ve been patiently tracking rumors and conversations about who will be going where. After patiently dealing with all of the rules and regulations for each conference, here are my best guesses as to every bowl matchup.

Remember: Nowadays, bowl projections are more of an art than a science. Most conferences no longer allow the bowls to select teams in order, but instead provide “pools” of teams for certain tiers of bowls. The Group of 5 conferences essentially have no selection order preference. The conferences then work with the bowls to determine which team goes where. Anything can be the cause for this–geography, fan interests, matchup quality, whether the conference thinks its team is more likely to win, or any other reason. Therefore, at the end of this article, I will provide a list of which conference pools would be tied to which bowl. That way, you have as much information as possible when figuring out where each team could be headed.

79 teams are bowl-eligible this year, and there are 78 slots available in bowl games. Right now, I have Eastern Michigan being the unlucky team that will stay home, though it could definitely be Toledo or Kent State.

I will also update these for the next few hours Saturday night if any credible rumors come in.

College Football Playoff

Peach Bowl Sat, Dec 28, 4:00 PM LSU vs Oklahoma
Fiesta Bowl Sat, Dec 28, 8:00 PM Ohio State vs Clemson

This is simple enough. No. 1 plays No. 4, and No. 2 plays No. 3. The committee will ensure that the No. 1 team is not given a geographic disadvantage, so LSU will get the Peach Bowl against Oklahoma.

The times for these matchups are flexible and not yet set, but given that Ohio State vs Clemson will by far be the bigger draw, I expect that to be the game given prime time billing.

Next… NY6 and other Big Ten bowls

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UFC on ESPN 7 results: Ben Rothwell low blows then TKOs Stefan Struve

Ben Rothwell won at UFC DC, but not without some controversy.

Ben Rothwell won at UFC DC on Saturday night, but not without controversy.

After landing multiple fight-pausing groin shots, Rothwell (37-12 MMA, 7-6 UFC) defeated Stefan Struve by TKO by punches in the second round.

The heavyweight fight was part of the UFC on ESPN 7 main card at Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. It aired on ESPN following prelims on ESPN and early prelims on UFC Fight Pass/ESPN+.

Midway through the opening round, Struve (29-11 MMA, 13-9 UFC) landed a massive head kick, which wobbled Rothwell. Seconds later, Rothwell landed a hard kick of his own – but directly to Struve’s groin.

The low blow sent the seven-foot Netherlands native tumbling to the canvas. For almost the full timeout allotment of five minutes, Struve writhed in pain. Every time Struve showed a sign of progress by rising to his feet and putting his head up, he was met with cheers. Every time he regressed or put his head back down, he was booed.

As his allotted recovery time wound down, Struve agreed to continue and the action resumed.

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In the second round, it was deja vu. Attempting a body kick, Rothwell once again went low. Struve went through a similar recovery process.

While Struve was trying to decide whether or not to continue, referee Dan Miragliotta added some editorial to the situation. Miragliotta told Struve he believed he was up two rounds to nothing and if the fight was stopped, a no contest would be his ruling.

Struve consented for the fight to continue and Miragliotta deducted a point from Rothwell. The point deduction seemingly lit a fire under Rothwell.

When the action resumed, Rothwell charged across the cage winging strikes at Struve. A hard checked leg kick by Rothwell put Struve on his back foot. As Rothwell swarmed, Struve crumpled to the canvas and Miragliotta waived off the bout.

After the fight, Rothwell voiced his displeasure with the way things went down and gave props to Struve’s toughness.

With the victory, Rothwell snapped a three-fight losing streak. His previous victory came against Josh Barnett at UFC on FOX 18 in January 2016.

At the start of training camp for this fight, Rothwell reunited with his old coach Duke Roufus at Roufusport in Milwaukee.

As for Struve, “The Skyscraper” has lost four of his past five fights.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN 7 results include:

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CFP Eliminator: LSU, Ohio State, Clemson, Oklahoma the Playoff four

We make our final eliminations of the year in the College Football Playoff race, leaving LSU, Ohio State, Clemson, and Oklahoma as the Top 4

Welcome to the final edition of this year’s Eliminator. I explain the process behind eliminating teams in my Week 1 post. In short, I ask myself a simple question: “If this team wins out, will they have a chance at the Playoff?” I don’t assume that teams will lose–there’s no need to. The losses will come when they come; and when they do, I’ll eliminate those teams. Until then, they’re not eliminated. It’s that simple. I also track every eliminated team on this Twitter thread.

Now that we are at the end of the season, though, there are no questions about winning out. Now the question is if four teams have superior resumes to everyone else. Some years, we are left with a bubble after the conference championship games. This year, we don’t have one. Our four Playoff teams are very clear. LSU, Ohio State, Clemson, and Oklahoma will be in the Playoff.

Week 14 Eliminations:

Team: Notes:
Baylor The Bears lost a second game and the Big 12 Championship, which will keep them out of the Playoff. The Sugar Bowl is a good consolation though.
Georgia A blowout loss to LSU ends the Playoff dreams.
Oregon The Ducks were eliminated before the week started. The gap to the top contenders was just too much to overcome.
Utah The Utes are 0-2 against ranked teams now, which won’t get a Playoff bid.
Wisconsin The Badgers fought hard and impressed against Ohio State, which likely earned a Rose Bowl berth. Not enough to get into the Playoff, though.

Next… Eliminations from earlier in the season

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Redskins send Deshazor Everett to injured reserve

Deshazor Everett will spend the rest of his season on IR.

The Washington Redskins won’t have safety Deshazor Everett for the remainder of the season.

Washington sent Everett to injured reserve Saturday, the team announced.

The reserve safety has dealt with ankle and shoulder injuries this year and the coaching staff said the latter flared up recently, spurring this move.

A severe lack of depth at wideout helped make the move an easier decision. Paul Richardson is still out and Trey Quinn remains in concussion protocol after a fine-inducing hit last week from a Carolina player.

Meaning, the Redskins were about to start three rookies at wideout with little in the way of depth behind them. With the additional roster spot they called up Darvin Kidsy off the practice squad to fill an extreme depth role.

While it’s an unfortunate end of the season from Everett, his recent three-year extension assures he’ll have the offseason to get healthy and back to competing over the summer.

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Stock Report: Cowboys share price stumbling,TNF was Bear market

The Dallas Cowboys are the NFL’s biggest enigma. Despite being talented at every turn, they’ve somehow squandered opportunities to prove what and who they really are as a football team. Thursday night was no different. The Cowboys lose to the …

The Dallas Cowboys are the NFL’s biggest enigma. Despite being talented at every turn, they’ve somehow squandered opportunities to prove what and who they really are as a football team. Thursday night was no different.

The Cowboys lose to the injury-ravaged Chicago Bears, 31-24, in what may be Dallas’ worst loss of the season. Dallas made a statement, opening with a 17-play, 75-yard drive capped off with an Ezekiel Elliott touchdown. Chicago would respond by moving the ball down the field; however, an errand pass by Mitch Trubisky was intercepted by Dion Lewis. The early turnover wouldn’t slow down the Bears though as they scored 17 unanswered points taking a 10-point lead into halftime. 

Dak Prescott entered Thursday’s game as the NFL’s passing  leader, but struggled to find the necessary rhythm to win the ball game. Elliott was an early catalyst, wreaking havoc on opposing Bears’ defenders. In the first half, he finished with 13 carries for 72 yards and one touchdown. The second half, no fault of his own, Elliott was less of a factor. The Bears maintained a favorable lead forcing the Cowboys to rely solely its on passing game. Chicago boast elite pass rushers and good coverage defensive backs and easily neutralized the Cowboys’ offense. 

Luckily, the Cowboys are in the NFC’s worst division, the East, and remain alive with the lead position. It’s not completely desperation mode for the Cowboys, but to play without any urgency during a three-game losing streak is extremely troubling. Rumblings surfaced Dallas’ practices were chippy this past week but the Bears surely knocked the chip off those shoulders. This losing streak has revealed when adversity strikes the Cowboys have no idea who they truly are. Next weeks’ game is at home against the Los Angeles Rams. Like the Cowboys, the Rams are competing for a postseason birth.

Stock Down: Dallas’ Defense

Dallas’ lacked tackling fundamentals and effort. Collectively, Thursday’s game may be the single-worst tackling effort of any team this season. Chidobe Awuzie missed two huge tackles that lead to touchdowns. Xavier Woods missed key tackles. $100 million man, DeMarcus Lawerence, recorded one tackle and neglible no impact on the game. Dallas’ entire pass rush created little to no pressure for Bears’ signal-caller Mitchell Trubisky. Trubisky, who’s struggled most of the year, scored four touchdowns, playing his best game of the season.

Dallas’ biggest problem on defense may be Jaylon Smith, a huge coverage liability who is best at read then react.

Starting middle linebacker Leighton Vander Esch is out, expanding Smith’s role thus more coverage. The Bears targeted Smith on three consecutive passes in the red zone. To Smith’s credit, he made three excellent plays, one which was ruled an Allen Robinson touchdown. However, The Bears clearly favored their pass catchers against Smith. Surely the Rams took notice and will scheme match-ups to try and exploit Smith the way Sean McVay did during the 2017 season.

Stock Down: Dallas’ Coaching Staff

During Dallas’ three-game losing streak, they’ve yet to score in the third quarter, a staple of the unit through the early part of the season. Dallas’ coaches are no longer adjusting throughout games. The first drive is scripted: the advantages a coaching staff noticed during film study. Great team make the necessary adjustments without deviating from what they do best. Subpar teams are rigid and fail to adjust. The Cowboys are that.

Owner Jerry Jones voice carries so much weight, it’s hard to think Jason Garrett has a respected voice in his own locker room. Garrett discusses the importance of winning a Tuesday practice while Jones discusses Super Bowl aspirations. The messaging disconnect is taking its toll on the locker room and how the Cowboys perform. Thursday’s game was a team who doesn’t know who they are and why they must play for each other. Dallas’ hierarchy isn’t empowering Garrett to actually lead and coach this team.

Stock Down: Dak Prescott 

Prescott’s 334 passing yards are misleading as a great portion were garbage-time stats after the game was already decided. In the first half, Prescott was 6 of 13 for 60 yards and no touchdowns. The Bears lead 17-7 then scored on the opening drive of second half, to take a commanding 24-7 lead. The Cowboys’ next two possession were three and outs and though the clock hadn’t yet reached all zeros, the game was already decided. 

Where was Prescott when the Cowboys needed him the most? The passing rhythm was entirely off. Prescott was somewhat inaccurate, but receivers also struggled to hold onto passes. The Cowboys’ opening drive established what looked a blueprint to defeat the Bears, but needing to convert four third downs favored the Bears’ defense. Very few offenses can maintain that level of efficiency throughout an entire game. The Cowboys never adjusted. Prescott never adjusted.

Dallas is faced with the “How much does Dak deserves” conundrum. Prescott’s statistics are terrific. His leadership and podium presence is even better. He stabilized the franchise as Tony Romo battled through injuries. He’s won the division two of his three years, but this year’s Cowboys aren’t winning the big games.

Thursday’s game and the’ current losing streak certainly impact negotiations. The front office staff may consider using the franchise tag to buy more time on a decision.

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Utah State Gets Neemias Queta Back And An Overtime Win Against Fresno State: 77-70

Game Recap: No. 25 Utah State 77, Fresno State 70 The Aggies get star big man back in a close home win against the Bulldogs. Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire Merrill and company hold on in overtime for 77-70 win in conference play. The Aggies …

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Game Recap: No. 25 Utah State 77, Fresno State 70

The Aggies get star big man back in a close home win against the Bulldogs. 

Contact/Follow @HardwoodTalk & @MWCwire

Merrill and company hold on in overtime for 77-70 win in conference play.

The Aggies are 2-0 in conference play after a 12 point win in San Jose on Wednesday night and a 7 point win in overtime Saturday at home. The Aggies struggled to gain a solid lead most of the game and a 61-58 lead with less than eighteen seconds left to go wasn’t enough to solidify a win in regulation.

The surprise of the night was the return of star sophomore center Neemias Queta who logged just 11 minutes in his first game of the season back from a knee injury suffered in the offseason playing for the Portuguese national team. Queta ended the night with six points, 1 rebound and 1 block but failed to make a field goal in what looked like a rust shedding outing for him. The Aggies haven’t missed a beat without him and have received production from a number of players in his absence.

But after coming off of a win Wednesday night the Aggies were taken to overtime by a Bulldog team who weren’t going to go down easily. The game looked to be a low scoring affair in the last minutes of the second half but a big time three rattled home for senior guard New Williams with less than a second to go. That sent the game into overtime and Craig Smith’s team was more composed and outscoring Fresno State 16-9 during that time. Composure and a late three pointer by a wide open Abel Porter in the corner sealed the deal for the Aggies.

The Bulldogs were looking to break a three game losing streak and also garner their first win in conference play. But while they came up short it wasn’t for a lack of scoring on seniors New Williams and Nate Grimes part who combined for 48 of their teams 70 points. Though they didn’t receive much help down the stretch and failed to contain Sam Merrill who ended the night with 24 Points and his ability to get his teammates involved robbed the Bulldogs of an upset in Logan.

Up Next:

Fresno State:

The Bulldogs take on the California Golden Bears on Wednesday the 11th in Berkley and look to gain some momentum and a win heading into the middle of December. Freshman Jarred Hyder needs to step up and his supporting cast needs another performance like Saturday’s if they want to head home to the Central Valley with a win.

Utah State:

The Aggies take some time off with almost a full week until they take on in-state rival Brigham Young at home on Saturday the 14th. The Cougars have star forward Yoeli Childs back and he is averaging 21.0 PPG and 10.5 RPG through his first two games. The Dee Glen Spectrum should be filled for this one.

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Defense, Team Effort, Propel New Mexico Past Wyoming, 79-65

The New Mexico Lobos beat the Wyoming Cowboys at Arena-Auditorium in Laramie, Wyoming, 79-65.

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Defense, Team Effort, Propel New Mexico Past Wyoming, 79-65

The Lobos trailed for a total of 40 seconds against the Cowboys

Contact/Follow @MWCwire

New Mexico starts 2-0 in conference games, while Wyoming continues with growing pains.

Hunter Maldonado (27 points, 6 rebounds, 2 assists, 1 steal) led all scorers, but the effort from the sophomore out of Colorado Springs wasn’t enough to thwart off a balanced New Mexico (9-2, 2-0 MW) roster at Arena-Auditorium in Laramie, Wyoming.

Four Lobos scored in double figures, including Corey Manigault (18 points, 7 rebounds, 1 steal), Carlton Bragg (15 points, 15 rebounds, 1 assists, 3 blocks, 1 steal), JaQuan Lyle (13 points, 3 rebounds, 3 assists, 2 steals) and Makuach Maluach (12 points, 3 rebounds).

But it was arguably the play of JJ Caldwell (8 points, 10 rebounds, 9 assists, 3 steals) that propelled New Mexico to victory. Caldwell did a little bit of everything, from consistent, high energy defense to orchestrating the offense, making beautiful passes like this one for New Mexico.

As a whole, the guard play of the Lobos was successful in opening up the paint, resulting in eight dunks for the away team, one of which came from the athletic sophomore Tavian Percy that got the Lobo bench on their feet.

While most of the game entailed a double-digit lead for New Mexico which led by as many as 20 points, the lead shrunk to a 46-37 advantage with 14:55 remaining in the second half. But from that point on, the Lobos kept a comfortable double-digit lead through the remainder of the half, despite ten made three pointers from the Cowboys.

Wyoming was the second straight opponent to New Mexico to make more hit double digits in three-pointers made, yet come up short on the scoreboard.  Despite ten three-pointers made, several of which came late in the second half, Wyoming couldn’t ever get over the hump to make the game against New Mexico competitive.

Notable Team Stats:

  • New Mexico finished the game with a 47-29 advantage on the glass. Surprisingly, Wyoming was able to pull down 8 offensive boards despite a get-back-on-defense approach that has been employed by the Cowboys.
  • The Lobos went 80% at the free throw line, making 16-20 of their free throws, continuing the trend of being among the best in the nation at getting to the line.
  • After a 6 turnover game against Boise State, New Mexico amassed 19 turnovers against the Cowboys. Wyoming was able to take advantage of the mistakes, scoring 21 points off turnovers.
  • New Mexico’s depth challenged Wyoming’s young team. The Lobos bench outscored Wyoming’s bench 26-9.

Up Next:

Both Wyoming and New Mexico are off for the week before resuming non-conference play against Northern Colorado and New Mexico State respectively.

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Chris Eubank Jr. wins by TKO after Matvey Korobov injures shoulder

Chris Eubank Jr. won a technical knockout in the second round after Matvey Korobov could no longer continue, citing a left shoulder injury.

So much for making a statement.

Chris Eubank Jr. promised fireworks for his American debut against Matvey Korobov, but he barely had time to even fight, thanks to a freak accident. Barely 30 seconds into Round 2, Korobov threw a left hand and immediately motioned at referee Steve Willis for a timeout as he gestured at his left shoulder. After a brief deliberation in the corner with the ring doctor, Willis called off the fight.

Eubank (29-2, 22 knockouts) won by technical knockout on the undercard of the Jermall Charlo vs. Dennis Hogan main event at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn. The official time of the stoppage was 2:26 of the second round. Ring announcer Jimmy Lennon Jr. cited the cause as a “left shoulder injury.”

“I feel like I was just about to start getting my swagger,” said Eubank, who simply shrugged at the crowd. “He just turned around and stopped. I was going to go jump on him. I guess something happened with his shoulder.

“I mean, there’s nothing to take from the fight.  I threw like three or four punches. I was just warming up.”

The loss marks the third straight tough outcome for  Korobov (28-3-1, 14 KOs), whose last two fights included a draw with Immanuel Aleem and decision loss to Jermall Charlo.

Chris Eubank Jr. didn’t have much time show his stuff in his U.S. debut. AP Photo / Michael Owens

“I was trying to throw the left hand straight, and I just felt the muscle immediately, like I pulled it,” Korobov said. “It was a lot of pain right away. I couldn’t fight with just one arm, especially being a southpaw.”

Earlier, Ryosuke Iwasa dropped Marlon Tapales twice en route to an 11th-round stoppage in a scheduled 12-round junior featherweight bout.

The two southpaws traded left hands all fight long, but Tapales was sloppy, both on defense and offense. Iwasa (27-3, 17 KOs), from Kashiwa, Japan, was a bit  more accurate and patient, biding his time before decking Tapales (33-3, 16 KOs) with a straight left in the 11th round. The Filipino was able to get up, but when referee Shada Murdaugh motioned him to come forward, Tapales momentarily stumbled, forcing Murdaugh to end the fight at 1:09. 

“I knew that I had him hurt in the 11th round, and I was ready for the finish if the referee had let him keep fighting,” Iwasa said.” It was a tough fight, but I trained really hard for this performance.
“My height and reach was definitely an advantage. I was able to put my punches together well. He never hurt me but he was still difficult, and I had to focus to figure him out.”

In Round 3, a clash of heads caused Tapales to touch the canvas. Referee Murdaugh ruled it a knockdown. Thereafter a visible bruise appeared on Tapales’ right cheek. 

Toward the end, Tapales began to show signs that he was wilting. In Round 8, Tapales landed his best punch of the fight, a crunching right hook that drew oohs from a relatively sparse crowd. But Iwasa took the punch well and came back to land his own combinations. Winded, Tapales retreated to the ropes as Iwasa began teeing off on him for the rest of the round. Tapales trudged back to his corner, as if already defeated. 

Iwasa should be next in line to face the winner of the not-yet-finalized junior lightweight title fight between Danny Roman and Murodjon Ahkmadeliev.