Tag: Bowl Game

Notre Dame Football: Ranking Potential Bowl Game Opponents

Finally the biggest draw in the Big XII comes up on our breakdown.  Is Texas back?

In one of the worst kept secrets in college football at this point, we sit and wait to act surprised when on Sunday we will all officially find out that No. 15 Notre Dame will be headed to play a Big XII opponent in the 2019 Camping World Bowl.

That means a trip to Orlando but who the Irish play in the game is still very much up in the air for multiple different reasons.

For one – Oklahoma and Baylor both right now sit at six and seven in the College Football Playoff rankings respectively, with both still being very much alive for a potential New Year’s Six Bowl game berth if they are to fall in Saturday’s conference championship.

That’s important because it would change the Alamo automatically getting whoever loses and instead, give the bowl the chance to pick which of the 5-4 Big XII teams it would like, as Kansas State, Iowa State, Oklahoma State and Texas all finished in a tie for third place after all going 5-4 in conference play.

It got me wondering though – who should Notre Dame fans be rooting for to play?

I get that some Irish fans will have a family or friend that is connected to one of the schools that will make that their obvious choice, but for everyone who doesn’t, what are you rooting for to happen?

A quick look at the potential match-ups, one at a time.

Kansas State

Pages: Page 1, Page 2, Page 3, Page 4, Page 5

ESPN experts predict Alabama’s 2019 Bowl Game

The Alabama Crimson Tide football team may have suffered a heart-breaking loss in the 2019 Iron Bowl against Auburn that took them out of the running to participate in the College Football Playoff, but that doesn’t mean their season is done. Nick …

The Alabama Crimson Tide football team may have suffered a heart-breaking loss in the 2019 Iron Bowl against Auburn that took them out of the running to participate in the College Football Playoff, but that doesn’t mean their season is done.

Nick Saban’s 10-2 team has been bowl eligible since beating Texas A&M in their Week 6 matchup at Kyle Field.

Well, since the Crimson Tide have one game left to play, it’s time to start guessing which bowl game they will be playing in and who they will be playing against.

ESPN college football experts Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach weighed in.

Schlabach predicts Alabama will be making the trip to Dallas, Texas to face off against the Memphis Tigers of the American Athletic Conference in the Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic.

The 11-1 Tigers could potentially be the 2019 AAC Champions.

It is also worth noting that since 2016, Alabama has only lost to schools whose mascots are Tigers (Auburn, Clemson and LSU)

Bonagura has the Crimson Tide playing the Virgina Cavaliers in the 2019 Capital One Orange Bowl.

This would be Alabama’s second consecutive year in the Orange Bowl after they defeated the Oklahoma Sooners in the 2019 College Football Playoff Semi-final game to advance to the National Championship.

We are roughly two weeks away from knowing where Alabama will play their bowl game, and under three weeks away from the first bowl game being played on Dec. 20 when the Makers Wanted Bahama Bowl and the Frsco Bowl kick off.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]

NCAA upholds postseason ban for Mizzou football

The Tigers (5-6, 2-5 SEC) still have a chance to finish with an even .500 record this fall, but the team won’t be playing for a bowl game the day after Thanksgiving after the NCAA Tuesday upheld its postseason ban for the program.

The Tigers (5-6, 2-5 SEC) still have a chance to finish with an even .500 record this fall, but the team won’t be playing for a bowl game the day after Thanksgiving after the NCAA Tuesday upheld its postseason ban for the program.

ESPN bowl projections: Matchups against historical programs

Currently at 9-3, Texas could end up anywhere this bowl season. ESPN projects the Camping World Bowl and the Alamo Bowl for the Longhorns.

Currently sitting at 9-3, which bowl game the Longhorns will make is still up in the air. They could go as high as the Allstate Sugar Bowl or they could end up as low as the Texas Bowl. According to ESPN’s bowl projections, Texas is somewhere in between there.

Here is a look at where ESPN thinks the Longhorns will be bowling:

First, Kyle Bonagura projects Texas to participate in the Camping World Bowl in Orlando, FL. Since 2015, it has been a bowl game between Big 12 and ACC teams. If the Longhorns were to play in the Camping World Bowl, it would be the first time they would participate in it. What sticks out is their opponent, Notre Dame. Two of the most historic programs of all time, both schools are in the top 10 in all-time wins in NCAA history.

Playing as recent as 2015 and 2016, the Fighting Irish and the Longhorns have played a total of 12 times, with Notre Dame leading the series 9-3. The latest game in 2016 is the infamous “Texas is back folks!” game when Tyrone Swoopes scored a touchdown to beat the No. 10 ranked Irish in Austin, 50-47.

With Mark Schlabach projecting both Oklahoma and Baylor to get spots in a New Year’s Six Bowl game, that would leave the second-best Big 12 bowl game, the Valero Alamo Bowl, open for the Longhorns. Texas has not played in the Alamo Bowl since doing it in back to back seasons in 2012 and 2013 when they played Oregon State and Oregon respectively. Playing Pac 12 opponents, Schlabach says Texas will face the Trojans of USC.

These two teams have a lot of recent history and if they met, would be playing each other for the third year in a row. The Longhorns lost a heartbreaker on the road in 2017, while they beat the Trojans by 23 at home last season.

As usual when talking about Texas and USC, you have to mention the 2006 Rose Bowl game for the National Championship. Widely considered the greatest college football game of all time, Texas fans will be remembering this game for the rest of their lives.

Even if the Longhorns are not able to make the most prestigious bowl game this season, these matchups could still be some fun ones. Especially when you are playing against historical blue blood programs like Notre Dame and USC.

[lawrence-auto-related count=3]