Tag: Bowl Predictions

CBS Sports predicts Florida football for this December bowl matchup

CBS Sports predicts this bowl game for the Gators after finishing their season with a 7-5 record.

Florida football awaits its bowl matchup after finishing the regular-season schedule with a 7-5 record.

After finishing the regular season with three consecutive wins including a dominant beat down against their in-state rival, the Florida State Seminoles, the Gators are hoping to land a good bowl game matchup.

CBS Sports writer Jerry Palm projects the Gators to compete in the Gasparilla Bowl against the Memphis Tigers. The bowl game features a team from either the ACC or SEC to go against the pool.

The Gasparilla Bowl takes place in Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, Florida on Friday, Dec. 20 at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPN.

Florida’s history in the Gasparilla Bowl

Florida played in this bowl game back on Dec. 23, 2021, against the UCF Knights.

Following the departure of former Gators head coach Dan Mullen, Florida competed in the game led by interim head coach Greg Knox and got pounded, losing by a score of 29-17.

If the Gators end up competing in this bowl game once again, expect it to be a more competitive contest against whoever they are matched up with.

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Where Wisconsin lands in Action Network bowl projections after Week 13

Where Wisconsin lands in Action Network bowl projections after Week 13

The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy released his bowl predictions ahead of Week 14 of the 2024 college football season on Monday.

For the second time in three weeks, McMurphy predicts Wisconsin to return to the TransPerfect Music City Bowl against the LSU Tigers on Dec. 30.

A member of the SEC, the Tigers currently hold a 7-4 overall record and a 4-3 mark against conference opponents. Brian Kelly’s squad also received two votes in the AP top 25 hierarchy for Week 14.

While the Tigers have been ranked several times this season, LSU has dropped some tough conference games this season. Kelly’s team lost to USC in its season opener, No. 20 Texas A&M on Oct. 26, No. 7 Alabama on Nov. 9 and Florida on Nov. 16.

Still, LSU has defeated No. 16 South Carolina, No. 15 Ole Miss, Arkansas, South Alabama, UCLA, Nicholls and Vanderbilt this season. At this point in the season, McMurphy lists LSU as a six-point favorite against the Badgers.

Wisconsin, meanwhile, is 5-6 after Week 13 after losing its most recent game against Nebraska 44-25. Luke Fickell’s program is on a four-game skid after dropping its previous three games against No. 4 Penn State, Iowa and No. 1 Oregon, respectively.

If McMurphy’s prediction is accurate, this would be the first time Wisconsin appears in the Music City Bowl since it lost 28-14 to Auburn in 2003.

Before that can become a reality, the program needs a closing win over Minnesota in order to avoid missing a bowl game for the first time since 2001.

USA TODAY projects Florida football’s 2024 bowl game

Florida’s upset win over Ole Miss guaranteed the Gators a spot in a bowl game, and USA TODAY has a prediction for which one.

The Florida Gators are bowl-eligible with a chance to finish the regular season 7-5 pending a win on Saturday against the Florida State Seminoles.

USA TODAY is one of the many outlets projecting the 2024 bowl matchups, and college sports editor Erick Smith likes the Orange and Blue to land in the AutoZone Liberty Bowl against Kansas State.

Florida has never played in the Liberty Bowl, which takes place on Dec. 27 at 7 p.m. ET, but the game is one of several bowls with an automatic SEC tie-in. The Gators would face a Big 12 opponent, not necessarily Kansas State.

Billy Napier is 0-1 in bowl games as the Florida Gators head coach. Florida lost the 2022 Las Vegas Bowl, 30-3, against Oregon State during his first season with the program, and the Gators finished the 2023 season with only five wins — six wins are required for bowl eligibility.

Other Bowl Predictions

CBS Sports writer Jerry Palm projects Florida to face the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Gasparilla Bowl, while ESPN has the Gators playing in either the Birmingham Bowl against North Carolina State (Bonagura) or the AutoZone Liberty Bowl against TCU (Schlabach).

Coming up for Florida

The Gators will face the Seminoles inside Doak Campbell Stadium on Saturday, Nov. 30. The game will kick off at 7 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPN 2.

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CBS Sports predicts this bowl game for Florida after reaching 6-win mark

This in-state bowl looks to be a possibility for the Florida Gators according to CBS Sports after earning their sixth win.

Florida football clinched a bowl berth on Saturday with a 24-17 win over the ninth-ranked Ole Miss Rebels in the Swamp. Now armed with a 6-5 overall record with one game remaining in the regular season — a rivalry matchup at that — the Gators have their eyes on their first winning season in three years.

While a seventh win is still well within the discussion, given that the 2-9 Florida State Seminoles are the final opponent on the schedule, what matters most right now is that the Orange and Blue will be playing in December. So now the question is, where will Billy Napier and Co. play and who will be their opponent?

According to CBS Sports writer Jerry Palm, Florida is projected to face the West Virginia Mountaineers in the Gasparilla Bowl held on Dec. 20. The ACC/SEC vs. pool game based in Tampa, Florida, will begin at 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ESPN.

Florida’s history in Gasparilla Bowl

The Gators have played in the in-state event just once before back on Dec. 23, 2021, when the Central Florida Knights sent them to the first of three losing seasons with a 29-17 victory over their Sunshine State brethren.

It was an embarrassing loss for Napier in his debut season, surrendering an early lead and getting outworked in the second half en route to a 6-7 finish to that fall’s campaign. Quarterback Emory Jones finished just 14 of 36 for 171 yards in his final game in Gainesville after announcing his intent to enter the transfer portal.

Next up for Florida

The Gators wrap up the 2024 regular season schedule in Tallahassee for their annual rivalry game against FSU. The game will take place inside Doak Campbell Stadium and will kick off at either 7 or 7:30 p.m. ET; broadcast details have yet to be determined.

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Where Wisconsin lands in Action Network bowl projections after Week 12

Where Wisconsin lands in Action Network bowl projections after Week 12

The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy released his bowl predictions ahead of Week 13 of the 2024 college football season on Monday.

For the fourth time in five weeks, McMurphy predicts Wisconsin to return to the Pinstripe Bowl. And, as he did after Week 10, the analyst has the Badgers facing Pittsburgh.

The Panthers, the No. 8 team in the Atlantic Coast Conference, are on a three-game skid. At 7-3, Pittsburgh has fallen into the ‘receiving votes’ category in the latest installation of the AP top 25 poll.

Still, the Panthers have beaten Kent State, Cincinnati, West Virginia, Youngstown State, North Carolina, California and Syracuse. Their recent losses have arrived against No. 13 SMU, No. 17 SMU and Virginia.

Wisconsin, meanwhile, is 5-5 after Week 12 after losing its most recent game against Oregon by three points in the fourth quarter. The Badgers also dropped their previous two games to No. 4 Penn State and Iowa by a combined 57 points.

Luke Fickell’s program also elected to fire offensive coordinator Phil Longo on Saturday. At No. 11 in the Big Ten, the organization appears to be amid an identity crisis.

If McMurphy’s prediction rings true, this will be the first time UW will participate in the Pinstripe Bowl since 2018 when it defeated Miami 35-3.

Four Big Ten teams are currently projected to land in the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff this winter. No. 1 Oregon, No. 2 Ohio State, No. 4 Penn State and No. 5 Indiana are included in the AP’s top 5 ahead of Week 12.

Wisconsin in still search of its 23rd consecutive bowl game appearance. It needs a win over its final two games against Nebraska and Minnesota.

CBS Sports includes Florida in bowl projections after LSU upset

With Florida just one win away from becoming bowl eligible, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has included the Gators in his latest bowl predictions update.

Florida’s path to a bowl game has been in doubt all season long, but an upset win over the LSU Tigers on Saturday has the Gators just one win away from securing bowl eligibility.

As a result, CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has included the Orange and Blue in its post-Week 12 bowl predictions. Palm projects Florida to matchup with Arizona State in the Las Vegas Bowl on Dec. 27 at 10:30 p.m. ET.

Should that prediction come true, it would provide Billy Napier and the Gators a chance at redemption after falling, 30-3, against the Oregon State Beavers in the 2022 Las Vegas Bowl. Adam Mihalek’s fourth-quarter field goal kept Florida’s now 458-game scoring streak alive, but the rest of the game was a complete disappointment.

The Gators finished the 2023 season 5-7 and failed to reach bowl eligibility, so any postseason appearance would be a sign of improvement for Napier and Co. Of course, Florida must win one of its final two games against Ole Miss and Florida State to reach the six-win mark.

Florida is projected to beat a 1-9 Florida State team in the regular-season finale, especially with true freshman quarterback [autotag]DJ Lagway[/autotag] back in the fold.

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Wisconsin returns to familiar setting in Action Network bowl projections after Week 9

Wisconsin returns to familiar setting in Action Network bowl projections after Week 9

The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy released his bowl predictions ahead of Week 10 of the 2024 college football season on Monday.

Wisconsin returns to the Pinstripe Bowl in McMurphy’s latest iteration of the bowl prediction list, the exact same game the Badgers were predicted to land in after Week 8.

This time, however, Wisconsin is slated to play NC State in the contest. The Wolfpack, a member of the American Athletic Conference, boast a 4-4 mark through eight games of the 2024 season. They are currently ranked No. 14 in the conference, only ahead of Stanford, Florida State and California.

The Badgers, meanwhile, are 5-3 after Week 9 after dropping its most recent game against No. 3 Penn State by two touchdowns. Luke Fickell’s program is in search of its 23rd consecutive bowl game appearance.

Action Network currently considers Wisconsin a 7.5-point favorite over NC State. If McMurphy’s prediction is accurate, this will be the first time the Badgers will play in the Pinstripe Bowl since 2018 season when they defeated Miami 35-3.

Wisconsin’s next batch of games could certainly alter where they land in the bowl game landscape. UW is yet to play Iowa, No. 1 Oregon, Nebraska and Minnesota. A strong showing in the regular season’s final month could push the Badgers into a better bowl standing.

Wisconsin faces ACC power in Action Network bowl prediction ahead of Week 2

Wisconsin faces ACC power in Action Network bowl prediction ahead of Week 2

The Action Network’s Brett McMurphy released his bowl predictions ahead of Week 2 of the 2024 college football season on Monday.

While last week’s installation had Wisconsin facing Texas A&M in the Music City Bowl on Dec. 30, the outlet now has UW squaring off against the Louisville Cardinals on Jan. 3 in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina.

McMurphy placed LSU and Indiana in the Music City Bowl slot following the Tigers’ recent loss to the USC Trojans on Sunday night.

If the prediction rings true, it would be the 23rd straight season that UW appears in a bowl game following the regular season.

The Badgers last appeared in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Dec. 30, 2020, in a 42-28 victory over Wake Forest. Just 1,500 fans witnessed former Badger quarterback Graham Mertz lead UW to victory during the pandemic season.

In 2023, West Virginia (9-4) matched up with North Carolina (8-5), which is a somewhat generous projection for where the Badgers will land following the underwhelming 28-14 triumph over Western Michigan on Friday.

The Badgers still await Alabama, USC, Penn State, Oregon, Iowa and Nebraska this season and will need to win two of those contests to compete for an upper-echelon bowl game.

The Athletic’s preseason prediction for Florida’s bowl game

Any bowl prediction is a good one for the Gators as it assumes at least a .500 regular-season finish.

Florida football faces one of the toughest schedules in recent memory this season which includes a gauntlet of top-25 teams. While some struggle to foresee a bowl appearance for the Gators this winter, others can squint hard enough to envision the Orange and Blue in the postseason.

The Athletic’s Scott Dochterman and Stewart Mandel put together their college football preseason bowl projections recently and the good news is that [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag] and Co. earned a December berth — which assumes at least a .500 finish during the regular season.

Dochterman and Mandel picked Florida to face the Oklahoma State Cowboys in the Liberty Bowl held in Memphis, Tennessee, on Wednesday, Dec. 27 at 7 p.m. ET.

Other bowl predictions

USA TODAY Sports writer Erick Smith submitted his preseason bowl projections and foresees Florida making it into the Gasparilla Bowl against the Duke Blue Devils. That game is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 20, at 3:30 p.m. ET.

Florida’s season opener for 2024

The Florida Gators and No. 19 Miami Hurricanes square off on Aug. 31 in Gainesville, Florida to open their schedule for the 2024 season. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ABC Sports.

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USA TODAY Sports foresees a familiar bowl game for Florida football

If USA TODAY Sports’ bowl game projections are correct, the Gators will finish the regular season this fall at least at the .500 mark.

The opening kickoff for Florida football’s 2024 campaign is just days away, and ahead of [autotag]Billy Napier[/autotag]’s third season in Gainesville, the final preseason predictions have been cast by members of the sports media.

The Gators face one of the most brutal regular-season schedules which has many feeling bearish on their chances of success, but surprisingly, some have forecast a postseason bowl berth for the Orange and Blue. That in itself assumes a least a .500 finish for Napier and Co. which would be a welcome event for the Gator Nation.

USA TODAY Sports writer Erick Smith submitted his preseason bowl projections and foresees Florida making it into the Gasparilla Bowl against the Duke Blue Devils. That game is scheduled for Wednesday, Dec. 20.

Gators in the Gasparilla Bowl

Florida played in the Gasparilla once before back in 2021 against the Central Florida Knights. Head coach [autotag]Dan Mullen[/autotag] had been dismissed a game prior, leaving Greg Knox as the skipper for the final two games including the postseason appearance.

Unfortunately, the Gators came out flat in that game and fell to UCF, 29-17. The loss cemented the first of three straight losing seasons for the Orange and Blue.

USA TODAY Sports preseason college football bowl projections

Florida’s season opener for 2024

The Florida Gators and No. 19 Miami Hurricanes square off on Aug. 31 in Gainesville, Florida to open their schedule for the 2024 season. Kickoff is set for 3:30 p.m. ET and will be broadcast on ABC Sports.

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