Tag: Bowl Projections

Who does 247Sports have UNC facing in its first bowl projection?

UNC is projected to make a bowl game, but will it win for just the third time in 10 tries?

College football season doesn’t start until August, but there will be plenty of conversation around the sport in the coming weeks.

That’s because on Thursday, April 25, the dreams of over 200 college players will come true in the NFL Draft.

A majority of the NFL Draft attention in Chapel Hill surrounds star quarterback Drake Maye, who finished his college career with nearly 10,000 scrimmage yards and 80 touchdowns, was named the 2023 ACC Player of the Year and will likely be a Top-5 pick.

One of the greatest questions for UNC – in the fall – surrounds its quarterback position. North Carolina will have an intense quarterback competition in the Spring game, highlighted by Conner Harrell and Max Johnson.

The Tar Heels might not have the wide array of offensive weapons from last season, but they should win enough games to make another bowl game.

According to 247Sports’ early projections, UNC is set to face off against Northwestern in the Pinstripe Bowl.

I have hope that North Carolina can figure out how to win a bowl game, but I can already tell you right now that game will end in a loss. UNC is 2-7 in its last nine bowl games, not a pretty sight for a team that collapses late in the season.

The Tar Heels’ NFL Draft-eligible players sit out to save their careers, which I don’t blame them. There is talent across UNC’s roster, but head coach Mack Brown falls just short of prepping his reserves for the postseason.

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What bowl game is UNC projected to in very early projections?

The UNC football team isn’t projected to make the expanded, 2024 College Football Playoff. Where will the Tar Heels go, exactly?

March Madness is just under a month away – prepare to have all your streaming devices set up, workplace productivity decrease and the only thing coming out of your mouth to be, “How is my bracket doing?”

College football season doesn’t start until six months, on the other hand, but it’s never too early to start making projections.

If there’s been one issue with college football in the past, it’s that the same four teams always seem to make the College Football Playoff. You can count on Alabama, Georgia and either Ohio State or Michigan being there, then one random team.

Good news – that all comes to an end this fall, as the CFP is expanding to 12 teams.

The North Carolina Tar Heels, despite this news, are not projected to make the new CFP.  They are still projected to make a bowl game, according to Action Newtork, against ACC newcomer Cal.

UNC is predicted to play in the Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, home to the UTEP (University of Texas-El Paso) Miners. North Carolina has gone 2-3 in the Sun Bowl overall, with its most recent appearance being a 25-23 loss to Stanford in 2016.

The 2024 Tar Heels squad has a few guarantees: Omarion Hampton will return as arguably the best running back in college football, Kaimon Rucker will be a much-needed presence on an otherwise-subpar defensive unit and Noah Burnette, who shined as a reliable kicking presence when Ryan Coe went out with an injury, should be amongst the top returning kickers.

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Where Action Network has LSU in way-too-early 2024 bowl projections

Can the Tigers break the inaugural 12-team playoff field?

Spring ball for the 2024 season hasn’t even started, but it’s never too early to start making some projections.

This will be the first year of the 12-team College Football Playoff format, and that means the concept of the New Year’s Six is also a thing of the past.

Action Network’s Brett McMurphy recently released his way-too-early bowl projections for the 2024 season, and unfortunately for the Tigers, he has them missing the CFP field.

He instead predicts a matchup against Miami in the TaxSlayer Gator Bowl. He also thinks LSU would be a heavy favorite in that game, projecting a spread of 10.5 points.

While there’s no way of knowing how accurate this will prove to be, it does go to show that the national media has some key questions about LSU entering 2024.

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Follow Tyler to continue the conversation on Twitter: @TylerNettuno

Notre Dame-LSU bowl game dreams over?

No Freeman vs. Kelly after all?

Notre Dame and LSU both saw their seasons come to an end a week ago as many projected the two to meet in the ReliaQuest Bowl in Tampa.  However, despite the two not playing this weekend, outcomes elsewhere may have put an end to the dream of a Marcus Freeman vs. Brian Kelly showdown in a bowl game.

According to Brett McMurphy of Action Network, it would appear Notre Dame going to the ReliaQuest Bowl at all is done.  Here is what the longtime college football reporter had to say Saturday night:

If not the ReliaQuest Bowl then the most likely option for Notre Dame would appear to be the Pop Tarts Bowl in Orlando.  There they would face a Big 12 opponent.

Stay tuned for an eventful morning and afternoon.

Tennessee football’s final bowl projections

A look at Tennessee football’s final bowl projections.

Conference championship weekend has concluded.

The College Football Playoff and bowl matchups will be announced on Sunday.

The Vols await their bowl destination.

Tennessee kicked off its 2023 season on Sept. 2, defeating Virginia, 49-13, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

Tennessee’s home schedule had contests against Austin Peay (W, 30-13), UTSA (W, 45-14), South Carolina (W, 41-20), Texas A&M (W, 20-13), UConn (W, 59-3), Georgia (L, 38-10) and Vanderbilt (W, 48-24).

The Vols’ road schedule featured games at Florida (L, 29-16), Alabama (L, 34-20), Kentucky (W, 33-27) and Missouri (L, 36-7).

READ: SEC football power rankings after conference title game

Following the conclusion of conference championship weekend, Vols Wire looks at bowl projections for Tennessee football:

Penn State’s final bowl projections after chaotic conference championship weekend

Bowl projections are all over the place for Penn State after conference championship weekend.

Just when you thought you had Penn State’s bowl projections pretty much figured out, college football’s conference championship weekend threw a massive curveball your way. The results of the conference championship games this weekend, specifically Alabama topping Georgia in the SEC Championship Game, figure to dramatically impact the College Football Playoff’s final four teams, thus creating a ripple effect for the entire New Years Six bowl outlook.

The good news for Penn State is they were sitting in what seems to be a pretty safe spot to end up in a New Years Six bowl game no matter what happened this weekend. But who they play is now almost a wide-open guessing game. An assortment of bowl projections listed below have Penn State playing in as many as three different New Years Six bowl games and five different potential opponents.

We’ll find out later today just who Penn State is playing, and where that game will be. But here are the latest projections from a variety of media outlets leading up to the big bowl announcements.

Brian Kelly likely to face a familiar foe in LSU’s bowl game

A matchup against Brian Kelly’s former team seems to be LSU’s likeliest postseason fate right now.

There’s still championship weekend ahead of us before LSU will learn its postseason fate. However, if bowl projections are any indicator, there’s one option that’s far more likely than others.

Nearly every bowl projection has the Tigers heading to Tampa to play in the ReliaQuest Bowl, and the vast majority of those predictions have Brian Kelly’s team drawing an opponent it’s very familiar with.

Kelly could ultimately face his former team in Notre Dame, and in the latest bowl projections from Action Network’s Brett McMurphy after the release of the College Football Playoff rankings, that’s exactly who the Tigers draw.

Kelly’s history with Notre Dame would certainly add some intrigue to what would be a New Year’s Day bowl between two premier brands in the sport.

Contact/Follow us @LSUTigersWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Louisiana State news, notes, and opinions.

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Tennessee football projected for bowl rematch against Clemson

Tennessee football is projected for a bowl rematch against Clemson.

No. 23 Tennessee (8-4, 4-4 SEC) concluded regular-season play in Week 13, defeating Vanderbilt, 48-24.

The Vols await a bowl destination.

Tennessee kicked off its 2023 season on Sept. 2, defeating Virginia, 49-13, at Nissan Stadium in Nashville, Tennessee.

Tennessee’s home schedule had contests against Austin Peay (W, 30-13), UTSA (W, 45-14), South Carolina (W, 41-20), Texas A&M (W, 20-13), UConn (W, 59-3), Georgia (L, 38-10) and Vanderbilt (W, 48-24).

The Vols’ road schedule featured games at Florida (L, 29-16), Alabama (L, 34-20), Kentucky (W, 33-27) and Missouri (L, 36-7).

PHOTOS: Tennessee football defeats Vanderbilt on senior day in Week 13

Following the conclusion of regular-season play, Vols Wire looks at bowl projections for Tennessee football below.

UNC’s latest bowl projection has them facing off against SEC team

Despite late-season football struggles in Chapel Hill, UNC will go bowling. Who exactly will the Tar Heels play? Here’s an early projection.

The University of North Carolina football season isn’t over yet?

What do you mean? After how the Tar Heels have played over their last six games, you mean to tell us there’s more?

Yes.

UNC actually started the year really well, winning its first six games en route to being ranked 10th in the AP Poll. Carolina clinched its bowl eligibility early on, beating a then-ranked Miami team for its sixth win.

With the regular season being all but over for every team, the focus now turns to Conference Championships and bowl games. Florida State and Louisville will be playing for the ACC Championship, so UNC’s attention now shifts to whatever bowl game it’s selected for.

For now, that bowl game is projected to be the Gator Bowl vs. Tennessee.

Here’s what 247Sports had to say about Carolina’s possible bowl matchup:

“The Gator Bowl was one of three Florida-based bowl games in attendance for the Vols’ loss to Georgia last weekend and the Citrus Bowl followed Tennessee’s win over Vanderbilt in Week 13. Clemson could be an option here too on a four-game winning streak, but chances are slim ESPN and bowl organizers slot those two teams together again in the postseason, which would mark a rematch of last season’s Orange Bowl. UNC hasn’t played in the Gator Bowl in 25 years and we’re told Jacksonville would love to have the Tar Heels, even if Drake Maye is a possible opt-out casualty.”

Despite UNC’s recent track record in bowl games (just two wins since 2015), a victory would be a much-needed way to end yet another disappointing season.

Tennessee trudged to an 8-4 finish, beating Vanderbilt on Saturday to end its regular season. The Volunteers lost at Florida in Week 3, at Alabama on Oct. 21, then back-to-back weeks at Missouri and vs. UGA.

Follow us @TarHeelsWire on Twitter and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of North Carolina Tar Heels news, notes and opinions.

Latest bowl projections after LSU concludes regular season with win over Texas A&M

A New Year’s Six bid likely isn’t in the cards, but LSU should find itself in a solid bowl once again.

LSU’s 2023 season didn’t quite go according to plan, but the team ended the season on a high note by avenging last season’s loss to Texas A&M with a 42-30 victory.

That put the Tigers back at 9-3 for the second year in a row, and coach Brian Kelly’s squad will have the chance to reach the 10-win mark once again in its bowl game, for which it could be without some key players due to opt-outs.

A New Year’s Six bowl is once again not likely to be in the cards for LSU, but the team should still find itself in a solid postseason matchup. Here’s what all the latest bowl projections say about the Tigers.