Tag: erick smith

USA TODAY’s shocking bowl projections after Week 11

Alabama football projected to face Group of 5 opponent this bowl season

With just two games left in the 2023 college football regular season, there are about ten teams that feel like they have a viable chance to make the Playoffs and every year we wonder who is going to be left out. However, it almost always sorts itself out with the next month consisting of games like Michigan vs. Ohio State and Alabama vs. Georgia in the SEC Championship Game.

The Alabama season has been so up and down that it has been hard to even begin predicting where the Tide may be this post season. However, at 9-1 with an SEC Championship berth already locked up, the Tide control their own destiny. A road trip to Auburn and an SEC Championship in Atlanta vs Georgia makes for two incredibly hostile environments, but as long as Alabama continues to get better, I feel oddly confident in this Nick Saban team. Over the past year or two, it has felt like the Tide are hanging on for dear life by the end of the season, but this team feels like it is peaking at the right time.

Not everyone shares the same level of optimism for this Alabama team though. Erick Smith of USA TODAY Sports released his updated bowl projections following Week 11 and his projection for the Tide may surprise you. As things currently stand, Smith envisions that Alabama will be taking on Tulane in the Peach Bowl with both sides being at-large.

As for the Playoffs, Smith predicts that Michigan and Florida State will play in the Rose Bowl and Georgia will face in the Sugar Bowl. Needless to say, the next month is going to be awesome.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

USA TODAY Sports currently projects Alabama to face Fresno State in the Peach Bowl

USA TODAY predicts Alabama to play Fresno State this bowl season

Despite a rocky start to the 2023 season, the Alabama Crimson Tide is still very much alive in the hopes of a national championship. The team looked poor in the first few games of the year, but they currently stand at 3-1 with a 1-0 record in the SEC. In other words, Alabama still controls its own destiny in regards to a playoff berth.

This year, people felt like the Rebels had a strong chance to compete in the division, but ultimately the Tide put a stop to that in Week 1 of conference play as they beat Ole Miss 24-10 this past Saturday. Alabama once again seems like the favorite to make the trip to Atlanta and compete for a tenth SEC Championship since Nick Saban took over.

While I still hold a lot of optimism for the Crimson Tide’s season, it’s not shared by everyone in the media. Erick Smith of USA TODAY predicts that Alabama will face Fresno State in the Peach Bowl. While a Peach Bowl certainly isn’t the worst thing in the world, I don’t think many Alabama fans would be too happy to see the Tide squaring off with Fresno State during bowl season when 2023 was filled with aspirations of a national title.

Smith projects that the four teams that will be competing in the playoff will be Georgia, Michigan, Texas and Florida State. It’s interesting to see that the PAC 12, widely regarded as the best conference in the country, does not have any representatives.

Contact/Follow us @RollTideWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Alabama news, notes and opinion. You can also follow Sam Murphy on Twitter @SamMurphy02.

Michigan State football listed in top 20 of updated USA TODAY 2022 rankings

Erick Smith of USA TODAY is not as high on the 2022 Michigan State Spartans as many of his peers

Erick Smith of USA TODAY is not as high on the 2022 Michigan State Spartans as many of his peers.

Smith released an updated batch of preseason rankings with spring ball wrapped up across the country, and he didn’t have Michigan State as high as some other media outlets. While the Spartans have mostly been found right around the top 10 in other rankings, Smith listed Michigan State at No. 18 in his updated rankings.

Here’s a bit of what Smith had to say about Michigan State:

“The good news for the Spartans defense is that most of its starters are returning. The bad news is that the group ranked last in passing yards allowed (324.8) and 111th in total defense (441.9). Like last year, coach Mel Tucker was aggressive in the transfer portal to address his team’s needs.”

Other Big Ten teams listed in Smith’s rankings are Ohio State (No. 3), Michigan (No. 7), Iowa (No. 11), Wisconsin (No. 15) and Penn State (No. 20).

Check out the complete writeup on Michigan State and full rankings from Smith by clicking on the tweet below:

Contact/Follow us @The SpartansWire on Twitter, and like our page on Facebook to follow ongoing coverage of Michigan state news, notes, and opinion. You can also follow Robert Bondy on Twitter @RobertBondy5.

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Michigan State heading to Music City Bowl in updated USA TODAY Bowl Projections

Michigan State is heading to Nashville in USA TODAY’s latest bowl projections

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Michigan State is heading to Nashville in USA TODAY’s latest bowl projections.

Erick Smith of USA TODAY has the Spartans squaring off against the LSU Tigers in the Music City Bowl in his latest batch of bowl projections. The Spartans originally weren’t in Smith’s preseason bowl projections so it’s great to see them already move up into a solid bowl game after just two weeks of play.

Click here to see the complete bowl projections from Smith.

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USA TODAY: No bowl game for Spartans in 2021

Another preseason bowl predictions list has Michigan State missing out on the bowl season this year

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Add Erick Smith of USA TODAY to the list of national media that is not high on the 2021 Michigan State Spartans.

Smith released his first batch of bowl predictions for the upcoming season, and like many he evidently isn’t buying much stock in Michigan State. Smith left the Spartans off his bowl predictions last week list — joining Brett McMurphy who also put out bowl predictions that didn’t have the Spartans bowling.

Here’s Smith’s breakdown of the Big Ten teams in bowl games this year:

  • Orange Bowl (CFP Semifinal): Ohio State vs. Alabama
  • Rose Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Oregon
  • Outback Bowl: Iowa vs. Florida
  • Citrus Bowl: Penn State vs. LSU
  • Music City Bowl: Michigan vs. Ole Miss
  • Las Vegas Bowl: Indiana vs. Arizona State
  • Pinstripe Bowl: Northwestern vs. Virginia
  • Guaranteed Rate Bowl: Nebraska vs. West Virginia
  • Quick Lane Bowl: Purdue vs. Toledo
  • Redbox Bowl: Minnesota vs. Cal

Click here to read the complete bowl predictions from Smith of USA TODAY.

I don’t blame Smith for aligning with so many others in the national media, but I personally believe Michigan State will reach a bowl game this year. So it’ll be interesting to monitor Smith’s weekly updates on his bowl predictions throughout the season should the Spartans live up to my expectations of reaching a bowl game this holiday season.

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USA TODAY Bowl Projections: Win vs. Maryland could send Spartans bowling

Does a win vs Maryland on Saturday lockup a bowl bid for the Spartans? It may not be a guarantee but a victory keeps their bowl dreams alive

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Should Michigan State get the opportunity to play another game in a bowl, Mel Tucker says the Spartans would certainly accept the offer. The real question is whether or not they’ll even get that offer — but there could be some hope if they win their season-finale on Saturday.

At 2-5, it’s understandable to think MSU is unlikely to get offered a bowl bid this year. I wrote last week that they’d most likely need to win their final two games to receive a bid so, after last week’s 39-24 loss to Penn State, it appeared MSU’s bowl dreams were dead. However, after analyzing all of the factors in play, there may still be a chance for the green-and-white.

Erick Smith of USA TODAY released his latest Bowl Projections on Tuesday, and once again the Spartans were left off the list. That came as no surprise after MSU lost last week, but what stood out to me was where he has the rest of the Big Ten. Here are the bowl games Smith has Big Ten teams playing in:

  • Rose Bowl (part of College Football Playoff): Ohio State vs. Clemson
  • Cotton Bowl: Indiana vs. Oklahoma
  • Outback Bowl: Iowa vs. Auburn
  • Citrus Bowl: Northwestern vs. Ole Miss
  • Duke Mayo’s Bowl: Maryland vs. Wake Forest
  • Music City Bowl: Wisconsin vs. Missouri
  • Guaranteed Rate Bowl: Penn State vs. West Virginia

What’s notable in this projection is Indiana receiving an at-large bid for a New Year’s Six game — this frees up another Big Ten bowl tie-in for teams like MSU. If this holds true, then there will be one potential spot still up for grabs (I’m assuming Ohio State, Indiana, Iowa, Northwestern, Wisconsin and Penn State are all locks at this point).

Should MSU beat Maryland on Saturday, that would put both teams at three wins and give the Spartans the head-to-head victory. That doesn’t necessarily play a role in these bids as the bowls ultimately can choose whoever they want, but it wouldn’t hurt the Spartans’ case.

Assuming MSU wins (since a loss should rule out any chance of making a bowl), then it would come down to the Spartans, Rutgers, Maryland, Minnesota and Nebraska for the final bowl slot. I’m assuming Michigan (COVID-19 issues), Purdue (COVID-19 issues) and Illinois (recently fired head coach) are out of play for the postseason at this point.

Nebraska and Rutgers play each other this week so the loser is most likely out of play, and while it might not be fair, the Scarlet Knights have a slim chance anyway based on brand recognition. Minnesota has a tough rivalry game against Wisconsin so a loss to end the year could also knock them out of consideration. So while there are a lot of factors in play, it does still appear a win against Maryland would give MSU a chance to go bowling this season.

It’ll be extremely interesting to see how this plays out for the league, but at least it appears MSU has a lot to play for this Saturday in College Park. Kickoff for that game is scheduled for 7:30 p.m. ET and can be seen on the Big Ten Network.

Fab Four: Selecting Michigan State football’s Mount Rushmore of all-time recruits

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Will MSU be bowling this year? Assessing where Spartans could end up

Check out the four possibilities where I could see Michigan State football land this bowl season.

In a normal season, we would know by now where (or if) Michigan State football would be bowling this holiday season. However, this year we won’t have that answer for a few more weeks so we still have time to speculate where the Spartans could be bowling this year.

MSU is 2-4 on the season with two games still left on the schedule so reaching a .500 record is still in play. Again, in a normal year that would mean MSU would need to win out to qualify for a bowl, but the normal restrictions are not in place this year. So regardless of the next two week’s results, MSU is able to go bowling this year — whether they are selected or not is what we need to determine.

Erick Smith of USA TODAY currently has the Spartans not listed in his latest bowl projections — which are released every Tuesday. But that doesn’t mean MSU is dead in the water when it comes to making a bowl game. At least, not at this point in time.

Here are the four possibilities where I could see MSU land this bowl season:

USA TODAY Bowl Projections: MSU in danger of missing bowl game after blowout loss

For the first time this season, Michigan State fell out of Erick Smith’s latest bowl projections that were published on Tuesday.

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When you lose by 42 points to a team that some — including myself — thought you’d beat, odds are you’re going to get some blowback. That was the case in USA TODAY’s latest bowl projections.

For the first time this season, Michigan State fell out of Erick Smith’s latest bowl projections that were published on Tuesday. The Spartans had previously been pegged for the Guaranteed Rate Bowl against West Virginia for the past two weeks, but now it’s Purdue that Smith has playing the Mountaineers in Phoenix.

Here’s how the Big Ten teams are slated in Smith’s latest projections:

  • Rose Bowl (College Football Playoff game) – Ohio State vs. Clemson
  • Outback Bowl – Wisconsin vs. Arkansas
  • Citrus Bowl – Indiana vs. Auburn
  • Duke’s Mayo Bowl – Michigan vs. NC State
  • Music City Bowl – Northwestern vs. LSU
  • Pinstripe Bowl – Penn State vs. Virginia
  • Guaranteed Rate Bowl – Purdue vs. West Virginia

I said last week that MSU needed to win the toss-up games — Iowa, Indiana, Maryland and Northwestern — in order to get selected for a bowl game. The Spartans obviously didn’t achieve that in the first of those games, and now will need to make up for that in the next three weeks to get back into the bowl picture.

Another interesting element Spartan fans will need to monitor is whether or not the Big Ten lands a second team in a New Year’s Six game. Wisconsin was replaced by Oregon for one of the Fiesta Bowl at-large bids in this week’s projections, and that had a trickle-down effect. With Wisconsin no longer in a New Year’s Six bowl, they will take one of the Big Ten tie-ins — which results in one less bowl opportunity for the Spartans.

Certainly, MSU will need to win at least four games to beat out the likes of Iowa, Maryland, Minnesota and Nebraska for one of the lower-tier Big Ten bowls. But it would also be very helpful if Wisconsin — maybe even Indiana — move into one of the at-large spots of a New Year’s Six bowl.

Click here to check out the complete USA TODAY bowl projections.

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USA TODAY Bowl Projections: MSU still in mix for postseason following UM upset

Michigan State Football remains in USA TODAY’s latest weekly bowl projections following last week’s upset of Michigan

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For a second straight week, Michigan State is projected to head out west this holiday season.

The Spartans are still slated to play against West Virginia in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, according to the USA TODAY’s latest bowl projections by Erick Smith. There were no changes to this particular bowl prediction for Smith, with the Spartans and Mountaineers both projected to the Guaranteed Rate Bowl last week as well.

The Guaranteed Rate Bowl is scheduled to take place on Dec. 26 at Chase Field in Phoenix. Don’t be surprised if you don’t recognize the name of this bowl, as it was previously the Cactus Bowl before Guaranteed Rate, one of the largest retail mortgage lenders in the United States, became the title sponsor in late October.

It was announced last week that the Quick Lane Bowl will not occur this season, which eliminates yet another possible destination for the Spartans during the postseason. Going off of Smith’s latest projections, the Big Ten has six bowl tie-ins (not including the New Year’s Six bowls that are considered at-large bids) so it’ll be a battle for the Spartans to earn a bid this year. MSU will need to keep winning toss-up games — like this Saturday at Iowa — to remain in the hunt for a bowl this year with already a handful of games eliminated because of COVID-19.

Here’s where he has the rest of the Big Ten teams landing in his latest projections:

  • Rose Bowl (College Football Playoff) – Ohio State vs. Clemson
  • Fiesta Bowl (at-large bid) – Wisconsin vs. BYU
  • Outback Bowl – Purdue vs. LSU
  • Citrus Bowl – Penn State vs. Auburn
  • Duke’s Mayo Bowl – Indiana vs. NC State
  • Music City Bowl – Michigan vs. Tennessee 
  • Pinstripe Bowl – Northwestern vs. Pitt
  • Guaranteed Rate Bowl – Michigan State vs. West Virginia

Click here to check out the complete USA TODAY bowl projections.

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USA TODAY Bowl Projections: MSU still bowling despite loss to Rutgers?

See where — or if — Erick Smith of USA TODAY has Michigan State playing this holiday season in his most recent Bowl Projections.

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Could Michigan State football still go bowling this season? Many would say no after last week’s season-opening loss to Rutgers but Erick Smith of USA TODAY sees it differently in his latest release of bowl projections.

Smith has the Spartans facing off against the Mountaineers of West Virginia in the Guaranteed Rate Bowl in his latest projections that came out on Tuesday. For those not familliar with the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, it was formerly known as the Cheez-It Bowl the previous two years and once was the Buffalo Wild Wings Bowl — which Michigan State won in 2012.

This year’s Guaranteed Rate Bowl’s date is still unknown and is set to take place in Phoenix. West Virginia is 3-2 on the season.

In last week’s projections, Smith had the Spartans playing against Buffalo in the Quick Lane Bowl. So what is puzzling to me is how could MSU move up the bowl pecking order — Guaranteed Rate Bowl is considered a higher ranked Big Ten bowl game than the Quick Lane Bowl — despite losing in embarassing fashion to Rutgers this past Saturday? It doesn’t make sense.

With teams not playing the typical 12 – 13 regular season games, bowl game restrictions have been thrown out the window for this year — which means a team like MSU could still play in the postseason despite a losing record. Of course, there’s still the uncertainity of any lower tier bowl games actually being played this year, with already a handful of bowls announcing they won’t take place. So we have to keep that in mind as well.

Click here to see where Smith has the rest of the Big Ten bowling this season in his complete bowl projections.

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