Now that Week 3 of college football is on the books it is time to look ahead to where the top schools in the nation might play in the postseason. Among the embers of the media submitting their predictions for this year’s round of bowls games is USA TODAY Sports’ Erick Smith, who published his outlook after the third full weekend of gridiron action.
The Florida Gators land in the Las Vegas Bowl against the UCLA Bruins according to Smith’s projection, which is slated for December 17 in the eponymous location. The matchup between a Southeastern Conference and Pac-12 school follows the bowl game’s affiliations and would represent the second west coast foe faced this season for the Orange and Blue following its Week 1 win over the Utah Utes.
Despite the win over the South Florida Bulls, Smith’s update represents a downgrade from last week’s prediction, in which he foresaw the Gators facing the Baylor Bears in the Liberty Bowl on December 28. Prior to that, after the upset win over Utah, he had Florida matched up with the Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the ReliaQuest Bowl on January 2, 2023.
The Gators can make up some ground with a road win over the Tennessee Volunteers this Saturday, which is scheduled to start at 3:30 p.m. EDT and will be broadcast on CBS Sports.
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