Hoosier Huddle's Bowl Projections September 29
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The Indiana Hoosiers beat Maryland 42-28 and improved to 5-0 on the season. The calendar has not even turned to October and there is a whole lot of season remaining, but the Hoosiers are just one win away from bowl eligibility. There are so many factors at play that will determine where teams get slotted: how many Big Ten teams make the expanded College Football Playoff? How does conference consolidation and the dissolution of the PAC-12 impact bowl tie-ins? How will the rest of IU’s regular season play out? Those disclaimers in place, let’s guess away and start dreaming!
Editor’s Note: Sammy Jacobs is handling bowl projections this week as T.J. Inman is without power due to the storms last week in South Carolina.
College Football Playoff Projections
Alabama Crimson Tide – SEC Champion
Ohio State Buckeyes – Big Ten Champion
Miami Hurricanes – ACC Champion
Iowa State Cyclones – Big 12 Champion
Texas Longhorns vs. 12. Boise State Broncos (G5 Selection)
Tennessee Volunteers vs. 11. Notre Dame Fighting Irish
Georgia Bulldogs vs. 10. Penn State Nittany Lions
Oregon Ducks vs. 9. Clemson Tigers
Big Ten Bowl Projections
I have three Big Ten teams (Ohio State, Oregon and Penn State) in the College Football Playoff so the Big Ten’s bowl slotting process begins after those top three teams.
Alamo Bowl – USC vs. BYU Cougars
Cheez-Itz Citrus Bowl – Indiana vs. Missouri
Reliaquest Bowl – Michigan vs. Texas A&M
Duke’s Mayo Bowl – Illinois vs. Boston College
Music City Bowl – Nebraska vs. Oklahoma
Independence Bowl – Washington vs. Iowa State
Pinstripe Bowl – Maryland vs. Georgia Tech
Liberty Bowl – Oklahoma State vs. Rutgers
Guaranteed Rate Bowl – Texas Tech vs. Iowa
Detroit Bowl – Michigan State vs. Northern Illinois
Gasparilla Bowl – Wisconsin vs. Duke
Indiana vs. Missouri in Cheez-Itz Citrus Bowl – December 31, 2024, Orlando, FL
We currently have the Hoosiers moving up in the bowl pecking order to the Citrus Bowl. With the three Big Ten teams headed to the Playoff and USC filling a Pac-12 spot in the Alamo Bowl, the next best Big Ten team should be Indiana. Illinois falls to the Mayo Bowl and Michigan heads to the Reliaquest Bowl.
The Big Ten may be in danger of not filling all of their bowl slots with Washington losing at Rutgers and with Purdue, UCLA and Minnesota all having three losses already. There is still a long way to go until the CFP selection show and crazy things have already happened with Ole Miss losing to Kentucky.