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College Football Bowl Projections 2018: Big Changes in New Year’s Six after Week 9

By John Mitchell

(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)
(Photo by Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images)
(Photo by Brett Deering/Getty Images) /

December 29

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl: Georgia vs. UCF
Noon ET, ESPN – Atlanta, Georgia

January 1

PlayStation Fiesta Bowl: West Virginia vs. Kentucky
1 pm ET, ESPN – Glendale, Arizona

Rose Bowl Game Presented by Northwestern Mutual: Ohio State vs. Washington State
5 pm ET, ESPN – Pasadena, California

Allstate Sugar Bowl: LSU vs. Oklahoma
8:45 pm ET, ESPN – New Orleans, Louisiana

The skinny

I think there’s a very real possibility that five SEC teams end up in the New Year’s Six. Four seems like the safest bet, but imagine this scenario:

  • Alabama wins out, beats Georgia for the SEC Championship
  • Georgia wins out, loses to Alabama in the SEC Championship
  • LSU loses to Alabama, but wins out from there
  • Kentucky loses to Georgia, but wins out from there
  • Florida wins out

That scenario would give us: 13-0 Alabama, 11-2 Georgia, 10-2 LSU, 10-2 Kentucky, and 10-2 Florida. That would be five SEC teams with 10+ wins, and they would all have legitimate arguments for inclusion in the playoff. For now, I chose Kentucky over Florida on the strength of their head-to-head win, but both are in great positions still.

Washington State and West Virginia jump into the New Year’s Six along with Kentucky, replacing Washington, Texas, and Florida. The Cougars could work their way into the playoff if things break in their favor as they represent the PAC-12’s only possibility of getting in this year.

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