Bowl Projections: 2019's First Look at Every Matchup and the Playoff
Week 1 didn’t do much to impact the race for the College Football Playoff, with 24 of the AP Top 25 teams now sitting at 1–0. Oregon dropped its opener to Auburn—and subsequently dealt a serious blow to the Pac-12’s Playoff hopes—yet aside from the Ducks, the top tier of teams remain in position to compete for the national title in December and January
The season’s first true Saturday still provided some insight into the title race, however. Oklahoma’s offense looks as lethal as ever with Jalen Hurts replacing Kyler Murray, and LSU could have its best attack in a decade. Perhaps Auburn can enter the Playoff discussion if freshman Bo Nix continues to shine after his Week 1 heroics.
The CFP picture and subsequent bowl slotting will become clearer in coming weeks, but we at Sports Illustrated took our first stab at bowl projections following the conclusion of Week 1 action on Monday night. So where could your favorite team play this postseason? Check out our entire slate of bowl projections below:
Dec. 20
Bahamas Bowl, Nassau (2 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Conference USA vs. MAC
Louisiana Tech vs. Eastern Michigan
Frisco Bowl (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN2)
American vs. Sun Belt
USF vs. Louisiana Lafayette
Dec. 21
Celebration Bowl, Atlanta (12 p.m. ET, ABC)
MEAC vs. SWAC
North Carolina A&T vs. Alcorn State
New Mexico Bowl, Albuquerque (2 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Conference USA vs. MWC
Southern Miss vs. Nevada
Cure Bowl, Orlando (2:30 p.m. ET, CBSSN)
American vs. Sun Belt
Tulane vs. Arkansas State
Boca Raton Bowl (3:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
MAC vs. American
Buffalo vs. Temple
Camellia Bowl, Montgomery (5:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
MAC vs. Sun Belt
Northern Illinois vs. Appalachian State
Las Vegas Bowl (7:30 p.m. ET, ABC)
Pac-12 vs. SEC or Big Ten or MWC
Washington State vs. Boise State
New Orleans Bowl (9 p.m. ET, ESPN)
C-USA vs. Sun Belt
Florida Atlantic vs. Troy
Dec. 23
Gasparilla Bowl, Tampa (2:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Conference USA vs. ACC or American
Marshall vs. Cincinnati
Dec. 24
Hawai'i Bowl, Honolulu (8 p.m. ET, ESPN)
MWC vs. BYU or American
Fresno State vs. SMU
Dec. 26
Independence Bowl, Shreveport (4 p.m. ET, ESPN)
SEC vs. ACC or Notre Dame
Arkansas vs. Wake Forest
Quick Lane Bowl, Detroit (8 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big Ten vs. ACC or Notre Dame
Purdue vs. Florida State
Dec. 27
Military Bowl, Annapolis (12 p.m. ET, ESPN)
American vs. ACC or Notre Dame
Memphis vs. North Carolina
Pinstripe Bowl, Bronx (3:20 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big Ten vs. ACC or Notre Dame
Iowa vs. Boston College
Texas Bowl, Houston (6:45 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Baylor vs. Mississippi State
Holiday Bowl, San Diego (8 p.m. ET, FS1)
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Maryland vs. Washington
Cheez-It Bowl, Phoenix (10:15 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Arizona State vs. Texas Tech
Dec. 28
Camping World Bowl, Orlando (12 p.m. ET, ABC)
Big 12 vs. ACC or Notre Dame
Iowa State vs. Notre Dame
Dec. 30
First Responder Bowl, Dallas (12:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Conference USA
TCU vs. North Texas
Music City Bowl, Nashville (4 p.m. ET, ESPN)
SEC vs. ACC or Big Ten or Notre Dame
Vanderbilt vs. Northwestern
Redbox Bowl, Santa Clara (4 p.m. ET, FOX)
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Michigan State vs. USC
Dec. 31
Belk Bowl, Charlotte (12 p.m. ET, ESPN)
SEC vs. ACC
South Carolina vs. Syracuse
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl, El Paso (2 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Pac-12 vs. ACC or Notre Dame
Stanford vs. Virginia Tech
Liberty Bowl, Memphis (3:45 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Texas Tech vs. Kentucky
Arizona Bowl, Tucson (4:30 p.m. ET, CBSSN)
MWC vs. Sun Belt
Wyoming vs. Louisiana Monroe
Alamo Bowl, San Antonio (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Oklahoma State vs. Oregon
Jan. 1
Citrus Bowl, Orlando (1 p.m. ET, ABC)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Wisconsin vs. Texas A&M
Outback Bowl, Tampa (1 p.m. ET, ESPN)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Penn State vs. Florida
Jan. 2
Birmingham Bowl (3 p.m. ET, ESPN)
ACC vs. American
Miami vs. Houston
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl, Jacksonville (7 p.m. ET, ESPN)
SEC vs. ACC or Big Ten or Notre Dame
Tennessee vs. Nebraska
Jan. 3
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl, Boise (3:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
MAC vs. MWC
Western Michigan vs. Utah State
Jan 4
Armed Forces Bowl, Fort Worth (11:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
MWC vs. Big Ten
Army vs. Indiana
Jan. 6
Mobile Alabama Bowl (7:30 p.m. ET, ESPN)
MAC vs. Sun Belt
Ohio vs. Georgia Southern
New Year's Six Bowls
Cotton Bowl Classic, Arlington (Dec. 28, noon, ESPN)
At-large vs. At-large
Auburn vs. UCF
Orange Bowl, Miami Gardens (Dec. 30, 8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten, SEC or Notre Dame
Virginia vs. Ohio State
Rose Bowl Game, Pasadena (Jan. 1, 5 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Michigan vs. Utah
Sugar Bowl, New Orleans (Jan. 1, 8:45 p.m., ESPN)
SEC vs. Big 12
Texas vs. LSU
Fiesta Bowl, Glendale (Dec. 28, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Clemson vs. Georgia
Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl, New Orleans (Dec. 28, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Alabama vs. Oklahoma
College Football Playoff National Championship, New Orleans (Jan. 13, 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinal winner vs. CFP semifinal winner
