Last week, I projected this year’s College Football Playoff teams and was surprised by the level of skepticism coming from the Crimson Tide faithful this season despite their preseason ranking inside the Top 5.

If Nick Saban figures out his quarterback situation, Alabama certainly has the talent — especially on defense — to win another SEC championship and make another national semifinals appearance.

But fans don’t seem to be sold on the idea just yet.

RELATED: Bowl projections from national media outlets

Projecting the rest of the SEC tie-ins and team-by-team finishes gets tricky, but that’s what preseason predictions are about — trying to determine each team’s value at season’s end.

After last year’s lackluster showing for the league in big-time bowl games, something Kirk Herbstreit alluded to last week, here’s to hoping the SEC shows up during the holidays this fall:

2015 SEC FINAL PRESEASON BOWL PROJECTIONS (12 invites)

  • College Football Playoff Semifinal (Cotton Bowl): Alabama vs. TCU
  • New Year’s Six Peach: Georgia vs. Clemson
  • New Year’s Six Sugar: Auburn vs. Baylor
  • Citrus: LSU vs. Wisconsin
  • Outback: Tennessee vs. Nebraska
  • Music City: Mizzou vs. Georgia Tech
  • Belk: South Carolina vs. N.C. State
  • Liberty: Ole Miss vs. Oklahoma State
  • TaxSlayer: Arkansas vs. Penn State
  • Texas: Texas A&M vs. Oklahoma
  • Independence: Florida vs. Miami
  • Birmingham: Mississippi State vs. Memphis

 On the outside looking in: Kentucky, Vanderbilt