Final SEC bowl projections: Alabama, Tennessee earn NY6 nods, Georgia stays No. 1
The College Football Playoff field will be unveiled at 12 pm (ET) Sunday.
One SEC team is a lock and has been for most of the season. Georgia made that very clear with a 50-30 victory over No. 14 LSU in the SEC Championship Game Saturday afternoon.
Alabama, as much as some may want to argue, will have a tough time cracking the field over Ohio State or TCU. Both have 1 loss and better wins, with TCU’s only loss coming in overtime in the Big 12 title game to a team it beat earlier in the season. Plus, it’s hard to punish the Horned Frogs for competing in their conference championship game and taking the No. 10 team in the country to overtime.
The Crimson Tide will face that team, too. Alabama is slated to play in the Sugar Bowl ahead of Tennessee, while the Vols will battle against Clemson in the Orange Bowl – true to its name.
LSU, despite having lost 2 in a row, should be set for a Citrus Bowl nod over South Carolina with their SEC Championship Game appearance. The Gamecocks are likely to battle Illinois in Tampa.
In total, 11 of the 14 SEC teams will play in a bowl game this season. Auburn lost its slim chance of squeaking in as an APR team when New Mexico State’s waiver to the NCAA was approved. Buffalo was able to take care of business against Akron as well, stealing the last of the 82 spots available.
We’ve reached the end of the road. Here are the final SEC bowl projections of the 2022 college football season.
Final SEC college football bowl projections
Peach Bowl (Playoff semifinal): Georgia vs. Ohio State
Fiesta Bowl (Playoff semifinal): Michigan vs. TCU
Sugar Bowl: Alabama vs. Kansas State
Orange: Tennessee vs. Clemson
Citrus: LSU vs. Purdue
ReliaQuest: South Carolina vs. Illinois
Gator: Mississippi State vs. NC State
Music City: Ole Miss vs. Iowa
Liberty: Kentucky vs. Kansas
Las Vegas: Florida vs. Oregon State
Texas: Mizzou vs. Texas Tech
Birmingham: Arkansas vs. Memphis