College football bowl projections: Michigan, Wisconsin crash New Year's Day 6 after Week 8

Bill Bender

College football bowl projections: Michigan, Wisconsin crash New Year's Day 6 after Week 8 image

The Big Ten returned to action over the weekend, and that led to some changes in our bowl projections after the Week 8 slate of games.

Michigan replaced Penn State in our New Year’s Day 6 after an impressive victory against Minnesota. Our College Football Playoff picks remain the same, with Clemson, Ohio State, Alabama and Oregon holding their spots. The Ducks begin play in two weeks.

Two more bowls — the Fenway Bowl and Holiday Bowl — announced that they will not be played in 2020. We tweaked our projections to account for the changes.

MORE: AP, Coaches polls after Week 8

This season's semifinals are Jan. 1 at the Rose Bowl Game and Sugar Bowl. The Playoff championship game will be Jan. 11 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla.

With that in mind, here are Sporting News' picks for the College Football Playoff and New Year's Day Six heading into Week 9:

Bowl projections after Week 8

DATE BOWL TEAMS
Dec. 19 Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl UTSA vs. Nevada
Dec. 21 Myrtle Beach Bowl Memphis vs. Appalachian State
Dec. 22 Famous Idaho Potato Bowl Buffalo vs. San Diego State
Dec. 22 Boca Raton Bowl UCF vs. FAU
Dec. 23 R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl Louisiana Tech vs. Coastal Carolina
Dec. 23 Montgomery Bowl* Toledo vs. Iowa
Dec. 24 New Mexico Bowl Hawaii vs. Stanford
Dec. 25 Camellia Bowl Central Michigan vs. South Alabama
Dec. 26 Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl BYU vs. Liberty
Dec. 26 Cure Bowl Charlotte vs. Miami, Ohio
Dec. 26 SERVPRO First Responder Bowl Iowa State vs. Washington*
Dec. 26 LendingTree Bowl UAB vs. Louisiana
Dec. 26 Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl Army vs. Utah
Dec. 26 Guaranteed Rate Bowl West Virginia vs. Minnesota
Dec. 28 Military Bowl Presented by Perspecta Navy vs. N.C. State
Dec. 29 New Era Pinstripe Bowl Purdue vs. Virginia Tech
Dec. 29 Cheez-It Bowl Kansas State vs. Louisville
Dec. 29 Valero Alamo Bowl Oklahoma vs. Arizona State
Dec. 30 Duke’s Mayo Bowl Nebraska vs. Georgia Tech
Dec. 30 TransPerfect Music City Bowl LSU vs. Indiana
Dec. 30 LA Bowl USC vs. Boise State
Dec. 31 Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl SMU vs. Marshall
Dec. 31 Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl Cal vs. Boston College
Dec. 31 AutoZone Liberty Bowl Texas vs. Arkansas
Dec. 31 Arizona Bowl Ohio vs. Air Force
Dec. 31 Texas Bowl TCU vs. Tennessee
Jan. 1 TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl Tulsa vs. Missouri
Jan. 1 Vrbo Citrus Bowl Texas A&M vs. Penn State
Jan. 2 TaxSlayer Gator Bowl Auburn vs. North Carolina
Jan. 2 Outback Bowl Kentucky vs. Northwestern

New Year's Day 6 projections after Week 8

Date Bowl Matchup
Dec. 30 Goodyear Cotton Bowl Oklahoma State vs. Michigan
Jan. 1 Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl Georgia vs. Miami
Jan. 2 PlayStation Fiesta Bowl Cincinnati vs. Wisconsin
Jan. 2 Capital One Orange Bowl Florida vs. Notre Dame

College Football Playoff projections after Week 8

Date Bowl Matchup
Jan. 1 Rose Bowl Game (semifinal) Alabama vs. Ohio State
Jan. 1 Allstate Sugar Bowl (semifinal) Clemson vs. Oregon
Jan. 11 CFP Championship Game Ohio State vs. Clemson

Bill Bender

Bill Bender Photo

Bill Bender graduated from Ohio University in 2002 and started at The Sporting News as a fantasy football writer in 2007. He has covered the College Football Playoff, NBA Finals and World Series for SN. Bender enjoys story-telling, awesomely-bad 80s movies and coaching youth sports.