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The committee has spoken: No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama in the Rose Bowl and No. 2 Washington vs. No. 3 Texas in the Sugar Bowl. Having incorrectly predicted FSU would make it, the ripple effect on the rest of our bowl lineup was massive.
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The ACC champion ‘Noles are now locked into the Orange Bowl, with a heck of a consolation prize: A date with No. 6 Georgia. Ole Miss takes Louisville’s place in the New Year’s Six pool, playing Penn State in the Peach Bowl. It’s Ohio State-Missouri in the Cotton Bowl and, a mild surprise, Oregon vs. Liberty in the Fiesta. With the Flames edging out SMU, the AAC’s lineup below the New Year’s Six changes.
The ripple effect of Ole Miss moving up is the SEC will now be two short on eligible teams for its Nos. 3-8 bowls. We have Memphis taking their spot in the Liberty Bowl. It’s unclear which other SEC bowl will go dark, but we’re guessing the Music City. Meanwhile, with Louisville out, every ACC team (save for Notre Dame in Orlando) got moved. We have the Cardinals in San Diego, but the Gator Bowl is a possibility as well.
Stay tuned for more developments.
GO DEEPER
Georgia loses to Alabama: Possible CFP scenarios
A few bullet points:
• All 82 qualifiers are known and the pairings are released Sunday. There were 79 teams eligible. James Madison and Jacksonville State filled two spots as second-year transitional squads. Minnesota was the only 5-7 team to qualify with the best Academic Progress Report (APR).
Friendly reminder: Bowls rarely choose teams in order of conference standings. When you see USC listed as “Pac-12 No. 4,” it does not mean the Trojans are the Pac-12’s fourth-place team but that the Holiday Bowl uses its No. 4 pick to select them.
Another note: If ESPN is listed after a team, that means ESPN Events has the selection for that bowl game. ESPN Events owns and operates 18 bowls and picks from a pool of mostly Group of 5 teams. All times ET.
The fine print:
* Replacement for a conference without enough eligible teams
** Projected 5-7 team
New Year's Six
| Bowl | Date | Teams | Location | Time | 
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cotton | Dec. 29 | Missouri (at-large) vs. Ohio State (at-large) | Arlington, Texas | 8 p.m. ET | 
| Peach | Dec. 30 | Ole Miss (at-large) vs. Penn State (at-large) | Atlanta | Noon ET | 
| Orange | Dec. 30 | Florida State (ACC) vs. Georgia (SEC/Big Ten/ND) | Miami | 4 p.m. ET | 
| Fiesta | Jan. 1 | Oregon (at-large) vs. Liberty (Group of 5) | Glendale, Ariz. | 1 p.m. ET | 
| Rose | Jan. 1 | No. 1 Michigan vs. No. 4 Alabama | Pasadena, Calif. | 5 p.m. ET | 
| Sugar | Jan. 1 | No. 2 Washington vs. No. 3 Texas | New Orleans | 8:45 p.m. ET | 
Remaining Bowls
| BOWL | DATE | TEAM | TEAM | LOCATION | TIME | 
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Independence | Dec. 16 | West Virginia (Big 12 No. 7) | Cal (Pac-12 7) | Shreveport, La. | 9:15 p.m. | 
| LA Bowl | Dec. 16 | UCLA (Pac-12 6) | Boise State (MWC 1) | Inglewood, Calif. | 7:30 p.m. | 
| New Mexico | Dec. 16 | Fresno State (MWC) | New Mexico State (ESPN) | Albuquerque, NM | 5:45 p.m. | 
| Cure | Dec. 16 | Tulane (ESPN) | Troy (ESPN) | Orlando, Fla. | 3:30 p.m. | 
| New Orleans | Dec. 16 | Louisiana (Sun Belt) | Jacksonville St. (C-USA) | New Orleans | 2:15 p.m. | 
| Myrtle Beach | Dec. 16 | Georgia State (ESPN) | Ohio (ESPN) | Conway, SC | 11 a.m. | 
| Famous Toastery | Dec. 18 | Appalachian State (ESPN) | Western Kentucky (ESPN) | Charlotte, NC | 2:30 p.m. | 
| Frisco | Dec. 19 | Texas State (ESPN) | Wyoming (ESPN) | Frisco, Texas | 9 p.m. | 
| Boca Raton | Dec. 21 | USF (ESPN) | Marshall (ESPN) | Boca Raton, Fla. | 8 p.m. | 
| Gasparilla | Dec. 22 | UCF (ESPN) | Toledo (ESPN) | Tampa, Fla. | 6:30 p.m. | 
| Hawaii (official) | Dec. 23 | San Jose State (MWC) | Coastal Carolina* (AAC) | Honolulu | 10:30 p.m. | 
| Vegas | Dec. 23 | Utah (Pac-12 3) | Maryland (Big Ten 4) | Las Vegas | 7:30 p.m. | 
| 68 Ventures | Dec. 23 | South Alabama (Sun Belt) | Eastern Michigan (MAC) | Mobile, Ala. | 7 p.m. | 
| Idaho Potato | Dec. 23 | Utah State (MWC) | Arkansas State (ESPN) | Boise, Idaho | 3:30 p.m. | 
| Armed Forces | Dec. 23 | James Madison (ESPN) | Air Force (ESPN) | Fort Worth, Texas | 3:30 p.m. | 
| Birmingham | Dec. 23 | Texas Tech (ESPN) | Duke (ACC/SEC) | Birmingham, Ala. | Noon | 
| Camellia | Dec. 23 | Bowling Green (ESPN) | Old Dominion (ESPN) | Montgomery, Ala. | Noon | 
| Guaranteed Rate | Dec. 26 | Minnesota** (Big Ten 7) | Kansas (Big 12 6) | Phoenix, Ariz. | 9 p.m. | 
| First Responder | Dec. 26 | Rice (ESPN) | Georgia Southern (ESPN) | University Park, Texas | 5:30 p.m. | 
| Quick Lane | Dec. 26 | Syracuse* (Big Ten 8) | NIU (MAC) | Detroit | 2 p.m. | 
| Texas | Dec. 27 | Oklahoma State (Big 12 4) | Texas A&M (SEC 3-8) | Houston | 9 p.m. | 
| Holiday | Dec. 27 | Louisville (ACC 2-4) | USC (Pac-12 4) | San Diego, Calif. | 8 p.m. | 
| Duke's Mayo | Dec. 27 | Kentucky (SEC 3-8) | North Carolina (ACC 5-7) | Charlotte, NC | 5:30 p.m. | 
| Military | Dec. 27 | SMU (AAC) | Virginia Tech (ACC 8) | Annapolis, Md. | 2 p.m. | 
| Alamo | Dec. 28 | Oklahoma (Big 12 2) | Arizona (Pac-12 2) | San Antonio | 9:15 p.m. | 
| Pop-Tarts | Dec. 28 | Kansas State (Big 12 3) | Notre Dame (ACC 2-4) | Orlando, Fla. | 5:45 p.m. | 
| Pinstripe | Dec. 28 | Rutgers (Big Ten 6) | Miami (ACC 5-7) | Bronx, NY | 2:15 p.m. | 
| Fenway | Dec. 28 | Boston College (ACC 10) | UTSA (AAC) | Boston | 11 a.m. | 
| Liberty | Dec. 29 | Iowa State (Big 12 6) | Memphis* (SEC 3-8) | Memphis, Tenn. | 3:30 p.m. | 
| Sun | Dec. 29 | Clemson (ACC 5-7) | Oregon State (Pac-12 5) | El Paso, Texas | 2 p.m. | 
| Gator | Dec. 29 | NC State (ACC 2-4) | Auburn (SEC 3-8) | Jacksonville, Fla. | Noon | 
| Arizona | Dec. 30 | UNLV (MWC) | Miami of Ohio (MAC) | Tucson, Ariz. | 4:30 p.m. | 
| Music City | Dec. 30 | Northwestern (Big Ten 5) | Georgia Tech* (SEC 3-8) | Nashville, Tenn. | 2 p.m. | 
| Citrus | Jan. 1 | Iowa (Big Ten No. 2) | Tennessee (SEC No. 2) | Orlando, Fla. | 1 p.m. | 
| ReliaQuest | Jan. 1 | Wisconsin (Big Ten No. 3) | LSU (SEC 3-8) | Tampa, Fla. | Noon | 
GO DEEPER
FSU coach 'disgusted' by CFP decision
(Photo of Jalen Milroe: Kevin C. Cox / Getty)
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