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

DATEBOWLTEAMS
Dec. 19Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco BowlUTSA vs. Nevada
Dec. 21Myrtle Beach BowlMemphis vs. Appalachian State
Dec. 22Famous Idaho Potato BowlBuffalo vs. San Diego State
Dec. 22Boca Raton BowlUCF vs. FAU
Dec. 23R+L Carriers New Orleans BowlLouisiana Tech vs. Coastal Carolina
Dec. 23Montgomery Bowl*Toledo vs. Iowa
Dec. 24New Mexico BowlHawaii vs. Stanford
Dec. 25Camellia BowlCentral Michigan vs. South Alabama
Dec. 26Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla BowlBYU vs. Liberty
Dec. 26Cure BowlCharlotte vs. Miami, Ohio
Dec. 26SERVPRO First Responder BowlIowa State vs. Washington*
Dec. 26LendingTree BowlUAB vs. Louisiana
Dec. 26Radiance Technologies Independence BowlArmy vs. Utah
Dec. 26Guaranteed Rate BowlWest Virginia vs. Minnesota
Dec. 28Military Bowl Presented by PerspectaNavy vs. N.C. State
Dec. 29New Era Pinstripe BowlPurdue vs. Virginia Tech
Dec. 29Cheez-It BowlKansas State vs. Louisville
Dec. 29Valero Alamo BowlOklahoma vs. Arizona State
Dec. 30Duke’s Mayo BowlNebraska vs. Georgia Tech
Dec. 30TransPerfect Music City BowlLSU vs. Indiana
Dec. 30LA BowlUSC vs. Boise State
Dec. 31Lockheed Martin Armed Forces BowlSMU vs. Marshall
Dec. 31Tony the Tiger Sun BowlCal vs. Boston College
Dec. 31AutoZone Liberty BowlTexas vs. Arkansas
Dec. 31Arizona BowlOhio vs. Air Force
Dec. 31Texas BowlTCU vs. Tennessee
Jan. 1TicketSmarter Birmingham BowlTulsa vs. Missouri
Jan. 1Vrbo Citrus BowlTexas A&M vs. Penn State
Jan. 2TaxSlayer Gator BowlAuburn vs. North Carolina
Jan. 2Outback BowlKentucky vs. Northwestern

New Year's Day 6 projections after Week 8

DateBowlMatchup
Dec. 30Goodyear Cotton BowlOklahoma State vs. Michigan
Jan. 1Chick-Fil-A Peach BowlGeorgia vs. Miami
Jan. 2PlayStation Fiesta BowlCincinnati vs. Wisconsin
Jan. 2Capital One Orange BowlFlorida vs. Notre Dame

College Football Playoff projections after Week 8

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

Bill Bender

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.