2009-2010 Bowl Projections

Football-Bowl.com is a leading provider of college football bowl game information, schedules, historical data & much more. We are well aware of the fact that numerous sports site provide their annual bowl predictions as they make their picks for the 34 college bowl games to be played this season, and as a result we're here to bring you what we feel are the top sites for bowl projections. If you are looking to find out where your favorite school may be bowling this season, look no further than the 2009-2010 bowl projections here at Football-Bowl.com, the leading online destination for information on college football bowl games! Also, be sure to check out the 2009-2010 college football bowl schedule for all of the important dates & times for bowl games this winter.

Bowl Predictions & Projections for November 29, 2009

Bowl games were originally founded as a way to match up some of the top teams in the country for an exhibition game after the season has concluded. In fact, the finals polls didn’t include bowl games until the 1970s! The original bowl game, the Rose Bowl, has become the most celebrated in the country outside of the newly created BCS National Championship Game and is known now as the ‘Granddaddy of them All.’ Since then, bowl games have become an integral part of every college football season.

Bowl games are also the reward for a great season. Teams must finish with a minimum of a 6-6 record to qualify for a postseason berth and each conference has specific bowl tie-ins that are listed next to each game.

Remember, bowls often strike deals with each other to get a more favorable match up to sell more tickets or produce higher TV ratings. For example, the Hawai’i Bowl always gets the local Warriors if they’re bowl eligible and not playing in a BCS game. Another great example is Boise State’s berth in the Poinsettia Bowl last year: The WAC’s most visible team needed a stronger matchup than their expected Humanitarian Bowl berth and the league made it happen. So, don’t assume that a team has a berth because that is their expected outright finish.

For example, the Outback Bowl took Iowa over Northwestern last year because Iowa travels much better. That happened despite Northwestern finishing ahead of Iowa in the Big Ten standings! Thus, when I say that a bowl has the #4 team from your favorite conference that means it isn’t obligated to take the 4th place finisher.

A good example from this week’s projections would be in the Big XII: Oklahoma’s record isn’t great but I would be shocked if they were passed over in favor of the conference’s two 8 win teams because of the Sooners’ appeal to fans and television.

One more interesting note: The BCS bowl selection order after bowls replace their lost automatic bids to the National Title Game is Orange, Fiesta, Sugar for this particular postseason. That should help guide questions about the selection process.

As next weekend is the final slate of games, we’ll have the actual bowl matchups announced next Sunday! Thus, here are the Final Bowl Projections!

Note: * designates a clinched bowl berth

2010 BCS BOWLS

BCS Championship - January 8, 2010 - (BCS #1 vs. BCS #2): Alabama vs. Texas

Both Alabama and Texas are undefeated heading into their respective conference championship games this weekend and are my pick to win their leagues. If both teams emerge victorious, they will earn a chance to play for the national title.

Rose Bowl - January 1, 2010 - (Pac Ten Champ vs. Big Ten Champ): Oregon vs. Ohio State*

Ohio State has already clinched the Big Ten’s automatic berth into the Rose Bowl and is awaiting the winner of this Thursday’s Civil War Showdown. My pick to win that game and the Pac Ten is Oregon, matching up the Buckeyes and Ducks in Pasadena.

Sugar Bowl - January 1, 2010 - (SEC Champ vs. At Large): Florida vs. Texas Christian

For every winner there is a loser and unfortunately for the Gators, they’re my choice to lose the SEC title game. However, their consolation prize will likely be a trip to New Orleans for the Sugar Bowl. Meanwhile, the Sugar Bowl had a solid experience with an undefeated Mountain West Champion traveling well last season and TCU’s proximity will only help their appeal to the Sugar Bowl. I expect another MWC-SEC showdown in the Crescent City.

Orange Bowl - January 5, 2010 - (ACC Champ vs. At Large): Georgia Tech vs. Pittsburgh

Georgia Tech is my favorite to emerge from the ACC and that would give them the conference’s automatic berth in the Orange Bowl. Meanwhile, Pittsburgh remains my favorite to win the Big East and despite their recent loss to West Virginia, I am picking the Panthers to earn the conference’s automatic BCS bid and be snapped up by the Orange Bowl.

Fiesta Bowl - January 4, 2010 - (Big XII Champ vs. At Large): Iowa vs. Boise State

As the Fiesta Bowl is expected to lose Texas to the National Title Game, they’ll have the 2 nd choice to replace their lost tie-in. As no Big XII team is expected to be a viable at-large candidate, I expect Iowa to fill the void as the bowl’s replacement. Their opponent, Boise State, traveled well to the Fiesta Bowl in 2006 and barring a surprise selection of a 3 loss team (USC perhaps?) ahead of the Broncos, Boise State appears set for an at-large bid and the Fiesta Bowl makes the most sense.

December, 19th Bowl Games

• St. Petersburg Bowl (Big East #6 vs. C-USA/Sun Belt): South Florida vs. Central Florida
• New Mexico Bowl (WAC #3 vs. MWC #5): Fresno State vs. Bowling Green (Not Enough MWC Teams)

December, 20th Bowl Games

• New Orleans Bowl (Sun Belt #1 vs. C-USA #4): Troy* vs. Southern Mississippi

December, 22nd Bowl Games

• Las Vegas Bowl (Pac Ten #4/5 vs. MWC #1): Oregon State vs. Utah

December, 23rd Bowl Games

• Poinsettia Bowl (Pac Ten #6 vs. MWC #2): Arizona vs. BYU

December, 24th Bowl Games

• Hawai’i Bowl (C-USA #2 vs. WAC #2): East Carolina vs. Nevada

December, 26th Bowl Games

• Meineke Car Care Bowl (Big East #3 vs. ACC #5/6): West Virginia vs. Boston College
• Little Caesar’s Pizza Bowl (Big Ten #7 vs. MAC #1): Southern Methodist vs Central Michigan
• Emerald Bowl (ACC #7 vs. Pac Ten #4/5): Florida State vs. Stanford

December, 27th Bowl Games

• Music City Bowl (ACC #5 vs. SEC #6/7/8): North Carolina vs. Kentucky

December, 28th Bowl Games

• Independence Bowl (Big XII #7 vs. SEC #6/7/8): Texas A&M vs. Georgia

December 29th Bowl Games

• Champs Sports Bowl (Big Ten #4 vs. ACC #4): Northwestern vs. Clemson
• Chik-Fil-A Bowl (ACC #2 vs. SEC #3/4/5): Virginia Tech vs. Tennessee

December 30th Bowl Games

• Holiday Bowl (Pac Ten #2 vs. Big XII #3): Southern California vs. Nebraska
• Humanitarian Bowl (WAC #1 vs. MWC #3/4): Idaho vs. Wyoming
• Eaglebank Bowl (ACC #8 vs. Army/C-USA): Middle Tennessee State (Not Enough ACC Teams) vs. Temple

December 31st Bowl Games

• Sun Bowl (Pac Ten #3 vs. Big XII #5, Notre Dame tie-in ): California vs. Texas Tech
• Insight Bowl (Big XII #6 vs. Big Ten #6): Missouri vs. Minnesota
• Texas Bowl (Big XII #8 vs. C-USA #3/4): Iowa State vs. Navy*
• Armed Forces Bowl (Pac Ten #7 vs. MWC #3/4): UCLA vs. Air Force

January 1st Bowl Games

• Gator Bowl (Big East #2/Notre Dame vs. ACC #3): Cincinnati vs. Miami
• Capital One Bowl (Big Ten #2 vs. SEC #2): Penn State vs. LSU
• Outback Bowl (Big Ten #3 vs. SEC #3/4/5): Wisconsin vs. Auburn

January 2nd Bowl Games

• Papajohns.com Bowl (Big East #5 vs. SEC #9): Connecticut vs. South Carolina
• Cotton Bowl (Big XII #2 vs. SEC #3/4/5): Ole Miss vs. Oklahoma State
• Alamo Bowl (Big Ten #5 vs. Big XII #4/5): Oklahoma vs. Michigan State
• Liberty Bowl (SEC #6/7/8 vs. C-USA #1): Arkansas vs. Houston

January 3rd Bowl Games

• International Bowl (Big East #4 vs. MAC #3): Rutgers vs. Northern Illinois

January 6th Bowl Games

• GMAC Bowl (ACC #9 vs. MAC #2): Notre Dame (Not Enough ACC Teams) vs. Ohio
  

By Matt Baxendall
DFN Sports Staff Writer

Matt Baxendell is collegesports-fans.com’s football writer. Keep an eye out all fall for his multiple weekly articles discussing everything college football. If you want to get in touch with him, email him at Matt.Baxendell@gmail.com or follow him on Twitter @MattBaxendell