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Rose Bowl - Oregon vs. Auburn
Everything is coming into place for the Ducks - they got healthy, teams that were ahead of them in the rankings are dropping like flies and the teams that looked like they could be their biggest challenges in the Pac-12 are underwhelming. It is a tall task to run the remaining table in the Pac-12, especially in this crazy year, but right now, I don't see anyone on the schedule who should beat the Ducks. I think the Mississippi schools will fall off and beat each other and Auburn will beat Alabama to take the SEC West and earn the third slot in the Playoff.
Alamo Bowl - USC vs. Oklahoma
Shit, I don't know who is going to finish second in the Pac-12, but I know USC will be up there and an attractive team for bowls. It will be interesting to see who wins out in the roundtable atop the Big 12, I think Oklahoma will end up being the best team of the group that doesn't make one of the top bowls.
Holiday Bowl - Arizona State vs. Minnesota
I am getting a lot of confidence in Todd Graham and the Sun Devils and could easily see them winning the South. I could see a number of Big Ten teams here and it is starting to seem like the Gophers are a legit upper-middle Big Ten team.
San Francisco Bowl - Stanford vs. Iowa
The Cardinal look like they are taking a major step back this season right now, but I think they will be able to right the ship to a degree and finish up there with the best teams in the South and the San Francisco Bowl would be very tempted to take a home team. Iowa is in that cluster of upper-middle Big Ten teams that should go to a decent bowl but might not be that great.
Sun Bowl - Arizona vs. Georgia Tech
The Wildcats are still riding pretty high even after losing to USC, but I think they will lose at least a couple more games down the stretch, but this is still a decent destination for them. Some random middle-of-the-road ACC team will end up here... Georgia Tech? Sure.
Las Vegas Bowl - UCLA vs. Colorado State
The Bruins are going to have a disappointing season, but they are still going to win seven or eight games and would be an attractive choice for the Vegas Bowl even if someone like Utah finishes ahead of them in the standings. I don't think anyone saw it coming, but Colorado State is probably going to win the Mountain West.
Cactus Bowl - Utah vs. Oklahoma State
Utah is looking for real, but their schedule is about to get tougher and they don't have the national draw of some of the other teams in the conference. Regardless, getting back to a bowl in a strong Pac-12 is a big step forward for the Utes. Oklahoma State fell hard down the Big 12 ladder and will end up in the conference's last slot.
Birmingham Bowl - Washington vs. Memphis
The SEC isn't going to fulfill their bowl allotment and it will be the Pac-12's gain since I think they will have three bowl eligible teams that won't fit into automatic slots. I think the Huskies get to at least seven wins and will get the best at-large bid.
Independence Bowl - Oregon State vs. North Carolina
I think the Beavers crawl to bowl eligibility and get another one of the SEC-vacated best at-large bowls available.
Boca Bowl - Cal vs. Ohio
I think Cal gets to bowl eligibility by beating BYU and gets a shot at one of the at-large bids vacated by a bad Conference USA.