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Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Richard Johnson

Bowl Projections: USC Jumps Into CFP After Oregon’s Loss

The Playoff race mostly is lying in wait with big games on the horizon. For USC, Saturday will loom large. We all know what's to come for Michigan and Ohio State. But further down some teams are clawing to get to the six-win mark to stamp their ticket. You know who isn't? UConn(!) is no longer just theoretical, they're really bowl eligible at six wins as Jim Mora's turnaround job continues.

All times are Eastern.

College Football Playoff

Peach Bowl, Atlanta (Dec. 31, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Georgia vs. TCU

Fiesta Bowl, Glendale, Ariz. (Dec. 31, 4 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
CFP semifinalist vs. CFP semifinalist
Ohio State vs. USC

USC is the Pac-12’s last remaining hope to qualify for the College Football Playoff.

Gary A. Vasquez/USA TODAY Sports

New Year’s Six

Orange Bowl, Miami (Dec. 30, 7:30 or 8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten/SEC/Notre Dame
North Carolina vs. Alabama

Sugar Bowl, New Orleans (Dec. 31, noon, ESPN)
SEC vs. Big 12
LSU vs. Kansas State

Cotton Bowl, Arlington, Texas (Jan. 2, 1 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
UCF vs. Tennessee

Rose Bowl, Pasadena (Jan. 2, 5 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Michigan vs. Oregon

All other bowls

Dec. 16

Bahamas Bowl, Nassau (11:30 a.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. MAC
Rice vs. Toledo

Cure Bowl, Orlando (3 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Eastern Michigan vs. Air Force

Dec. 17

Fenway Bowl, Boston (11 a.m., ESPN)
ACC/Notre Dame vs. American
Pitt vs. Houston

New Mexico Bowl, Albuquerque (2:15 p.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. Mountain West
Western Kentucky vs. UNLV

Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl, Inglewood, Calif. (3:30 p.m., ABC)
Pac-12 vs. Mountain West
San Diego State vs. Washington State

LendingTree Bowl, Mobile (5:45 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. Sun Belt
Wyoming vs. Troy

Las Vegas Bowl, Las Vegas (7:30 p.m., ABC)
Pac-12 vs. SEC
Oregon State vs. Missouri

Frisco Bowl, Frisco, Texas (9:15 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Middle Tennessee vs. Marshall

Dec. 19

Myrtle Beach Bowl, Conway, S.C. (2:30 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
Ball State vs. Georgia Southern

Dec. 20

Famous Idaho Potato, Boise, Id. (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Mountain West vs. MAC
San Jose State vs. Bowling Green

Boca Raton Bowl, Boca Raton, Fla. (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
FAU vs. Georgia State

Dec. 21

New Orleans Bowl, New Orleans (9 p.m., ESPN)
C-USA vs. Sun Belt
North Texas vs. Coastal Carolina

Dec. 22

Armed Forces Bowl, Fort Worth (7:30 p.m., ESPN)
American vs. at-large
ECU vs. UConn

Dec. 23

Independence Bowl, Shreveport, La. (3 p.m., ESPN)
American vs. Army/BYU
SMU vs. UAB

Gasparilla Bowl, Tampa (6:30 p.m., ESPN)
ACC/SEC vs. at-large
Notre Dame vs. FIU

Dec. 24

Hawai’i Bowl, Honolulu (8 p.m., ESPN)
Mountain West vs. C-USA
Fresno State vs. UTSA

Dec. 26

Quick Lane Bowl, Detroit (2:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. MAC
Minnesota vs. Buffalo

Dec. 27

Camellia Bowl, Montgomery, Ala. (Noon, ESPN)
At-large vs. at-large
BYU vs. South Alabama

First Responder Bowl, Dallas (3:15 or 6:45 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. at-large
Texas Tech vs. Liberty

Birmingham Bowl, Birmingham (3:15 or 6:45 p.m., ESPN)
At-large vs. ACC/SEC
Tulane vs. Duke

Guaranteed Rate Bowl, Phoenix (10:15 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Big Ten
Oklahoma vs. Wisconsin

Watch college football games live with fuboTV: Start a free trial today!

Dec. 28

Military Bowl, Annapolis, Md. (2 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. American
Wake Forest vs. Cincinnati

Liberty Bowl, Memphis (5:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Kansas vs. Kentucky

Holiday Bowl, San Diego (8 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Pac-12
Syracuse vs. Washington

Texas Bowl, Houston (9 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. SEC
Texas vs. South Carolina

Dec. 29

Pinstripe Bowl, the Bronx (2 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten
Louisville vs. Iowa

Cheez-It Bowl, Orlando (5:30 p.m., ESPN)
ACC vs. Big 12
NC State vs. Baylor

Alamo Bowl, San Antonio (9 p.m., ESPN)
Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Oklahoma State vs. UCLA

Dec. 30

Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Charlotte (Noon, ESPN)
ACC vs. Big Ten
Florida State vs. Illinois

Sun Bowl, El Paso (2 p.m., CBS)
ACC vs. Pac-12
Clemson vs. Utah

Gator Bowl, Jacksonville (3:30 p.m., ESPN)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Michigan State vs. Arkansas

Arizona Bowl, Tucson (4:30 p.m., Barstool)
Mountain West vs. MAC
Boise State vs. Ohio

Dec. 31

Music City Bowl, Nashville (Noon, ABC)
Big Ten vs. SEC
Maryland vs. Mississippi State

Jan. 2

ReliaQuest Bowl, Tampa (Noon, ESPN2)
Big Ten/ACC vs. SEC
Purdue vs. Florida

Citrus Bowl, Orlando (1 p.m., ABC)
SEC vs. Big Ten
Ole Miss vs. Penn State

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