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2023 Preseason Bowl Projections: College Football Playoff Prediction
2023 Preseason Bowl Projections: College Football Playoff Prediction
@ColFootballNews | Preview: All 133 Teams
CFN 2023 Rankings | Bowl Ties, Affiliations
Predicting Every Conference Finish
2023 Preseason Bowl Projections
Dec 16 to Dec 23 | Dec 26 to Jan 1
New Years Six | @ColFootballNews
This will be a whole lot more fun to do next year when the College Football Playoff expands to 12.
Hopefully there will be a quirk somewhere in the mix like there was last year. Was it fun watching TCU get annihilated by Georgia in the College Football Playoff National Championship? No, but the Horned Frog win over Michigan was the first time the four-team playoff didn't go chalk.
There were upsets here and there over the years, but it's not like Clemson beating Alabama or Ohio State taking down Oregon was anything shocking. We'll get more of those in the 12-team version of the CFP, but it's hard to project anything out of left field like 2022 TCU without trying to be wacky.
The same general unwritten rules still apply. Go undefeated or lose just once, win your Power Five championship, and you're in. Or, don't lose twice - we have yet to have a mutli-loss team in the College Football Playoff.
We only have four Power Five teams projected to not lose multiple times before the bowls, so ...
Here's our call.
CFP Semifinal Rose Bowl
Monday, January 1, 2024
5:00 pm ET, ESPN
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
Bowl Ties: CFP vs CFP
Preseason Bowl Projection: Michigan vs USC
Last Season: Penn State 35, Utah 21
Big Ten vs Pac-12 in the Rose Bowl. This is the dream world for the bowl people and College Football Playoff types.
The prediction is that one-loss Michigan beats unbeaten Ohio State at the end of the regular season and goes on to win a third straight Big Ten title. That will be enough for the 2 seed again. USC loses once along the way, but this year finishes the drill - by the way, remember that if USC had beaten Utah for the Pac-12 title last season, Ohio State is almost certainly out - and gets to 12-1 for the 3-seed.
CFP Semifinal Sugar Bowl
Monday, January 1, 2024
8:45 pm ET, ESPN
Caesars Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Bowl Ties: CFP vs New Year’s Six
Preseason Bowl Projection
Ohio State vs Georgia
Last Season: Alabama 45, Kansas State 20
Again, like last year, the prediction is that Ohio State rolls through the regular season only to be tripped up at the end by That Team Up North. And, like last year, it backs its way into the College Football Playoff without playing in a conference title game.
The call is that Georgia loses once along the way and beats a one-loss Alabama in the SEC Championship. Everyone screams and yells about the Tide being left out, but form holds - the committee doesn't take a two-loss Bama over a one-loss Ohio State - and ...
College Football Playoff National Championship
Monday, January 8, 2024
7:30 pm ET, ESPN
NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
Bowl Ties: CFP Rose Bowl Winner vs CFP Cotton Bowl Winner
Preseason Bowl Projection
Ohio State vs Michigan
Last Season: Georgia 65, TCU 7
Before hollering, we're certainly not married to the call of Georgia not playing for another national title. However ...
1) Ohio State was a missed field goal away from winning the national title last year, 2) winning three national titles in a row is next to impossible, and 3) ask 2020 Clemson what it's like to face the business end of an Ohio State program that's obsessed with coming up with a rematch win. All of that, and yeah, the Buckeyes are that good.
Michigan gets by USC and has to face an Ohio State team - that in this case - would be on a three-game losing streak in the series.
(But if you want to scream in any way for Georgia, we won't argue.)
2023 Preseason Bowl Projections
Dec 16 to Dec 23 | Dec 26 to Jan 1
New Years Six | @ColFootballNews
Preview: All 133 Teams
CFN 2023 Rankings | Bowl Ties, Affiliations
Predicting Every Conference Finish
