Bowl Projections: Florida State, Tennessee & Auburn Are Favorites After 12 Weeks

After 12 weeks of play, here are updated projections for the 71st Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl from around the college football media.

Mark Schlabach (ESPN):  Florida State vs. Auburn
Brett McMurphy (ESPN):  Florida State vs. Texas A&M
Jerry Palm (CBSSports.com):  Florida State vs. Tennessee
Bill Bender (Sporting News):  Florida State vs. Tennessee
College Football News: Virginia Tech vs. Auburn
Jason Kirk (SB Nation): North Carolina vs. Florida
Brant Parsons (Orlando Sentinel): Virginia Tech vs. Tennessee
Stewart Mandel (FOX Sports): Florida State vs. Auburn

Florida State is the favorite to play in Orlando come New Year’s Eve while it appears to be a toss-up between Tennessee and Auburn in our most recent media projections. Florida State was spotlighted by five members of our media group, with two each predicting them to face Tennessee and Auburn and another predicting the Seminoles to square off with Texas A&M.

The most recent meetings with Tennessee and Auburn both came in national championship games. The ‘Noles are 4-0 all-time against the Aggies and have not met since 1998 when they opened the season at the Kickoff Classic in Giants Stadium.

Both Tennessee and Auburn were also projected to face Virginia Tech this week. The Volunteers and Hokies met earlier this season in the Battle at Bristol which broke the record for largest attendance at a collegiate football game. Tennessee won the game 45-24 to take a 6-3 lead in the overall series. The Tigers and Hokies have met five times previously with Auburn leading 3-1-1. The two last met in the 2005 Sugar Bowl with Auburn winning 16-13.