Week 12 Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl Projections
After Ohio State was stunned by Michigan State last week, the Buckeyes make their first appearances in media projections as the Big Ten representative in Orlando. On the SEC side, projections are spread across three teams with Ole Miss as the current favorite.
Here are the latest projections for the 70th annual Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl.
Jerry Palm (CBSSports.com): Michigan vs. Georgia
Jason Kirk (SBNation): Ohio State vs. Florida
Mark Schlabach (ESPN): Ohio State vs. Ole Miss
Brett McMurphy (ESPN): Ohio State vs. Florida
Bill Bender (Sporting News): Michigan vs. Ole Miss
College Sports Madness: Michigan vs. Ole Miss
Bryan Fischer (Bleacher Report): Michigan vs. Ole Miss
Pete Fiutak (Campus Insiders): Iowa vs. Ole Miss
If Michigan were to be selected for the Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl, the Wolverines would tie Penn State for most appearances for a Big Ten team with five. The Wolverines would be making its first appearance since 2008 when they defeated Florida 41-35.
One of their projected opponents, Georgia, already has the most appearances by an SEC team with six. If selected, their seventh appearance would be the first since 2013 when they defeated Nebraska 45-31.
Ohio State, a team that many projected to be in the college football playoff, received three projections this week. However, the Buckeyes are no stranger to Orlando. They have four previous appearances but none since 1996 when Eddie George faced off against Peyton Manning.
Two media members have the Buckeyes facing off against Florida, which would be a rematch of the 2007 National Championship game. The Gators would also be making its sixth appearance in the Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl.
Ole Miss is the third and final SEC team projected, with the most media picks of any conference team at five. The Rebels would be making its first Citrus Bowl appearance.
Iowa, who is currently No. 3 in both the Associated Press and Coaches Poll, was projected by Pete Fiutak of Campus Insiders to make its second Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl. Their first appearance was a memorable one in 2005 when they defeated LSU on a last-second Hail Mary.