Week Eight Bowl Projections
Mark Schlabach (ESPN) – Wisconsin vs. Auburn
Brad Edwards (ESPN) – Nebraska vs. LSU
Scout.com/CollegeFootballNews.com – Wisconsin vs. Georgia
Jerry Palm – Michigan vs. Texas A&M
ESPN Big Ten & SEC Blogs – Wisconsin vs. Auburn
Big Ten Network– Michigan State vs. Auburn
SB Nation– Nebraska vs. Texas A&M
Athlon Sports– Wisconsin vs. Texas A&M
Sporting News– Michigan vs. Auburn
Off Tackle Empire– Michigan State vs. Auburn
Orlando Sentinel– Michigan State vs. Auburn
After a weekend filled with upsets it has become very uncertain who will appear in this year’s Capital One Bowl. Four teams from both the SEC and Big Ten appear in the projections this week with Wisconsin leading the way from the Big Ten and Auburn having a narrow lead in the SEC.
LSU (6-2, 3-2 SEC) is the only team out of the SEC to have appeared each week in at least one projection. The Tigers dropped a 27-24 decision to Ole Miss on the road Saturday evening. Zack Mettenberger threw for 274 yards but also turned the ball over three times in the loss. Ole Miss drove the length of the field in 3:19 to kick the game winning field goal with only three seconds remaining. LSU returns home this weekend to face FCS foe Furman.
Auburn (6-1, 3-1 SEC), coming off a 45-41 win over Texas A&M (5-2, 2-2 SEC), appeared in the most projections this week with the Aggies close behind. Nick Marshall threw and ran for over 100 yards and had two touchdowns both on the ground and through the air in the victory. Auburn closes out their out-of-conference schedule this weekend hosting Florida Atlantic (2-5, 1-4 C-USA), while Texas A&M hosts Vanderbilt (4-3, 1-3 SEC).
Georgia (4-3, 3-2 SEC) is the other SEC school to appear in a projection this week. The Bulldogs dropped their second straight game, this time 31-27 to Vanderbilt. Georgia’s high powered offense was outgained 337-221 by the Commodores in the loss. Georgia has the weekend off before facing Florida (4-3, 3-2 SEC) in Jacksonville.
Wisconsin (5-2, 3-1 Big Ten) leads the way in the projections from the Big Ten. The Badgers continued to show why they are one of the most vaunted rushing attacks in the nation by rushing for 289 yards and six touchdowns in a 56-32 win over Illinois last weekend. Wisconsin is idle this weekend before traveling to Iowa (4-3, 1-2 Big Ten) on November 2nd.
The top three teams from the Legends side of the Big Ten all appear in projections as well to head to Orlando. Michigan State (6-1, 3-0 Big Ten), who currently has a half a game lead in the division, shut out Purdue 14-0 this past weekend. The Spartans limited Purdue to just 226 yards while forcing two turnovers in the win. Michigan State travels to Illinois (3-3, 0-2 Big Ten) this weekend.
Nebraska (5-1, 2-0 Big Ten), who sits a half game back in the Legends division, remained a close second to Wisconsin in the projections this week. The Huskers were idle this past weekend and travel to Minnesota (5-2, 1-2 Big Ten) this Saturday.
Michigan (6-1, 2-1 Big Ten) rebounded from a tough four overtime loss last weekend with a 63-47 win over Indiana on Saturday. Devin Gardner threw for a career high 503 yards and senior wide receiver Jeremy Gallon set career highs in receptions (14) and receiving yards (369). The Wolverines have the weekend off before traveling to instate rival Michigan State for the Paul Bunyan Trophy.
South Carolina (5-2, 3-2 SEC) fell from the projections this week following a 23-21 loss to Tennessee. The Gamecocks allowed a63-yard Tennessee drive in the final three minutes to set up the game-winning 19-yard field goal as time expired. South Carolina travels to Missouri (7-0, 3-0 SEC) for its final away game of the season.