College Football Bowl Projections: Brett McMurphy’s Week 6 Predictions With Projected Spreads
Scott Taetsch/Getty Images. Pictured: Penn State’s Kevin Winston.
Week 6 College Football Bowl Projections
In my August preseason bowl projections, I joked it’s become tricky because not only do I have to project which teams will play in a bowl, but which bowls actually will be played.
Because of cancellations due to COVID-19 and the San Francisco Bowl folding last year, forcing ESPN to literally create a bowl game out of thin air, the bowl lineup has been — let’s just say — fluid in recent years.
Now, there’s even more uncertainty about a bowl. Unfortunately, this isn’t a joke but rather a power play by a joke of an NFL franchise — the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Las Vegas Bowl, between the SEC and Pac-12, is scheduled for Dec. 17 at 7:30 p.m. ET at Allegiant Stadium (televised on ABC). The Raiders approved that date and kickoff time after their schedule was released since the stadium also hosts UNLV home games and the Las Vegas Bowl.
On Dec. 18 at 8:20 p.m. ET, the Raiders are scheduled to play the New England Patriots on NBC’s “Sunday Night Football,” which provides nearly 24 hours to transition the stadium from the bowl game, played on artificial turf, to the NFL’s natural grass turf used for Raiders’ games. The problem is because of the Raiders' 1-3 start, there’s a chance the NFL could “flex” the game off of “Sunday Night Football” and move the kickoff up to a 4:30 p.m. ET start.
Mark Anderson of the Las Vegas Review-Journal broke the news last week about this potential conflict between the Raiders and the bowl. Las Vegas Bowl executive director John Saccenti did not respond to Action Network seeking comment.
The Raiders are asking the bowl to move their kickoff earlier in the day or to another date to provide the grounds crew more time to flip the stadium from a college to NFL venue. Neither option is realistic for the bowl for a number of logistical and contractual reasons.
The Raiders, which received about $750 million of public money to build the stadium, have a joint-use agreement with UNLV. It requires only 12 hours of prep time from the end of a Rebels game or the Las Vegas Bowl to the start of an NFL game, which it easily would have even if the Raiders’ Dec. 18 kickoff gets moved up.
Currently, the situation has not been resolved between the bowl and the Raiders, who are one of the most incompetent NFL franchises trying to bully a bowl game. Who wins? Stay tuned. As far as the Raiders’ Commitment to Excellence? What a joke.
What’s no laughing matter are my updated bowl projections. Each matchup includes the projected point spread based on Action Network senior writer Collin Wilson’s current college football betting power ratings.
CFP National Championship Prediction
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Ohio State
-1![]()
Alabama
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College Football Playoff Semifinals Projections
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Alabama
-10.5![]()
Michigan
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Ohio State
-2.5![]()
Georgia
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New Year's Six Bowl Games
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USC
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Penn State
-1.5![]()
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Utah
-2.5![]()
Cincinnati
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Oklahoma State
PK![]()
Tennessee
PK![]()
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Clemson
-5.5![]()
Ole Miss
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Projections for All Other Bowls
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Maryland
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Mississippi State
-2![]()
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Kentucky
-6.5![]()
Illinois
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Minnesota
-1![]()
Florida
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Eastern Michigan
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San Diego State
-8![]()
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NC State
-1.5![]()
Arkansas
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Syracuse
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UCLA
-5![]()
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Iowa
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Florida State
-7.5![]()
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TCU
-1.5![]()
Oregon
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Notre Dame
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Texas
-3![]()
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Purdue
-2.5![]()
North Carolina
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Kansas
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Texas A&M
-9![]()
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Wake Forest
-6.5![]()
Washington State
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Oklahoma
-9.5![]()
Auburn
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Duke
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UCF
-8![]()
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Wisconsin
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Kansas State
-3![]()
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Troy
-13![]()
Ohio
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UAB
PK![]()
Marshall
PK![]()
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Texas Tech
-3![]()
Boise State
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Rutgers
-2![]()
Central Michigan
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UNLV
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Western Kentucky
-5![]()
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Miami
PK![]()
Michigan State
PK![]()
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Tulane
-12.5![]()
Middle Tennessee
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Baylor
-4.5![]()
SMU
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UTSA
-1.5![]()
Coastal Carolina
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BYU
-13![]()
Liberty
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Miami (OH)
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San Jose State
-10![]()
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East Carolina
-4![]()
South Alabama
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Oregon State
-2![]()
Houston
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LSU
-3![]()
Washington
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Appalachian State
-2.5![]()
Toledo
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Arizona
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Air Force
-7.5![]()
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Wyoming
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Rice
-1![]()
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Pittsburgh
-11.5![]()
Memphis
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Georgia Southern
-1.5![]()
North Texas
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Florida Atlantic
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Northern Illinois
-3.5![]()
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UTEP
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Southern Miss
-10![]()
* The highest-rated champion from the Group of Five conferences (American, Conference USA, Mid-American, Mountain West and Sun Belt) will be selected to play in the Cotton Bowl if it does not qualify for College Football Playoff.
**ESPN will create a bowl this fall to replace the San Francisco Bowl if it is not played.
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