Bowl projections: Will Georgia, Michigan and Ohio State all make the playoff again?
The first set of College Football Playoff rankings showed how this season’s playoff field may not be much different than last season’s.
Ohio State took the top spot in the initial rankings ahead of Michigan and Georgia. All three of those teams were in the playoff field a season ago and Georgia and Michigan have been in the playoff in each of the last two seasons. With TCU at 4-4, we know we’ll see at least one new playoff team at the end of 2023. But that may be it.
The path to all three teams making it back to the playoff is pretty clear. If Ohio State and Michigan enter their regular-season matchup at 11-0, the winner will advance to the Big Ten title game while the loser will be 11-1. Ohio State made the playoff in 2022 at 11-1 after losing to the Wolverines. Unless there are four other undefeated teams, it’ll be hard to avoid a repeat of that scenario in 2023.
Georgia’s in the playoff if it keeps winning. The two-time defending national champions were No. 3 in the first rankings in 2022 before surging to No. 1. The Bulldogs have games against ranked opponents over the next three weeks. Convincing wins over Missouri, Ole Miss and Tennessee will undoubtedly move Georgia up.
Even if the Bulldogs lose one of those games and still win the SEC East, a 12-1 season with an SEC title should be plenty to get the Bulldogs into the playoff again.
The only way to avoid Georgia, Michigan and Ohio State all making the playoff again may be to have one or more of the three taking two losses between now and the end of the season. Based on recent form, it’s hard to see Washington running the table and winning the Pac-12 at 13-0, and Florida State’s remaining schedule isn’t great, thanks to the weakness of the ACC this season.
Thanks to Oklahoma’s loss to Kansas in Week 9 and Ohio State’s spot at No. 1 on Tuesday night, we have the Buckeyes in the playoff field in our latest set of bowl projections. We’re going to leave Ohio State in the playoff field until the Buckeyes lose, too.
New Year's Six Bowls
Cotton Bowl (Dec. 29)
Texas vs. Washington
Peach Bowl (Dec. 30)
Penn State vs. Alabama
Orange Bowl (Dec. 30)
Notre Dame vs. Oklahoma
Fiesta Bowl (Jan. 1)
Air Force vs. Oregon
Rose Bowl [CFP semifinal] (Jan. 1)
Michigan vs. Florida State
Sugar Bowl [CFP semifinal] (Jan. 1)
Georgia vs. Ohio State
Other Bowls
Bahamas Bowl (Dec. 16)
Western Kentucky vs. Central Michigan
New Orleans Bowl (Dec. 16)
Liberty vs. James Madison
Cure Bowl (Dec. 16)
Colorado State vs. Appalachian State
New Mexico Bowl (Dec. 16)
New Mexico State vs. Utah State
LA Bowl (Dec. 16)
Fresno State vs. Arizona
Independence Bowl (Dec. 16)
West Virginia vs. Washington State
Myrtle Beach Bowl (Dec. 18)
Marshall vs. Jacksonville State
Frisco Bowl (Dec. 19)
Houston vs. Texas State
Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 21)
Florida Atlantic vs. Georgia Southern
Gasparilla Bowl (Dec. 22)
Mississippi State vs. Troy
Birmingham Bowl (Dec. 23)
Kentucky vs. Navy
Camellia Bowl (Dec. 23)
Miami (Ohio) vs. Georgia State
Armed Forces Bowl (Dec. 23)
SMU vs. Louisiana
Potato Bowl (Dec. 23)
Northern Illinois vs. Boise State
68 Ventures Bowl (Dec. 23)
Ohio vs. South Alabama
Las Vegas Bowl (Dec. 23)
UCLA vs. Wisconsin
Hawaii Bowl (Dec. 23)
UNLV vs. UTSA
Quick Lane Bowl (Dec. 26)
Nebraska vs. Toledo
First Responder Bowl (Dec. 26)
BYU vs. Memphis
Guaranteed Rate Bowl (Dec. 26)
TCU vs. Maryland
Military Bowl (Dec. 27)
Tulane vs. Virginia Tech
Duke’s Mayo Bowl (Dec. 27)
Louisville vs. Auburn
Holiday Bowl (Dec. 27)
Clemson vs. USC
Texas Bowl (Dec. 27)
Kansas vs. Texas A&M
Fenway Bowl (Dec. 28)
Boston College vs. South Florida
Pinstripe Bowl (Dec. 28)
Syracuse vs. Rutgers
Pop-Tarts Bowl (Dec. 28)
Duke vs. Oklahoma State
Alamo Bowl (Dec. 28)
Kansas State vs. Utah
Gator Bowl (Dec. 29)
Miami vs. Missouri
Sun Bowl (Dec. 29)
NC State vs. Oregon State
Liberty Bowl (Dec. 29)
Iowa State vs. Tennessee
Music City Bowl (Dec. 30)
Minnesota vs. Florida
Arizona Bowl (Dec. 30)
Eastern Michigan vs. Wyoming
ReliaQuest Bowl (Jan. 1)
North Carolina vs. LSU
Citrus Bowl (Jan. 1)
Iowa vs. Ole Miss
