Photo credit: mutigers.com
It's turned out to be a better season than most of us thought was possible. Mizzou is 10-2 and looking at an invitation to a New Year's Six bowl game.
Currently the Tigers sit at 9th in the all important College Football Playoff Ranking. With this ranking it looks more than likely Mizzou will end up with one of the invitations to the prestigious New Years Days bowl games, unofficially called the New Year's Six.
What is The New Year's Six? It's a common term to describe following FBS bowl games:
The Rose Bowl
The Sugar Bowl
The Orange Bowl
The Cotton Bowl
The Peach Bowl
The Fiesta Bowl
These top-tier bowl games rotate the hosting of the two College Football Playoff semi-final games, which determine the two teams that will play in the College Football National Championship game. Using the CFP rankings, a selection committee will seed and pair the top four seeds in the semi-final game. They will also determine who the participates in the other four non-playoff New Years Six bowl games. All the teams selected are usually, but not always, from the top 12 seeds in the CFP rankings.
The two bowls hosting the College Playoff semi-final games in 2023 are the Rose Bowl and the Sugar Bowl. Mizzou will not be included in either of these two bowls. Assuming the Tigers are selected for a New Years Six bowl, it will be one of the four remaining bowls.
As I said earlier, the Tigers are currently 9th in the rankings, so their chances look good to make one of the four remaining bowls. But which one? That will be determined after all the conference championship games which are being played on Saturday. The bowl selections are made on December 3rd, Selection Sunday.
Which New Year Six bowl will the Tigers get?
That will depend on the results of the conference championship games. The results will have an impact on, not only the bowl Mizzou plays in, but who they are matched up against.
Since the semi-final games are the Rose and the Sugar Bowls, that means the Tigers will either be in the Orange, Cotton, Peach, or Fiesta Bowl. Which of these bowl games they play in and who they play is to be determined on Saturday.
Speculations about Mizzou's bowl and opponent depends on who you read in the media. I have seen Mizzou matched up in the Peach, Orange, and Cotton Bowls against either Penn State, Texas, or Tulane.
Which Bowl isn't as important to me, as who they play. I would prefer to see an opponent from a Power 5 school. A game against a non-Power 5 school doesn't give Mizzou much braggin' rights if they win and could be detrimental if they lose. The brand name of the opponent will be important.
Could Mizzou still be knocked out of the New Year's Day Six?
Not likely, but yes, it's possible. Just being in the Top 12 of the College Football Playoff rankings is not a guarantee. If certain teams unexpectedly win their conference championship game, this could create havoc and push certain teams into the picture, and Mizzou out.
For instance, the Big Ten Championship Game features #2 Michigan (12-0) vs #16 Iowa (10-2). An Iowa victory could push the Hawkeyes into a New Year Six Bowl game.
Another is the Big 12 Championship game with #7 Texas (11-1) vs #18 Oklahoma State. If the Cowboys beat the Longhorns, this could push Oklahoma State into a New Year's Six game.
An #14 Louisville (10-2) victory against the #4 Florida State (12-0) would likely push the Cardinals in the New Years Six.
To be noted: A #22 Tulane (11-1) victory against SMU (10-2) in the AAC Championship game would put the Green Wave in the New Year's Six. The highest rank champion from the "group of five" is guaranteed a spot in the New Year's Six. #24 Liberty (12-0) could get the bid if they beat New Mexico State in the Conference USA Championship game.
The more havoc created on Saturday, the more at-risk Mizzou's position in the New Year's Six lineup would be impacted. Havoc is not Mizzou's friend. In other words, no matter how you feel about these schools, root for Michigan, Texas, and Florida State on Saturday, just to be safe.
My completely unreliable predictions
SEC Championship- Georgia 31 Alabama 24
Big 10 Championship-Michigan 38 Iowa 6
ACC Championship-Louisville 28 FSU 24
Big 12 Championship- Texas 35 Oklahoma State 21
PAC 12 Championship-Oregon 41 Washington 35.
Finally, which bowl game do think Mizzou will land in? Also, who do think they will play? Let us know on X at @GatewayCitySprt, or at the Gateway City Sport Facebook group.
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