College football Week 10 played havoc with the projections for bowl season. After several weeks of continuity at the top of college football, everything is wide open, and it legitimately feels likes anything could happen between now and the end of the month. The result is a set of college football bowl projections for the 2022 season that includes some mouthwatering matchups.
2022 College Football Bowl Projections | New Year’s Six
Our 2022 CFB bowl projections are comprised of a combination of our own College Football Top 25, and the teams that fall outside of those are selected based on their current standing within their respective conferences.
If you don’t see your favorite team here, there’s a solid chance that they’re not going bowling in 2022. Let’s kick off with the Crown Jewels of CFB bowl season, the College Football Playoff and other New Year’s Six games.
Peach Bowl (College Football Playoff) | No. 2 Ohio State vs. No. 3 Michigan
While it’s never happened before — and there’s an assumption that the College Football Playoff committee would rank two teams from the same conference apart — there’s actually nothing written in the rules (that we can find) that stipulates that Ohio State and Michigan couldn’t face each other in the Peach Bowl should reality match our college football bowl season projections.
It might sound absurd to think that both of these teams could advance to the College Football Playoff, considering that they face each other in “The Game” to decide who advances to Indianapolis for the Big Ten Championship. However, with the current chaos of college football, there’s a realistic chance that one loss for either team might be enough to secure a postseason berth.
MORE: CFN’s Midseason All-Americans List
How would this game go? Well, after some difficult games for highly-rated NFL draft prospect C.J. Stroud, Michigan might fancy their chances. The Wolverines have more interceptions than passing touchdowns allowed this season, and their run defense is comfortably the best in the conference.
If they can control the clock with their dominant ground game, Michigan could find themselves heading to the national championship game.
Fiesta Bowl (College Football Playoff) | No. 1 Georgia vs. No. 4 TCU
After terminating Tennessee in college football Week 11, Georgia has leaped to the top of our College Football Top 25. Furthermore, they’re expected to be named the new No. 1 team in the country when the College Football Playoff rankings are announced on Tuesday.
The Bulldogs are quietly defending their title in dominant fashion, with a top-10 offense and one of the best defenses in the nation. Georgia has a clear run to the “final four” that should include an SEC Championship Game against LSU or Ole Miss.
While Georgia might have felt slighted by last week’s official rankings, TCU was downright disrespected by the CFP committee. The Horned Frogs harnessed that and used it to defeat a Texas Tech team who came to play ball with a ferocious defense.
TCU is the first team in Big 12 history to go 9-0 with a new head coach. Sonny Dykes has this team playing incredible offensive football, with sensational special-teams performances also helping their quest to reach the College Football Playoff.
Rose Bowl | Oregon vs. Penn State
Oregon has a very good shot of making it to the College Football Playoff if they can win out. The only defeat on their résumé was in the season opener against Georgia. Quarterback Bo Nix is putting together a Heisman Trophy-worthy campaign, and in their win over Colorado this week, the Ducks showed they can be dominant on defense and excitingly creative on offense.
However, the Pac-12 has a habit of ensuring they aren’t represented in the “final four,” and our latest college football bowl projections reflect that. Oregon instead represents the conference in Pasadena as champions, making the historic Rose Bowl for the first time since 2019.
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With Ohio State and Michigan both making the College Football Playoff in our bowl projections, Oregon will take on the next highest-ranked Big Ten team — Penn State. After two tough defeats to Michigan and Ohio State sandwiched a win over Minnesota, the Nittany Lions crushed Indiana in Week 10.
The Penn State ground game led by Nicholas Singleton and Kaytron Allen would provide an effective examination of Oregon’s rushing defense led by leading NFL draft linebacker prospect Noah Sewell. The Ducks have allowed 3.83 yards per carry this season, leaving them ranking outside of the top 50 nationally.
Cotton Bowl | Tulane vs. USC
While Pac-12 football is much-maligned by the masses on the East Coast, the conference has provided entertainment and success this season. They place three teams inside the top 10 of our latest CFB power rankings, with USC falling in just two spots behind Oregon. Lincoln Riley’s high-powered Trojans offense put up 40 points for the third consecutive week, moving to 8-1 on the season with a 41-35 victory over California.
In our college football bowl projections, USC travels to the Cotton Bowl to take on the top-ranked Group of Five team in the nation. That continues to be the Tulane Green Wave, who rolled over Tulsa for their fifth-consecutive win and eighth victory of the year. Their combination of ferocious defense and the ability to win through the air and ground on offense makes Tulane a dangerous opponent for any team in the country to face.
Sugar Bowl | Texas vs. Tennessee
With TCU headed to the Fiesta Bowl in our latest projections, Texas steps up to the Big 12’s annual spot in the Sugar Bowl. The Longhorns last played in the New Orleans postseason extravaganza in 2019, beating Georgia 28-21.
If these projections hold true, they’ll face an equally exciting opponent in the Tennessee Volunteers.
Quinn Ewers vs. Hendon Hooker. A plethora of pass catchers, including Jalin Hyatt and Xavier Worthy. It’s just a shame that we’d likely be deprived of watching Bijan Robinson go to work against the defensive front. Regardless, it’s an exciting matchup made possible by Tennessee’s defeat to Georgia and subsequent slip down our college football power rankings.
Orange Bowl | North Carolina vs. LSU
Following Clemson’s defeat to Notre Dame and North Carolina’s narrow win over Virginia, the Tar Heels move into pole position in the race for the ACC Championship and the right to represent the conference in the Orange Bowl.
Drake Maye is proving to be the hottest quarterback commodity in college football right now, routinely dicing open defenses with delightful arm talent and the creativity to extend plays for fun with his legs.
No quarterback in the country has been more dangerous with their legs than LSU’s Jayden Daniels this season. No QB has more 10+ yard rushing plays than Daniels, with another four in the sensational overtime win over Alabama. The former Arizona State QB accounted for three touchdowns in the 32-31 victory that puts LSU into New Year’s Six contention in our latest CFB bowl projections.
Projections for the Remaining 2022 College Football Bowl Games
Citrus Bowl
Illinois vs. Alabama
ReliaQuest Bowl
Ole Miss vs. Wisconsin
Music City Bowl
Minnesota vs. South Carolina
Arizona Bowl
Toledo vs. Fresno State
Gator Bowl
Clemson vs. Florida
Sun Bowl
Florida State vs. Washington
Duke’s Mayo Bowl
Iowa vs. Arkansas
Alamo Bowl
Kansas State vs. UCLA
Cheez-It Bowl
North Carolina State vs. Baylor
Pinstripe Bowl
Syracuse vs. Purdue
Texas Bowl
Kansas vs. Missouri
Holiday Bowl
Notre Dame vs. Utah
Liberty Bowl
Oklahoma vs. Mississippi State
Military Bowl
Louisville vs. East Carolina
Guaranteed Rate Bowl
Oklahoma State vs. Maryland
Birmingham Bowl
UCF vs. Michigan State
First Responder Bowl
San Jose State vs. Duke
Camellia Bowl
Southern Miss vs. Bowling Green
Quick Lane Bowl
Wake Forest vs. Eastern Michigan
Hawaii Bowl
Utah State vs. Marshall
Gasparilla Bowl
Cincinnati vs. Oregon State
Independence Bowl
Western Kentucky vs. BYU
Armed Forces Bowl
UConn vs. Memphis
New Orleans Bowl
Coastal Carolina vs. Rice
Boca Raton Bowl
North Texas vs. Troy
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Buffalo vs. Air Force
Myrtle Beach Bowl
Liberty vs. SMU
Frisco Bowl
UTSA vs. Wyoming
Las Vegas Bowl
Kentucky vs. Appalachian State
Lending Tree Bowl
Florida International vs. Georgia Southern
LA Bowl
Boise State vs. Washington State
New Mexico Bowl
Miami (OH) vs. San Diego State
Celebration Bowl
Florida A&M vs. Delaware State
Fenway Bowl
Pittsburgh vs. Houston
Cure Bowl
South Alabama vs. Ohio
Bahamas Bowl
Florida Atlantic vs. Ball State