I'm not sure how likely the Liberty Bowl is for Navy... Both Memphis and Cincinnati would also be attractive draws for them (although Navy would arguably be just as good with Millington there), and Tennessee and Kentucky are also bowl eligible now. BUT! Hope springs eternal, and it's still possible.
The SEC has eight bowl-eligible teams right now. The NCAA has upheld Missouri's bowl ban, so they're out even if they get to 6 wins this week. Mississippi State has a chance to get to a bowl if they beat Ole Miss.
The SEC champ has an automatic bid to the Sugar Bowl. If the champ is in the playoff, then the league's next-highest team goes to the Sugar. The SEC can also send a team to the Orange Bowl to play an ACC team if it has a team that's ranked higher than any available Big Ten team or Notre Dame.
The next-highest team goes to the Citrus Bowl. After that, there is a pool of six bowl games, of which the Liberty is a part. The league works with the bowls to arrange the best matchups for these games. If the SEC cannot send a team to the Liberty, then the American has a secondary agreement to send a team. The goal, then, is for as many of these pool-bowls to be available. Those games, in addition to the Liberty Bowl, are the Outback Bowl, Gator Bowl, Music City Bowl, Belk Bowl, and the Texas Bowl.
Any one of those games would be phenomenal. In theory, even if the Liberty is taken by Memphis or Cincinnati, the AAC could work to place a team in one of these spots if they come up. The goal, then, is to root for as many of them as possible to become available. Here is the best-case scenario:
1. Ole Miss wins the Egg Bowl. Mississippi State finishes 5-7.
2. Four SEC teams go to NY6 Bowls. This could happen if Georgia beats LSU in the SEC championship game and the committee puts them both in the Playoff. In that scenario, it would be LSU and Georgia in the Playoff, Alabama in the Sugar, and possibly Florida in the Orange.
3. Auburn (or less likely Texas A&M) goes to the Citrus Bowl.
4. Only three teams (Auburn/Texas A&M, Tennessee, Kentucky) are available for the pool of six bowls.
If that happens, I would expect the Outback to get an SEC team, most likely Texas A&M. That would leave two teams for the Liberty, Gator, Texas, Music City, and Belk bowls, any one of which would be a fantastic landing spot. At that point, there's all kind of wrangling about where UK & UT end up, since the schools give their preferences to the league and no party wants repeats of recent appearances.
So, for three of these bowls to open up, here is what we want to see:
1. Ole Miss beating Mississippi State. One less team in the mix.
2. Florida needs to jump both Minnesota and Penn State in the rankings. Should get a bump over PSU tonight after Ohio State beat them. Need Wisconsin to beat Minnesota this week. Also need Florida to beat Florida State.
3. Georgia needs to beat GT. LSU needs to beat Texas A&M.
4. Georgia needs to beat LSU in the SEC championship game.
5. Alabama needs to beat Auburn. In theory, Alabama could lose to Auburn but still be ranked ahead of Penn State or Minnesota, but it's best not to leave that to chance.
6. Either Colorado or Oregon needs to beat Utah to keep them out of the playoff.
7. Baylor should probably beat Oklahoma. This one is a little dicey... I can see either team making the playoff with a win. I can also see neither team making the playoff if Georgia wins the SEC and is LSU's only loss.
In theory, some things here can slip up and still leave one SEC pool-of-six bowl open, but it's better if it's two or three.
The SEC has eight bowl-eligible teams right now. The NCAA has upheld Missouri's bowl ban, so they're out even if they get to 6 wins this week. Mississippi State has a chance to get to a bowl if they beat Ole Miss.
The SEC champ has an automatic bid to the Sugar Bowl. If the champ is in the playoff, then the league's next-highest team goes to the Sugar. The SEC can also send a team to the Orange Bowl to play an ACC team if it has a team that's ranked higher than any available Big Ten team or Notre Dame.
The next-highest team goes to the Citrus Bowl. After that, there is a pool of six bowl games, of which the Liberty is a part. The league works with the bowls to arrange the best matchups for these games. If the SEC cannot send a team to the Liberty, then the American has a secondary agreement to send a team. The goal, then, is for as many of these pool-bowls to be available. Those games, in addition to the Liberty Bowl, are the Outback Bowl, Gator Bowl, Music City Bowl, Belk Bowl, and the Texas Bowl.
Any one of those games would be phenomenal. In theory, even if the Liberty is taken by Memphis or Cincinnati, the AAC could work to place a team in one of these spots if they come up. The goal, then, is to root for as many of them as possible to become available. Here is the best-case scenario:
1. Ole Miss wins the Egg Bowl. Mississippi State finishes 5-7.
2. Four SEC teams go to NY6 Bowls. This could happen if Georgia beats LSU in the SEC championship game and the committee puts them both in the Playoff. In that scenario, it would be LSU and Georgia in the Playoff, Alabama in the Sugar, and possibly Florida in the Orange.
3. Auburn (or less likely Texas A&M) goes to the Citrus Bowl.
4. Only three teams (Auburn/Texas A&M, Tennessee, Kentucky) are available for the pool of six bowls.
If that happens, I would expect the Outback to get an SEC team, most likely Texas A&M. That would leave two teams for the Liberty, Gator, Texas, Music City, and Belk bowls, any one of which would be a fantastic landing spot. At that point, there's all kind of wrangling about where UK & UT end up, since the schools give their preferences to the league and no party wants repeats of recent appearances.
So, for three of these bowls to open up, here is what we want to see:
1. Ole Miss beating Mississippi State. One less team in the mix.
2. Florida needs to jump both Minnesota and Penn State in the rankings. Should get a bump over PSU tonight after Ohio State beat them. Need Wisconsin to beat Minnesota this week. Also need Florida to beat Florida State.
3. Georgia needs to beat GT. LSU needs to beat Texas A&M.
4. Georgia needs to beat LSU in the SEC championship game.
5. Alabama needs to beat Auburn. In theory, Alabama could lose to Auburn but still be ranked ahead of Penn State or Minnesota, but it's best not to leave that to chance.
6. Either Colorado or Oregon needs to beat Utah to keep them out of the playoff.
7. Baylor should probably beat Oklahoma. This one is a little dicey... I can see either team making the playoff with a win. I can also see neither team making the playoff if Georgia wins the SEC and is LSU's only loss.
In theory, some things here can slip up and still leave one SEC pool-of-six bowl open, but it's better if it's two or three.
