Sports Illustrated still has Northwestern stuck in the TaxSlayer Bowl in Florida on January 2nd

[Alaskawildkat]

Citrus goes to Wisconsin, Outback takes Michigan, and Penn State gets Holiday. Sports Illustrated's writer also has all three of the B1G 5-7 teams making a bowl. Interesting how they have gotten around the "no repeat rule" that keeps Wisconsin out of the Outback but still snubs Northwestern.

Hope Phillips is watching - all the more reason for him to be lobbying to make sure Northwestern goes to the Citrus Bowl where our current ranking merits placement for Northwestern - in the event next week's ranking does not get Northwestern into one of the New Year's Six Bowls.

Once we concede to Outback the cliff rapidly erodes as Outback would certainly be tempted to make a deal with Citrus for Citrus to trade down for Wisconsin so the Outback can have Michigan and not let the "no repeat rule" force them into taking Northwestern, a school they have snubbed in the past. Interestingly the Outback, unlike the Citrus and Holiday, did not even send a representative to our last game against a ranked opponent. Also, unlike the Citrus and Holiday, there have been no statements by Bowl representatives of special interest in Northwestern. It is noteworthy that the Citrus Bowl even sent a representative to our opening game at Ryan Field against Stanford.

Allso hope Northwestern is cementing its relationship with the Holiday Bowl as a back-up so we don't drop to the TaxSlayer/Music City rung.

As a side note I am curious as to what inside information Sports Illustrated's writer has as to TaxSlayer making the B1G pick this year instead of the alternating Music City Bowl. I do note that the two ESPN analysts are split as to a B1G team playing in the Music City or TaxSlayer this year so apparently it remains fluid until selection Sunday as to which of those two bowls will opt to have a B1G team.


Orange Bowl (semifinal) Dec. 31 Miami Gardens, Fla. No. 1 vs. No. 4 Clemson vs. Oklahoma
Cotton Bowl (semifinal) Dec. 31 Arlington, Texas No. 2 vs. No. 3 Alabama vs. Michigan St.
Peach Bowl Dec. 31 Atlanta, Ga. At-large vs. Group of Five Florida St. vs. Houston
Fiesta Bowl Jan. 1 Glendale, Ariz. At-large vs. At-large Notre Dame vs. Iowa
Rose Bowl Jan. 1 Pasadena, Calif. Big Ten vs. Pac-12 Ohio State vs. Stanford
Sugar Bowl Jan. 1 New Orleans, La. SEC vs. Big 12 Ole Miss vs. Baylor
• KRASNOO: Bubble Watch: Who's in, out of the playoff right now?

OTHER BOWLS
BOWL DATE LOCATION MATCHUP PICK
New Orleans Bowl Dec. 19 New Orleans, La. Sun Belt vs. CUSA Ark. St. vs. La. Tech
New Mexico Bowl Dec. 19 Albequerque, N.M. CUSA vs. MW C. Mich.* vs. New Mexico
Las Vegas Bowl Dec. 19 Las Vegas MW/BYU vs. Pac-12 BYU vs. Wash. St.
Cure Bowl Dec. 19 Orlando, Fla. AAC vs. Sun Belt UConn vs. Ga. South.
Camellia Bowl Dec. 19 Montgomery, Ala. MAC vs. Sun Belt Ohio vs. App. State
Miami Beach Bowl Dec. 21 Miami, Fla. AAC vs. CUSA Cincinnati vs. So. Miss
Idaho Potato Bowl Dec. 22 Boise, Idaho MAC vs. MW Akron vs. Boise St.
Boca Raton Bowl Dec. 22 Boca Raton, Fla. AAC vs. MAC USF vs. Toledo
Poinsettia Bowl Dec. 23 San Diego, Calif. MW vs. Army SDSU vs. N. Illinois
GoDaddy Bowl Dec. 23 Mobile, Ala. MAC vs. Sun Belt BGSU vs. SJSU**
Bahamas Bowl Dec. 24 Nassau, Bahamas CUSA vs. MAC Mid. Tenn. vs. W. Mich.
Hawaii Bowl Dec. 24 Honolulu, Hawaii AAC vs. MW/BYU Tulsa vs. Co. State
Heart of Dallas Bowl Dec. 26 Dallas, Texas Big 12/Big Ten vs. CUSA Nevada* vs. Western Ky.
St. Petersburg Bowl Dec. 26 St. Petersburg, Fla. AAC vs. CUSA Temple vs. Marshall
Sun Bowl Dec. 26 El Paso, Texas ACC vs. Pac-12 NC State vs. Utah
Independence Bowl Dec. 26 Shreveport, La. ACC vs. SEC Va. Tech vs. Illinois**
Foster Farms Bowl Dec. 26 Santa Clara, Calif. Big Ten vs. Pac-12 Indiana vs. UCLA
Pinstripe Bowl Dec. 26 Bronx, N.Y. ACC vs. Big Ten Miami vs. Minnesota**
Quick Lane Bowl Dec. 28 Detroit, Mich. ACC vs. Big Ten Cal* vs. Nebraska**
Military Bowl Dec. 28 Annapolis, Md. ACC vs. AAC Louisville vs. Navy
Arizona Bowl Dec. 29 Tucson, Ariz MW vs. CUSA Air Force vs. Arizona*
Russell Athletic Bowl Dec. 29 Orlando, Fla. ACC vs. Big 12 UNC vs. TCU
Texas Bowl Dec. 29 Houston, Texas Big 12 vs. SEC Tex. Tech vs. Tex. A&M
Armed Forces Bowl Dec. 29 Fort Worth, Texas Big Ten/Big 12 vs. MW Wash.* vs. Utah St.
Music City Bowl Dec. 30 Nashville, Tenn. ACC vs. SEC Pitt vs. Arkansas
Holiday Bowl Dec. 30 San Diego, Calif. Big Ten vs. Pac-12 Penn St. vs. Oregon
Belk Bowl Dec. 30 Charlotte, N.C. ACC vs. SEC Duke vs. Miss. St.
Birmingham Bowl Dec. 30 Birmingham, Ala. AAC vs. SEC Memphis vs. Georgia
Outback Bowl Jan. 1 Tampa, Fla. Big Ten vs. SEC Michigan vs. Tenn.
Citrus Bowl Jan. 1 Orlando, Fla. Big Ten vs. SEC Wisconsin vs. Florida
Liberty Bowl Jan. 2 Memphis, Tenn. Big 12 vs. SEC Kansas St.** vs. Auburn
TaxSlayer Bowl Jan. 2 Jacksonville, Fla. Big Ten vs. SEC Northwestern vs. LSU
Alamo Bowl Jan. 2 San Antonio, Texas Big 12 vs. Pac-12 Okla. State vs. USC
Cactus Bowl Jan. 2 Phoenix, Ariz. Big 12 vs. Pac-12 W. Virginia vs. Ariz. St.
*Replacement team
**Five-win team

Link to the full article with their rationale:

http://www.si.com/college-football/2015/12/01/college-football-bowl-projections-week-13-playoff

 

[Sheffielder]

I have to admit, when I first saw this I was about to respond that SI must not update their predictions until later in the week, but sure enough...it's dated Dec. 1. Honestly, I'd say SI either has super duper inside knowledge or no credibility on this particular issue.

 

[Alaskawildkat]

I have to admit, when I first saw this I was about to respond that SI must not update their predictions until later in the week, but sure enough...it's dated Dec. 1. Honestly, I'd say SI either has super duper inside knowledge or no credibility on this particular issue.

Last week when SI had Wisconsin going to the Outback I would have said the later, but this week with that error corrected I suspect it is the former. Maybe I have just missed it, but to date I have seen no indication that the Outback really wants Northwestern despite a majority of the pundits, apart from SI, conveniently slotting us there. As noted in my original post, unlike the Outback both the Citrus and Holiday have affirmatively shown interest in Northwestern,

 

[Pasadena Bound]

Probably not an important factor overall but on the Outback Bowl website, more fans have expressed a preference for Michigan (41%) than NU (27%). Tennessee got 76% of the vote. You can vote by going to: http://www.outbackbowl.com. You can vote more than once (different browsers, different days).

 

[iskaboo]

Frankly, if the Outback does not want us and Michigan goes to the Citrus instead of us, I would take the Holiday gladly. It's not really a big step down in terms of prestige compared with the Outback,and I think San Diego is a great town to visit for several days. I also like the fact (for personal reasons) that the game is on the 30th.

Whatever happens, I would really want to have a go at the Big Ten if Penn State jumps us!

 

[kaTNap]

If a 7-5 team gets slotted to a bowl over a 10-2 team with a head-to-head win over that 7-5 team, the BIG's bowl selection process is a bad joke.

 

[kaTNap]

BTW, Alaska, why would you think SI has some special "inside knowledge" that ESPN doesn't? I would expect ESPN to have a much closer relationship with the Outback Bowl people than SI does, because ESPN broadcasts the Outback Bowl.

SI is definitely the outlier here. The Madison, WI newspaper says that Michigan is going Citrus, NU is going Outback, and Wisconsin is going Holiday -- all of that is if three BIG teams go playoff/access. They also report that Citrus is "enamored" of Harbaugh and his Skunkbears. The State College, PA paper says Penn State is going TaxSlayer, Music City, or Foster Farms. I think what this proves is that SI doesn't like NU, not that the Outback is going to cut some deal with the Citrus so that they can screw NU.

 

[Sheffielder]

BTW, Alaska, why would you think SI has some special "inside knowledge" that ESPN doesn't? I would expect ESPN to have a much closer relationship with the Outback Bowl people than SI does, because ESPN broadcasts the Outback Bowl.

SI is definitely the outlier here. The Madison, WI newspaper says that Michigan is going Citrus, NU is going Outback, and Wisconsin is going Holiday -- all of that is if three BIG teams go playoff/access. They also report that Citrus is "enamored" of Harbaugh and his Skunkbears. The State College, PA paper says Penn State is going TaxSlayer, Music City, or Foster Farms. I think what this proves is that SI doesn't like NU, not that the Outback is going to cut some deal with the Citrus so that they can screw NU.

1. I was the one who made the "inside knowledge" remark.
2. Sarcasm. Unless literally an SI writer is married to or was college roommates with the Executive Director of the Taxslayer Bowl and knows something that no one else does, SI is flat-out wrong.

 

[hdhntr1]

If a 7-5 team gets slotted to a bowl over a 10-2 team with a head-to-head win over that 7-5 team, the BIG's bowl selection process is a bad joke.

Don't forget 4-4 in conference vs 6-2

 

[purple11]

Probably not an important factor overall but on the Outback Bowl website, more fans have expressed a preference for Michigan (41%) than NU (27%). Tennessee got 76% of the vote. You can vote by going to: http://www.outbackbowl.com. You can vote more than once (different browsers, different days).

Great idea. I voted for NU. The link might deserve its own thread so we can all vote often. I would prefer Tampa over Jacksonville again.

Go Cats !!

 

[mybrotha]

This whole thing is sort of nuts. We just have to beat whomever we play. I don't think even the most ardent NU supporter would truly think we belong in the hunt for a national title. Those two blowout losses coulpled with our weak offensive output just don't merit us being in a playoff. So rather than worry who we are going to play, we simply to beat whomever we play and let the rest sort itself out. If at the end of the year we have beaten Stanford, Duke, Ped State, Wisconsin and LSU, then I think there is a very valid point to be made that we should at least be in the top ten.