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2021 College Football News bowl projections, predictions and possible matchups for the College Football Playoff: Week 1

And here we go with the wild overreaction to Week 1.

Of course everything will take a big twist after Week 2, and as the upsets kick in as the season goes on. Trying to get the bowl projections and College Football Playoff calls as close to the pin as possible …

Bowl Projections: Week 1

All Times Eastern

Bahamas Bowl

Friday, December 17
ESPN, 12:00 pm
Thomas Robinson Stadium, Nassau, Bahamas
Bowl Tie-Ins: Conference USA vs. MAC
Bowl Projection: Florida Atlantic vs. Ohio

Cure Bowl

Friday, December 17
ESPN2, 6:00 pm
Camping World Stadium, Orlando, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: Group of Five vs. Group of Five (or Army)
Bowl Projection: WKU vs. Air Force

RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ESPN, 11:00 am
FAU Stadium, Boca Raton, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: Group of Five vs. Group of Five (or Army)
Bowl Projection: Charlotte vs. South Alabama

Cricket Celebration Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ABC, 12:00 pm
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA
Bowl Tie-Ins: MEAC vs. SWAC
Bowl Projection: South Carolina State vs. Prairie View A&M

New Mexico Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ESPN, 2:15 pm
Dreamstyle Stadium, Albuquerque, NM
Bowl Tie-Ins: C-USA vs. Mountain West
Bowl Projection: Louisiana Tech vs. Nevada

CFN Week 1 Rankings of All 130 Teams

Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ABC, 3:30 pm
Ladd-Peebles Stadium, Mobile, AL
Bowl Tie-Ins: C-USA vs. BYU
Bowl Projection: UAB vs. BYU

LendingTree Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ESPN, 5:45 pm
Independence Stadium, Shreveport, LA
Bowl Tie-Ins: MAC vs. Sun Belt
Bowl Projection: Ball State vs. Troy

Jimmy Kimmel LA Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ABC, 7:30 pm
SoFi Stadium, Inglewood, CA
Bowl Tie-Ins: Mountain West vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Boise State vs. Arizona State

R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl

Saturday, December 18
ESPN, 9:15 pm
Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Bowl Tie-Ins: C-USA vs. Sun Belt
Bowl Projection: Marshall vs. Coastal Carolina

Myrtle Beach Bowl

Monday, December 20
ESPN, 2:30 pm
Brooks Stadium, Conway, SC
Bowl Tie-Ins: Sun Belt vs. AAC or MAC
Bowl Projection: Troy vs. Toledo

Famous Idaho Potato Bowl

Tuesday, December 21
ESPN, 3:30 pm
Albertsons Stadium, Boise, ID
Bowl Tie-Ins: MAC vs. Mountain West
Bowl Projection: Buffalo vs. Fresno State

Tropical Smoothie Cafe Frisco Bowl

Tuesday, December 21
ESPN, 7:30 pm
Toyota Stadium, Frisco, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: Group of Five vs. Group of Five (or Army)
Bowl Projection: SMU vs. UTSA

Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl

Wednesday, December 22
ESPN, 7:30 pm
Amon G. Carter Stadium, Fort Worth, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big 12 or C-USA or Pac-12 or Army
Bowl Projection: Texas Tech vs. Army

Union Home Mortgage Bowl

Thursday, December 23
ESPN, 7:00 pm
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: AAC or ACC or Pac-12 or SEC
Bowl Projection: Louisville vs. Northwestern*
*No AAC. Pac-12 or SEC projected available

EasyPost Hawaii Bowl

Friday, December 24
ESPN, 8:00 pm
Clarence TC Ching Complex, Honolulu, HI
Bowl Tie-Ins: American Athletic vs. Mountain West
Bowl Projection: Tulane vs. San Jose State

Camellia Bowl

Saturday, December 25
ESPN, 2:30 pm
Cramton Bowl, Montgomery, AL
Bowl Tie-Ins: MAC vs. Sun Belt (or C-USA)
Bowl Projection: Central Michigan vs. Louisiana

NEXT: More Bowl Projections: Week 1

Bowl Projections: Week 1

Quick Lane Bowl

Monday, December 27
ESPN, 11:00 am
Ford Field, Detroit, MI
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. MAC
Bowl Projection: Purdue vs. Western Michigan

Military Bowl presented by Peraton

Monday, December 27
ESPN, 2:30 pm
Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium, Annapolis, MD
Bowl Tie-Ins: American vs. ACC
Bowl Projection: Memphis vs. Wake Forest

TicketSmarter Birmingham Bowl

Tuesday, December 28
ESPN, 12:00 pm
Protective Stadium, Birmingham, AL
Bowl Tie-Ins: American Athletic vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: Liberty* vs. Mississippi State
*No AAC teams projected available

SERVPRO First Responder Bowl

Tuesday, December 28
ESPN, 3:15 pm
Gerald J. Ford Stadium, Dallas, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: AAC or ACC or Big 12 or Pac-12
Bowl Projection: West Virginia vs. Houston

AutoZone Liberty Bowl

Tuesday, December 28
ESPN, 6:45 pm
Liberty Bowl Memorial Stadium, Memphis, TN
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big 12 vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: Kansas State vs. Kentucky

San Diego State Credit Union Holiday Bowl

Tuesday, December 28
FOX, 8:00 pm
Petco Park, San Diego, CA
Bowl Tie-Ins: ACC vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Virginia Tech vs. UCLA

Guaranteed Rate Bowl

Tuesday, December 28
FOX, 10:15 pm
Chase Field, Phoenix, AZ
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. Big 12
Bowl Projection: Indiana vs. Oklahoma State

Fenway Bowl

Wednesday, December 29
ESPN, 11:00 am
Fenway Park, Boston, MA
Bowl Tie-Ins: AAC vs. ACC (or C-USA)
Bowl Projection: Cincinnati vs. Boston College

New Era Pinstripe Bowl

Wednesday, December 29
ESPN, 2:15 pm
Yankee Stadium, Bronx, NY
Bowl Tie-Ins: ACC vs. Big Ten
Bowl Projection: Pitt vs. Minnesota

Cheez-It Bowl

Wednesday, December 29
ESPN, 5:45 pm
Camping World Stadium, Orlando, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: ACC vs. Big 12
Bowl Projection: Miami vs. Iowa State

Valero Alamo Bowl

Wednesday, December 29
ESPN, 9:15 pm
Alamodome, San Antonio, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big 12 vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Texas vs. Washington

Duke’s Mayo Bowl

Thursday, December 30
ESPN, 11:30 am
Bank of America Stadium, Charlotte, NC
Bowl Tie-Ins: ACC vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: North Carolina vs. South Carolina

TransPerfect Music City Bowl

Thursday, December 30
ESPN, 3:00 pm
Nissan Stadium, Nashville, TN
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: Michigan State vs. Tennessee

SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl

Thursday, December 30
ESPN, 10:30 pm
Allegiant Stadium, Las Vegas, NV
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Iowa vs. Utah

TaxSlayer Gator Bowl

Friday, December 31
ESPN, 11:00 am
TIAA Bank Field, Jacksonville, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: ACC vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: NC State vs. Auburn

Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl

Friday, December 31
CBS, 12:30 pm
Sun Bowl Stadium, El Paso, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: ACC vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Virginia vs. Colorado

Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl

Friday, December 31
Barstool Sports, 2:00 pm
Arizona Stadium, Tucson, AZ
Bowl Tie-Ins: MAC vs. Mountain West
Bowl Projection: Kent State vs. San Diego State

Outback Bowl

Saturday, January 1
ESPN2, 12:00 pm
Raymond James Stadium, Tampa, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: Michigan vs. Ole Miss

Vrbo Citrus Bowl

Saturday, January 1
ESPN2, 1:00 pm
Camping World Stadium, Orlando, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: Wisconsin vs. LSU

Mercari Texas Bowl

Tuesday, January 4
ESPN, Time TBA
NRG Stadium, Houston, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big 12 vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: TCU vs. Missouri

Expected to be back, but still up in the air …

Redbox Bowl

Levi’s Stadium, Santa Clara, CA
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Maryland vs. Stanford

NEXT: New Year’s Six Bowl Projections, Week 0

New Year’s Six Bowl Projections: Week 0

Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl

Thursday, December 30
ESPN, 7:00 pm
Mercedes-Benz Stadium, Atlanta, GA
Bowl Tie-Ins: At-Large vs. At-Large
Bowl Projection: Notre Dame vs. Florida

Playstation Fiesta Bowl

Saturday, January 1
ESPN, 1:00 pm
State Farm Stadium, Glendale, AZ
Bowl Tie-Ins: At-Large vs. At-Large
Bowl Projection: USC vs. UCF

Rose Bowl Game

Saturday, January 1
ESPN, 5:00 pm
Rose Bowl, Pasadena, CA
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big Ten vs. Pac-12
Bowl Projection: Penn State vs. Oregon

Allstate Sugar Bowl

Saturday, January 1
ESPN, 8:45 pm
Mercedes-Benz Superdome, New Orleans, LA
Bowl Tie-Ins: Big 12 vs. SEC
Bowl Projection: Oklahoma vs. Texas A&M

NEXT: 2021-2022 College Football Playoff Projections

2021-2022 College Football Playoff Projections

Capital One Orange Bowl

Friday, December 30
ESPN, Time TBA
Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Gardens, FL
Bowl Tie-Ins: CFP vs. CFP
Bowl Projection: Clemson vs. Georgia

Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic

Friday, December 30
ESPN, Time TBA
AT&T Stadium, Arlington, TX
Bowl Tie-Ins: CFP vs. CFP
Bowl Projection: Alabama vs. Ohio State

College Football Playoff National Championship presented by AT&T

Monday, January 10
ESPN, 8:00 pm
Lucas Oil Stadium, Indianapolis, IN
Bowl Tie-Ins: CFP vs. CFP
Bowl Projection: Alabama vs. Georgia

CFN Week 1 Rankings of All 130 Teams

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