FSU Football: Website Predicts Noles, Rivals in New Years Six Bowls
By Jason Parker
FSU football has been a constant in the New Years Six bowl games since they started – and website thinks the Seminoles will keep it that way this year.
Quick quiz time, readers: of the 36 teams who have been selected for a New Years Six bowl game since the College Football Playoff system started in the 2014 season, name the three teams who have made it all three seasons to one of the six major bowls. If you guessed that FSU football was one of them, you would be correct.
The Seminoles are joined by just Alabama and Ohio State as teams who have been able to play in a big time, elite bowl game each season under the new system. In total, just seven teams – the first three mentioned plays Clemson, Michigan State, Mississippi and Oklahoma – are the only ones to make it multiple years. That shows the consistency the ‘Noles have played with over the years.
It’s that consistency that has many experts believing that FSU football is going to not only be back in a New Years Six game this coming bowl season, but will be back in the CFB Playoff for the first time since its inaugural year three seasons ago.
Florida State Seminoles Football
Sports website The Spun became the latest to praise the Seminoles, sending Florida State back to the New Years Six in a playoff game…while also having several conference and in-state rivals among the group:
"Orange Bowl: Clemson (ACC) vs. Florida (SEC)Peach Bowl: Louisville (ACC) vs. USF (Group of Five)Fiesta Bowl: Washington (Pac 12) vs. Penn State (Big Ten)Cotton Bowl: Auburn (SEC) vs. USC (Pac 12)CFB Playoff – Sugar Bowl: No. 1 Alabama (SEC) vs. No. 4 Florida State (ACC)CFB Playoff – Rose Bowl: No. 2 Ohio State (Big Ten) vs. No. 3 Oklahoma (Big 12)"
The site picked Alabama and Ohio State to meet in the championship game on January 8th in Atlanta. A couple other things you get out of that is they believe the Seminoles will drop the opener to the Crimson Tide – and the ACC Atlantic would become the third division to send three teams to a New Years Six bowl during the system (SEC West in 2014, Big Ten East in 2016).
This also show what kind of mammoth schedule FSU football is facing in 2017. Yes, there are teams like Louisiana-Monroe and Delaware State on it, but one third of their opponents are predicted to make it to the top bowl games – along with another team the Seminoles played last season. Yikes!