Our (final) Pac-12 bowl projections: Oregon to host CFP game, USC to the Alamo, Arizona to the Holiday and a look at the selection process

The the bulk anticipated weekend of the college football season is fast approaching with Championship Saturday followed by Selection Sunday The College Football Playoff field will be revealed at a m Pacific followed hours later by a steady stream of bowl announcements that cannot become official until the conferences and bowls know which teams are available By mid-afternoon we should have a solid grasp on the destinations for the eight Pac- legacy teams that have qualified for the postseason Here s a primer on the process for the uninitiated Although the conference dissolved in bowl leaders and remaining Pac- executives determined it would be far less complicated to maintain the Pac- tie-ins than to reconfigure bowl arrangements based on the post-realignment conference structure The plan also served the conference s remaining members Washington State and Oregon State As a effect any Pac- legacy teams that don t qualify for the CFP will be bound for the Alamo Las Vegas Holiday Sun or LA bowls or participate in a bowl operated by ESPN Events One crucial change was made to the process With the teams scattered across the ACC Big Big Ten and Pac- overall record not conference record is used to set the selection order However the so-called one-win-down rule still applies That means the Pac- s partner bowls can pass over one company for another as long as there is no more than a one-game difference in record A - band could get picked ahead of an - crew for example One element has not changed over the years Repeat participants are avoided at all costs In fact bowl personnel typically prefer teams that have not participated in their competition in at least three years if achievable There are eight bowl-eligible teams from the collection of Pac- legacy schools but only five bowl tie-ins Oregon is likely headed to the playoff leaving two teams without a spot Those teams will fill vacancies in other games or be placed in one of several bowls operated by ESPN Events Now to the Hotline s latest projections Last week s edition can be revealed here All times Pacific College Football Playoff Date Dec ESPN ABC or TNT Crew Oregon vs Group of Five champ Comment Everything is falling into place for the Ducks - who are tracking toward the sweetest seed in the bracket No which would allow them to host an opening-round championship against the Group of Five champion e g North Texas or Tulane and then with a win advance to face the No seed likely Texas Tech in the quarterfinals Alamo Bowl Gang USC vs Big Date Dec at p m ESPN Comment When the Hotline adds nine USC wins plus zero prior USC appearances in the Alamo Bowl plus three decades USC coach Lincoln Riley lived in Texas the development is percent chance the Trojans end up in San Antonio Las Vegas Bowl Unit Utah vs Big Ten Date Dec at p m ESPN Comment We suspect the Las Vegas Bowl administrators would be thrilled to land the Utes who have wins this season a passionate fan base and a compelling story that will generate ticket sales within that fan base It could be coach Kyle Whittingham s final match Holiday Bowl Band Arizona vs ACC Date Jan at p m Fox Comment The Wildcats - could slip to the Sun Bowl if the Holiday selects Washington but the hot organization that s a short cheap flight from San Diego makes more sense than a lukewarm band from the Pacific Northwest Sun Bowl Club Arizona State vs ACC Date Dec at a m CBS Comment The added complexity on this tier of games involves Washington which played in the Sun Bowl last year and therefore isn t a viable option If Arizona goes to San Diego the Sun Devils - are pretty much a lock for El Paso LA Bowl Band Washington vs Mountain West Date Dec at p m ABC Comment As we see it the Huskies - are headed to Los Angeles to face Boise State or UNLV such is the lasting impact of the loss to Wisconsin Had they won in Madison the Holiday would be very much in play ESPN bowl at-large Organization Cal Comment The Bears - could be assigned to the pool of ESPN-operated games available to Pac- legacy teams Armed Forces First Responders or Gasparilla Or they could get shipped to the far corners to fill a vacancy in Hawaii or Boise or the Canary Islands We re joking about that last one mostly Related Articles Stanford hires Tavita Pritchard On the Andrew Luck connection the deposit imperative and the Cardinal s circle coming full Big Ten power rankings Ohio State Indiana showdown will cap boring season Big power rankings Texas Tech BYU and the nightmare CFP scenario Pac- power rankings SDSU on top as Boise State s CFP path opens barely Washington State beats Oregon St bowl-eligible for th time in years ESPN bowl at large Unit Washington State Comment It wouldn t be the bowl season without the Cougars - who have qualified in nine of the past years excluding and clinched their spot with a blowout success over Oregon State If the Potato Bowl in Boise has a vacancy WSU would make sense Non-qualifier Club Colorado Comment At least the Buffaloes - only have two non-conference road games next season against Power Four opponents Northwestern and Georgia Tech and not three It could be another long fall in Boulder Non-qualifier Company Oregon State Comment The JaMarcus Shephard era cannot be worse than the Trent Bray era for the Beavers - unless he hires the wrong coordinators and whiffs on the strength coach And then it will be as bad if not worse Non-qualifier Club Stanford Comment Tavita Pritchard has a chance to elevate Stanford early in his tenure but only if he gets the requisite endorsement from the administration Otherwise the Cardinal - will continue to flounder even in the wide open ACC Non-qualifier Crew UCLA Comment The Bruins - are banking on new coach Bob Chesney being Curt Cignetti when in fact their backgrounds are quite different over and beyond the success at James Madison Unlike several others we aren t convinced Chesney is a home run hire Send suggestions comments and tips confidentiality guaranteed to wilnerhotline bayareanewsgroup com or call - 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