Final SEC Bowl Projections

UPDATE: Several media/blogger sources are reporting that Auburn will be selected by the Outback over Tennessee, or any team from the East for that matter. That puts UK firmly in the Shreveport crosshairs.

Here are my final SEC bowl projections. I have to say, after doing this for half the season, this final stab is sort of a joyless exercise. Everyone has an opinion on this now, and unless you have inside information (which I don't) then you are just making a guess. The upsets by Georgia and South Carolina this weekend sent the whole process into a tizzy. UT, UK, Arkansas, Auburn, UGa and USClite are all 7-5, so you can quit focusing on how the teams actually stack up and start thinking about what makes financial sense for these bowl committees. It is conventional wisdom among locals that UK will not to fall below the Music City Bowl. I understand the logic, but doubt any of these people know for sure.
So here it goes, my best guess. And admittedly, it is a guess.

National Championship
Florida. I have gone back and forth on this one for most of the season. Bottom line, I don't see Tim Tebow allowing his team to lose this game.

Sugar
Alabama. We can all agree it is a mortal lock that the SEC runner up gets this nod. Query: If the SEC Championship is very close could there be a rematch in the National Championship? Nebraska would undoubtedly need to beat Texas in the Big 12 Championship and Pitt would probably have to beat Cincinnati. Stranger things have happened.

Capital One
LSU. By attrition. Huge overtime win for the Tigers coupled with Ole Miss loss allows them to claw their way back to a prestigious slot.

Cotton
Ole Miss. Last of the safe bets. Everything below here is a crap shoot.

Outback
Tennessee. Just going with the conventional wisdom here. It makes sense since UT finished hot, and their 4-4 conference record puts them ahead of most of the other 7-5 teams.

Chick-Fil-A
Georgia. This is a guess. It would make sense that because the Chick-Fil-A sells out every year, that it would be looking for a big name matchup. The question becomes, if Georgia Tech loses to Clemson in the ACC Championship and becomes a candidate for this bowl, what happens? Certainly UGa and Tech will not play again. Even if it isn't Georgia, I like Auburn and South Carolina's chances better than ours to go here. Both are very close to Atlanta.

Liberty
Arkansas. The Liberty is said to covet an Arkansas-Houston tilt. Unless the Outback decides to snake the Razorbacks, I'd say this one is a lock.

Music City Bowl
Kentucky. By a nose. The boards are buzzing with talk of a "basketball" UK-UNC pairing. I question whether a North Carolina-South Carolina matchup wouldn't be sexier. But, as John Clay pointed out earlier in the week, with the bowl so close to Christmas (Dec. 27), the MCB needs at least one team whose fans will show up. We will. Cash is king. As for television, how many people are going to watch this game at 7:30pm on a Sunday night anyway?

Independence
Auburn. With only they and South Carolina to choose from, well. . . .Auburn is a lot closer to Shreveport. Who knows?

Papajohns.com
USC. The win against Clemson notwithstanding, the 'Cocks closed the season poorly. That they would suck hind tit here isn't too surprising.