Bleacher Report's 2024-25 Bowl Projections Entering Week 7

Including the 12 teams ultimately bound for the College Football Playoff, there are 82 bowl slots available during the 2024 season.

Two of them are officially taken.

Indiana beat Northwestern to secure its sixth win of the year on Saturday afternoon, and Miami—behind an incredible comeback—followed suit at Cal in a dramatic game that slipped into the early hours of Sunday.

Among the 16 five-win teams looking to join the bowl-eligible ranks, however, only nine are playing in Week 7. Two of them, Ohio State and Oregon, are even playing each other.

The slate is otherwise loaded with opportunities for programs to inch a bit closer to joining IU and Miami in the postseason pool.

The picks are subjective but based on official tie-ins while observing all selection processes and contingencies.

Camellia Bowl (Dec. 14): Ohio vs. James Madison
New Orleans Bowl (Dec. 19): Western Kentucky vs. Texas State
Cure Bowl (Dec. 20): Central Michigan vs. Georgia Southern
Myrtle Beach Bowl (Dec. 23): Charlotte vs. Coastal Carolina
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl (Dec. 23): Buffalo vs. Colorado State
Hawai'i Bowl (Dec. 24): Liberty vs. Fresno State
68Ventures (Dec. 26): Jacksonville State vs. Louisiana
New Mexico Bowl (Dec. 28): South Florida vs. Louisiana-Monroe
Arizona Bowl (Dec. 28): Toledo vs. San Jose State
Bahamas Bowl (Jan. 4): Sam Houston vs. Northern Illinois

Trending Up: Charlotte 49ers

Since making the transition to the FBS a decade ago, Charlotte has appeared in one bowl. At the midpoint of their season, though, the 49ers are in striking distance. However, it's very important for 3-3 Charlotte to beat at least one of Navy, Memphis or Tulane later this month.

Trending Down: Colorado State Rams

None of CSU's losses—Texas, Colorado and Oregon State—were surprising results. But with San Jose State up next and Fresno State still looming on the slate, Colorado State has a thin margin for error at 2-3.

Frisco Bowl (Dec. 17): North Texas vs. Arizona State
Boca Raton Bowl (Dec. 18): Georgia State vs. Virginia
LA Bowl (Dec. 18): UNLV vs. Colorado
Detroit Bowl (Dec. 26): Eastern Michigan vs. Wisconsin
Armed Forces Bowl (Dec. 27): Tulane vs. TCU
Fenway Bowl (Dec. 28): Memphis vs. Virginia Tech
Military Bowl (Dec. 28): Navy vs. Syracuse
Independence Bowl (Dec. 28): Army vs. Washington State

Trending Up: Virginia Cavaliers

If I asked you to name the five ACC schools still unbeaten in conference play, would you have guessed Virginia? After knocking off Boston College last weekend, the Wahoos are 4-1 overall with a 2-0 league mark. Their remaining schedule is a nightmare, but UVA could manage to scrape out a couple of wins to snap a five-year bowl drought.

Trending Down: TCU Horned Frogs

In truly backward fashion, TCU is 1-2 in the Big 12 but defeated Kansas on the road and lost to both UCF and Houston at home. The recent setback to Houston could be crushing for 3-3 TCU, which is idle in Week 7 but plays Utah and Texas Tech on the next two Saturdays. TCU is suddenly in danger of missing a bowl for the second straight year.

Gasparilla Bowl (Dec. 20): Cal vs. Maryland
Guaranteed Rate Bowl (Dec. 26): Rutgers vs. UCF
Birmingham Bowl (Dec. 27): Georgia Tech vs. Michigan State
Liberty Bowl (Dec. 27): West Virginia vs. Kentucky
Holiday Bowl (Dec. 27): SMU vs. Utah
Las Vegas Bowl (Dec. 27): Washington vs. Missouri
Pinstripe Bowl (Dec. 28): Boston College vs. Illinois
Pop-Tarts Bowl (Dec. 28): Notre Dame vs. BYU
Alamo Bowl (Dec. 28): Kansas State vs. USC

Trending Up: Washington Huskies

Washington needed that win. Last weekend, the Huskies took down Michigan in a rematch of the 2023 season's national championship. More importantly, though, the Dawgs improved to 4-2 before a second half of the campaign that includes trips to Iowa, Indiana, Penn State and Oregon.

Trending Down: UCF Knights

So much for 3-0. After a lopsided home loss to Colorado, UCF struggled in a setback at Florida. There's no rest for the Knights, who play Cincinnati this weekend before closing the month at Iowa State and home to BYU—a pair of unbeaten teams.

Music City Bowl (Dec. 30): Nebraska vs. Arkansas
ReliaQuest Bowl (Dec. 31): Michigan vs. Oklahoma
Sun Bowl (Dec. 31): Duke vs. Arizona
Citrus Bowl (Dec. 31): Indiana vs. LSU
Texas Bowl (Dec. 31): Texas Tech vs. South Carolina
Gator Bowl (Jan. 2): Louisville vs. Texas A&M
First Responder (Jan. 3): Oklahoma State vs. Oregon State
Mayo Bowl (Jan. 3): Pitt vs. Iowa

Trending Up: Texas Tech Red Raiders

Could the Red Raiders crash the Big 12 party? Already 3-0 in conference play, Texas Tech is 5-1 overall and avoids BYU, Kansas State and Utah during the regular season. The team is idle in Week 7 but could secure bowl eligibility at home against Baylor next Saturday.

Trending Down: Oklahoma State Cowboys

Oklahoma State, on the other hand, has practically exited the race. What seemed like a promising year has become a disaster; the Pokes have dropped three consecutive games and next head to BYU on Oct. 18. If that inglorious streak hits four in a row, the program's 18-year postseason streak will be in immense jeopardy.

First-Round Byes

The five highest-ranked conference champions (*) will automatically earn a CFP berth, and the four highest-ranked of that group will be placed in the quarterfinals. While this quartet is assumed to be from the Power 4 (ACC, Big Ten, Big 12 and SEC), that's not guaranteed.

No. 1: Texas*, SEC champion in Sugar Bowl
No. 2: Oregon*, Big Ten champion in Rose Bowl
No. 3: Miami*, ACC champion in Peach Bowl
No. 4: Iowa State*, Big 12 champion in Fiesta Bowl

First-Round Games

No. 12 Boise State* (MWC champion) at No. 5 Ohio State (winner to Fiesta Bowl)
No. 11 Ole Miss at No. 6 Alabama (winner to Peach Bowl)
No. 10 Tennessee at No. 7 Georgia (winner to Rose Bowl)
No. 9 Penn State at No. 8 Clemson (winner to Sugar Bowl)

Game to Watch, Part I: Ohio State at Oregon

See that automatic slot in Oregon's favor? If the Ducks lose to Ohio State, that'll be flipped. Although they're the underdog in this enormous Big Ten clash, they are at home. We might see a rematch of this contest for the conference title anyway, but the winner will take an important step toward being one of those programs in Indianapolis.

Game to Watch, Part II: Ole Miss at LSU

On a similar note, Ole Miss is currently projected in the CFP field. LSU could immediately steal the spot with a home victory this weekend. The loser won't be eliminated from the playoff race, but both teams already have one setback this season. The impact is clear.