There’s still a lot of football remaining, but the Alabama-Auburn showdown on Nov. 26 in Tuscaloosa could easily end up deciding who in the SEC lands the most attractive bowl trip.
It’s also a trip that could culminate in the fifth straight BCS national championship for the league if everything goes right.
Auburn, the SEC’s only unbeaten team, is in excellent shape to get one of the top two spots in the final BCS standings and play for the title on Jan. 10 in Glendale, Ariz. Alabama is also right in the hunt.
However it shakes out, the SEC will almost certainly send two teams to BCS bowls for the fifth straight year.
Here’s this week’s projection of the SEC bowl lineup. It’s pretty much the same as last week. The only difference is that Alabama and Auburn have swapped places. Until Auburn loses, the Tigers get top billing:
Tostitos BCS National Championship Game (Jan. 10, 8:30 p.m. ET): Auburn vs. BCS team
Allstate Sugar Bowl (Jan. 4, 8:30 p.m. ET): Alabama vs. BCS team
Capital One Bowl (Jan. 1, 1 p.m. ET): LSU vs. Big Ten team
AT&T Cotton Bowl (Jan. 7, 8 p.m. ET): Arkansas vs. Big 12 team
Outback Bowl (Jan. 1, 1 p.m. ET): South Carolina vs. Big Ten team
Chick-fil-A Bowl (Dec. 31, 7:30 p.m. ET): Mississippi State vs. ACC team
Gator Bowl (Jan. 1, 1:30 p.m. ET): Georgia vs. Big Ten team
Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl (Dec. 30, 6:40 p.m. ET): Florida vs. ACC team
AutoZone Liberty Bowl (Dec. 31, 3:30 p.m. ET): Kentucky vs. Conference USA team
Birmingham Bowl (Jan. 8, noon ET): Ole Miss vs. Big East team