Big Ten Bowl Projections, Tuesday Night MACtion Open Thread

Frankly, there isn’t much in the world of football—tonight marks the last night of an unbroken streak of football on your television every evening, meaning you’ve got one last night to soak up the MACtion.

And what MACtion it is!

Before that, though, I do like to give you something to snack on—and it, unfortunately, won’t be Applebee’s Half-Price Apps. We were looking forward to a Friendsgiving this evening in which the hosts were going to order platters of Applebee’s apps and I was going to make Dollaritas.

Might still have the Dollaritas, but our host got sick (and not because of eating Applebee’s).

So, instead, here’s a Big Ten bowl projections roundup (and feel free to check out Schmolik64’s extended College Football Playoff predictions):

Some special notes from among those:

• Michigan looks to be the overwhelming pick to beat Ohio State. Booby prize for the loser is an Orange Bowl date with Jeff Brohm and Louisville.
• An also-overwhelming pick is Penn State to some other New Year’s Six bowl—but will it be someone punishing like Washington or...well, Tulane?
• If they slide, that’ll bump what appears to be a foregone conclusion: after getting its doors blown off (likely) in the Big Ten Championship Game, that Iowa will go to the Citrus Bowl and be a two-score dog to Ole Miss.

As for the rest?

• Rutgers goes to the Pinstripe Bowl. Probably Georgia Tech or someone else shitty. Moving on.
• Despite a lack of any kind of enthusiasm, wisconsin looks like the popular pick to head toward Nashville for a Music City Bowl date with an SEC also-ran. Let’s call it Auburn Tigers, who just lost at home to New Mexico State and Jerry Kill.
• Maryland is in but is all over the map. Off to Las Vegas for someone from the Pac-12 like Utah, who’ll just sit on them? Down to the Birmingham Bowl for the “thanks for playing, but you’re an at-large” bid? I don’t know why there’d be enthusiasm to take the Turtles, and it’s showing in these projections.
• Someone who might be enthusiastic? 6-6 or 7-5 Northwestern. Unfortunately, the usual caveats apply—small school, small fanbase (yes, Chad, I know it’s national; no, no one cares)—and the ‘Cats look poised to drop to the Quick Lane Bowl or, more intriguingly, the Guaranteed Rate Bowl, where they’d play someone like Kansas at some ungodly hour.
• Could Minnesota make it? It’s not likely, but there are 15 bowl slots and 24 teams at 5-6. Crazier things have happened. RAISE THAT APR BANNER, PEEJ! #ATHLETICALLYACADEMICALLYSPIRITUALLYSOCIALLY
• Less crazily, Illinois only needs to beat Northwestern to book its ticket somewhere. Interestingly, beating the ‘Cats could actually send Northwestern somewhere warm and lock Illinois into Christmas in Detroit, where whoever goes there wants to avoid Toledo.
• If Nebraska beats Iowa in the season finale, consensus is they’d send a mildly jazzed Huskers fanbase to Las Vegas, where I shudder to think what those RVs will do to the landscape.

There you have it. Onto the games.

Don’t Watch This

Bowling Green Falcons (6-5) at Western Michigan Broncos (4-7)

6pm | ESPNU | Bowling Green -2 | O/U 51.5

Watch That

Eastern Michigan Eagles (5-6) at Buffalo Bulls (3-8)

6:30pm | ESPN2 | Buffalo -5 | O/U 36.5

Men’s Basketball

#22 James Madison vs. Southern Illinois

5pm | CBSSN | JMU -5.5 | O/U 146.5 | Cancun Challenge

#7 Tennessee Volunteers vs. #2 Purdue Boilermakers

7pm | ESPN | Purdue -3 | O/U 134.5 | Maui Invitational

Fresno State Bulldogs vs. New Mexico State Aggies

7:30pm | CBSSN | Fresno -4.5 | O/U 140.5 | Cancun Challenge

#1 Kansas Jayhawks vs. #4 Marquette Golden Eagles

9:30pm | ESPN | Kansas -4.5 | O/U 156.5 | Maui Invitational

Northern Arizona Lumberjacks at Hawai’i Rainbow Warriors

12:30am | ESPN+ | Hawai’i -15.5 | O/U 139.5

{CONMEBOL} Brazil vs. Argentina

6:30pm | Telemundo, Universo

The reason EMU-Buffalo gets the nod in the Battle for Ontario is pretty simple: there’s bowl eligibility on the line for the wounded, struggling Eagles. Bowling Green has a bid locked up, and Western has nothing to play for.

That doesn’t mean BG-WMU couldn’t be good and stupid, but it means I’d start with a low-scoring slugfest under the lights in Buffalo.

Of course, the crown jewel tonight is...

...what, you thought Kansas-Marquette? Purdue-Tennessee?

Nah. Could be good, but that Northern Arizona-Hawai’i game. LOOK AT IT. TWELVE-THIRTY IN THE GODDAMN MORNING CENTRAL TIME.

Basically, the move of the Maui Invitational from Lahaina to the Stan Sheriff Center in Honolulu—the home of ‘Bowsketball—meant the Rainbow Warriors had to bump the start time of their non-conference game with Northern Arizona back to 8:30pm local time.

So when Kansas-Marquette is done? BONUS BALL.

Here’s your open thread. Have a great night.