I definitely have my first choice, but honestly, the fact I get to watch the Illini play in December again is all that matters.
Some new projections by others:
Action Network
Illinois v. Louisville in the Quick Lane Bowl
247
Illinois v. North Carolina in the Pinstripe Bowl
Sporting News
Illinois v. Virginia Tech in the Pinstripe Bowl
And it is indoors.Count me as one who’d rather be in Detroit than NYC for Pinstripes.
Despite it being a “better” bowl I think NYC is just not going to be fitting of a college football experience. Travel into NYC and hotel costs will be annoying. Location relative to Yankee stadium not ideal of most hotels. Not even sure what the deal would be for tailgating / post gaming. At least in Detroit you have everything concentrated downtown around Ford Field and travel will be reasonable
I’m just having fun speculating in this thread. The worst option... is still a great thing. #NewTerritoryMichigan just played the Outback Bowl a year or two ago. They’re pretty much locked in to the Holiday unless they beat OSU, then maybe the Citrus is an option.
Us and Indiana at 8 wins (They need to beat Purdue to get there) fights it out for the TaxSlayer. Otherwise, we’re definitely locked into one of the Pinstripe, Quick Lane or Redbox.
Count me as one who’d rather be in Detroit than NYC for Pinstripes.
Despite it being a “better” bowl I think NYC is just not going to be fitting of a college football experience. Travel into NYC and hotel costs will be annoying. Location relative to Yankee stadium not ideal of most hotels. Not even sure what the deal would be for tailgating / post gaming. At least in Detroit you have everything concentrated downtown around Ford Field and travel will be reasonable
They are not eligible since they are cheatersHow much of a difference is 6-6 vs 7-5? I would guess not much. But I'm guessing 8-4 would make a big difference as to what bowl we go to? Also, looking like Mizzou will finish 6-6 or 7-5 at best. How likely is a matchup with them? Wouldn't a bowl committee want to match 2 rivals up to garner more interest?
ESPN Bowl Projections
New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Yankee Stadium, New York
Dec. 27, 3:20 p.m., ESPN
Bonagura: Michigan State vs. Wake Forest
Schlabach: Pittsburgh vs. Illinois
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl
TIAA Bank Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Jan. 2, 7 p.m., ESPN
Bonagura: Tennessee vs. Illinois
Schlabach: Tennessee vs. Iowa
247 Bowl Projections
Pinstripe Bowl: North Carolina vs. Illinois
OMG i would love to play Tennessee, what a good look for the program that would beESPN Bowl Projections
New Era Pinstripe Bowl
Yankee Stadium, New York
Dec. 27, 3:20 p.m., ESPN
Bonagura: Michigan State vs. Wake Forest
Schlabach: Pittsburgh vs. Illinois
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl
TIAA Bank Field, Jacksonville, Florida
Jan. 2, 7 p.m., ESPN
Bonagura: Tennessee vs. Illinois
Schlabach: Tennessee vs. Iowa
247 Bowl Projections
Pinstripe Bowl: North Carolina vs. Illinois
OMG i would love to play Tennessee, what a good look for the program that would be
Here's a breakdown of the B1G bowl tie-ins-
https://collegefootballnews.com/201...ll-bowl-ties-affiliations-for-each-conference
CFB Playoff team(s)
Rose Bowl
Citrus Bowl
Outback Bowl
Holiday Bowl
Most likely Gator Bowl vs SEC (no Iowa or PSU if possible)
Pinstripe Bowl vs ACC (no Indiana, Iowa, Northwestern, Penn State or Wisconsin would be the preference however that's not set in stone)
Redbox Bowl vs Pac-12 (no Indiana, Maryland, Michigan State, Nebraska or Purdue, if possible)
Quick Lane Bowl vs. ACC
Armed Forces Bowl vs. Mountain West
Most bowl projections assume we lose at Iowa and then beat Northwestern at home, closing at 7-5.
8-4 is the way I'd prefer to think about this -- where we jump Indiana and Iowa and play in a warm weather bowl with a bigger payout. I'm going to be greedy for (at least) the next two weeks.
I've seen the payout thing brought up in a couple of posts, did the conference change the policy of all the money going into a B1G pot and split up (after expenses for travel, etc.)?Most bowl projections assume we lose at Iowa and then beat Northwestern at home, closing at 7-5.
8-4 is the way I'd prefer to think about this -- where we jump Indiana and Iowa and play in a warm weather bowl with a bigger payout. I'm going to be greedy for (at least) the next two weeks.
most of those same projections had us winning 4 games this season. So those projections are not good at predicting a team like this (lose to eastern and beat Wisconsin).
Having said that, I need to qualify the next statement. As many of you know, I have been bullish on this administration. I have been bullish on Illinois almost every game. Even when most people had given up, I acknowledged that we were playing poorly and that it didn’t look like Lovie would make it, but I wasn’t ready to throw in the towel. I was still bullish and hopeful against Wisconsin. And I was still unwilling to give up hope that Lovie would not pull it together. I was bullish on the Michigan staTe game throughout the season. I figured that was our big upset.
But with this next game, I’m not bullish. I don’t like the matchup. I’m hopeful and wouldn’t be surprised with a win, but my money would be on a loss to Iowa. So I’m predicting 7 wins and a trip to New York. I’m starting to make my plans for New York. Hopefully, next Saturday I change those plans. But at this point, I’m looking into box seats for the game.
And a winnable gameOMG i would love to play Tennessee, what a good look for the program that would be
We saw Notre Dame play Army at Yankee stadium several years ago & it was fabulous! The Notre Dame band was in Times Square for a pep rally & the subway lets you right off at the Stadium. Cant beat NYC/Yankee Stadium for a game.Count me as one who’d rather be in Detroit than NYC for Pinstripes.
Despite it being a “better” bowl I think NYC is just not going to be fitting of a college football experience. Travel into NYC and hotel costs will be annoying. Location relative to Yankee stadium not ideal of most hotels. Not even sure what the deal would be for tailgating / post gaming. At least in Detroit you have everything concentrated downtown around Ford Field and travel will be reasonable
We saw Notre Dame play Army at Yankee stadium several years ago & it was fabulous! The Notre Dame band was in Times Square for a pep rally & the subway lets you right off at the Stadium. Cant beat NYC/Yankee Stadium for a game.
We saw Notre Dame play Army at Yankee stadium several years ago & it was fabulous! The Notre Dame band was in Times Square for a pep rally & the subway lets you right off at the Stadium. Cant beat NYC/Yankee Stadium for a game.