Written by Yesh Ginsburg at Bloguin
One week ago, the race for the Group of Five bid in a New Year’s Six bowl was all wrapped up. The American controlled the bid and was guaranteed a spot in either the Peach or Fiesta Bowl, depending on who emerged as the champion.
That was last week. This week, everything is different. One game changed the whole complexion of this race.
South Florida walloped Temple.
The American is no longer guaranteed to have a champion who is a shoe-in for the NY6 bid. If the team from the West (either Navy or Houston) wins the conference championship game, that team is going to an NY6 Bowl (likely Houston to the Fiesta, Navy to the Peach). However, if there is an upset in that game, we could be looking at another conference champion for that spot.
If Temple wins out, the Owls are probably still the best candidate from any G-5 conference to go to an NY6 bowl game. However, Temple has one of the toughest games of its season this week when it hosts Memphis. If Temple loses that game, the Owls may not even win the AAC East. South Florida could then win the conference by beating Cincinnati and UCF. Even if Temple loses to Memphis but wins the AAC East, it will no longer have a resume that is ahead of the other G-5 conference champions.
So if a 10-3 Temple comes out of the AAC, who is in position to get the G-5 bid? Boise State may have been the next team in line for that spot, but the Broncos fell to New Mexico Saturday night, which all but killed their chances of getting this bid. In fact, the Mountain West’s only real hope might be Air Force, whose two nonconference losses to Michigan State and Navy mean they actually don’t have an awful resume.
What conference stands to be in the best position if Temple wins The American?
Look no further than the MAC.
To continue reading this article, click here
