College football, in its entirety, gets underway this weekend. To celebrate, USA TODAY Sports’ Erick Smith has submitted one final College Football Playoff and bowl projection before the madness ensues.
In his initial projection, Smith has Auburn ending their season at the AutoZone Liberty Bowl Classic at Simmons Bank Liberty Bowl Stadium in Memphis, Tennessee against a Big 12 foe, West Virginia.
This matchup could provide entertainment, as both programs are in the “up-and-coming” stage of their respective rebuilds. Auburn won six games last season but has added plenty of talented players that could help them reach new heights. As for West Virginia, they won nine games for the first time since 2016 last season and will be in contention to win an “up for grabs” Big 12 this season following the departure of Oklahoma and Texas to the SEC.
The Mountaineers ranked No. 5 in the Big 12 in scoring by posting 31.5 points per game. West Virginia’s strong suit was the run game, where they boasted an impressive 228.9 yards per game on the ground in 2023.
The Liberty Bowl-Auburn connection is popular, as USA TODAY Sports is the third outlet to project the Tigers to earn an invite to the game. Like Smith and USA TODAY Sports, Athlon Sports also projected Auburn to square off with West Virginia in the game while CBS Sports predicts the Tigers to face TCU in Memphis.
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Publish date : 2024-08-28 00:00:00
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