As Northern Illinois goes, so goes the Mid-American Conference.
The Huskies are currently No. 14 in the last BCS standings before the final rankings and bowl announcements are made Sunday night.
At the moment, Northern Illinois sits in a BCS position, and as long as the Huskies beat Bowling Green on Saturday in the MAC Championship game, they will be BCS bowl bound.
That means the five other bowl eligible teams in the conference need to cheer for the Huskies, knowing a Northern Illinois loss could potentially knock one or two teams out of the bowl appearances.
The MAC automatically guarantees postseason play for three teams, with the possibility of others snagging at-large bids. A Northern Illinois win would guarantee at least four bowls for the conference.
Here is a composite Post outlook of what bowl placement MAC teams can expect, based on a number of bowl predictions from a variety of news outlets.
Note: a Northern Illinois loss dramatically changes which teams play where, and which eligible teams will not be placed in a bowl. Each of these projections is made as though Northern Illinois will play in a BCS game.
Tostitos Fiesta Bowl
Jan. 1, 2014
BCS at-large vs. Big 12 champion
University of Phoenix Stadium
Glendale, Arizona
Projection: Northern Illinois (12-0) vs. Oklahoma State (10-1)
The Huskies make a BCS bowl for the second-consecutive year. Unless No. 6 Oklahoma State falls to No. 18 Oklahoma on Saturday, the Cowboys will make the trip to Phoenix. If they lose, No. 9 Baylor can sneak in with a win against No. 23 Texas.
Little Caesars Pizza Bowl
Dec. 26, 2013
MAC No. 2 vs. Big Ten No. 8
Ford Field
Detroit
Projection: Bowling Green (9-3) vs. Pittsburgh (6-6)*
Bowling Green will play its second game in a row at Ford Field if it falls to Northern Illinois in the MAC Championship. Pittsburgh is not a Big Ten team, but it may fill that spot if Ohio State makes the National Championship Game.
GoDaddy Bowl
Jan. 5, 2014
MAC No. 1 vs. Sun Belt No. 2
Ladd-Peebles Stadium
Mobile, Alabama
Projection: Ball State (10-2) vs. Arkansas State (7-5)
Led by senior quarterback Keith Wenning, the Cardinals have been strong all season, their only losses coming on the road against North Texas and Northern Illinois. Arkansas State announced it would play in the GoDaddy Bowl in a news release Monday.
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Dec. 21, 2013
MAC No. 3 vs. Mountain West No. 6
Bronco Stadium
Boise, Idaho
Projection: Buffalo (8-4) vs. Colorado State (7-6)
Despite a loss to Bowling Green this past Friday, the Bulls won each of their MAC East games this season and have a potential NFL star in senior linebacker Khalil Mack. A 58-13 win against Air Force this past Saturday made the Rams bowl eligible for the first time since 2008.
San Diego County Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl
Dec. 26, 2013
Army* (MAC is second alternative) vs. Mountain West No. 2
Qualcomm Stadium
San Diego
Projection: Toledo (7-5) vs. Utah State (8-4)
Toledo fell apart toward the end of the season with losses to Northern Illinois and Akron but was a legitimate threat in the MAC West for much of the season. Utah State is by no means a lock for the game because it still has to play No. 23 Fresno State on Saturday.
Beef ‘O’ Brady’s Bowl
Dec. 23, 2013
C-USA No. 5 vs. AAC No. 6 or MAC alternate
Tropicana Field
St. Petersburg, Florida
Projection: Ohio* (7-5) vs. Middle Tennessee (8-4)
A few projections have Ohio in the Poinsettia Bowl, and others don’t include the Bobcats altogether. Either way, Ohio late-season •three-game skid definitely didn’t give the Bobcats any favors.
Central Michigan (6-6) was also bowl eligible, but the Chippewas’ overall record will likely keep them from postseason play.
gh181212@ohiou.edu
@charliehatch_
