Bowl game selection process

Since we’ve already had a bunch of “what bowl game threads” I figured it would be a good time to refresh the possibilities.

Obviously the playoffs get first.

The SEC has 9 bowl game tie ins-

Tier 1:
Citrus Bowl (Orlando, FL) - first pick outside of the playoffs. I did find an article that says they must take the team with the most wins or within 1 of the non-playoff teams. It was an old article so I’m not sure if the rule still applies.

Tier 2: group of 6 bowls. The weird thing about these games is the SEC gets to place teams in these games while the bowl game still gets the right to pick the opponent. The SEC makes placements based on geography, match ups, and generally what they feel is the best for $$$. While we as fans may “rank” these bowl games, the SEC views them as equals. They are…
*Dukes Mayo Bowl (Charlotte)
Liberty Bowl (Memphis)
ReliQuest Bowl (Tampa)
Music City Bowl (Nashville)
Texas Bowl (Houston)
Gator Bowl (Jacksonville)
*The Dukes Mayo Bowl rotates with the Las Vegas Bowl. The Las Vegas bowl gets even numbered years

Tier 3: bowl games select among remaining eligible teams, they get to pick in this order.
Birmingham Bowl (Birmingham)
Gasparilla Bowl (Tampa)

***Note 1: this is the final year of the current bowl tie in contract. This will potentially all change next year.

***Note 2: the independence bowl in Shreveport is no longer an SEC bowl. It gets thrown around a lot here as a possibility … it’s not.