re: Is Michigan State a lock for the Rose bowl

There's virtually no way they drop out of the top 14 unless they get completely annihilated. That would require UCF to leapfrog LSU and MSU on the final day, which is really unlikely (UCF is so colossally undervalued by the coaches' poll alone that it almost certainly won't happen). Alternatively, LSU would have to be ranked ahead of them, which again isn't happening.

So they'll be eligible and honestly, it's not like their choices are especially great. They won't take the loser of the P12CG or Oregon, which leaves Clemson or MSU. Why would Clemson be a better pick? They wouldn't.