Memphis bowl predictions after week 2

NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos...

Memphis suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday against Boise State, dropping them to 2-1 on the season. While the loss hurts any hopes to make the college football playoffs, the Tigers only need four more wins to gain bowl eligibility for the 13th straight season.

The Tigers started the season with back-to-back wins over UNLV and Arkansas State before losing to the Broncos by 18 points. Charles Huff’s team will likely pick up its fourth win on Saturday against UT-Martin before starting conference play on October 3.

ESPN, CBS Sports and On3 all updated their bowl projections, and while most have the Tigers in the same bowl as last week, all three of the sites predict different opponents for Huff’s team.

ESPN:

Bonagura: Frisco Bowl vs. Clemson

Schlabach: Frisco Football Classic vs. North Dakota State

ESPN continues to predict the Tigers will play in a bowl game in Frisco. Kyle Bonagura has them playing in the Frisco Bowl on on December 23, while Mark Schlabach has Memphis playing in the Frisco Football Classic on December 15.

Bonagura predicts Huff’s team will play against Clemson in the Frisco Bowl, which would be one of the biggest brands the Tigers have played in a bowl game. While the two teams have met on the hardwood, the two Tigers have never met on the gridiron. 

Dabo Swinney’s team is 1-1 to start the season with a win over Georgia Southern and a blowout loss against LSU in week 1.

Schlabach thinks Memphis will play North Dakota State in the Frisco Football Classic. The Bison are in their first season at the FBS level, and they will be eligible to play in a bowl game after the NCAA did away with the two-year transition period.

In previous years, teams making the jump from the FCS to the FBS were required to serve a two-year transition penalty where they could not play in bowl games. After dominating at the FCS level, North Dakota State is 3-0 to begin its FBS era, and some people think the Bison could make a run at the College Football Playoffs.

CBS Sports:

Frisco Bowl vs. Colorado State

After week 1, ESPN predicted the Tigers would play Colorado State in the Frisco Bowl, and after another week of action, CBS Sports have shifted to that prediction. Last week, the outlet predicted Memphis would play in the Frisco Classic, but now they think Huff’s team will play in the other bowl game in Texas.

The Rams are 2-0 after wins over Wyoming and Southern Utah, and they’ve scored 35 or more points in the first two games of the season. The two teams have only met once in program history, and the Tigers won that meeting 20-18 in 1974.

On3:

Fenway Bowl vs. Duke

On3’s Brett McMurphy has Huff’s team playing in the Fenway Bowl against Duke. Last week, McMurphy predicted the Tigers would play Florida State, but he now doesn’t believe the Seminoles will gain bowl eligibility.

The Blue Devils are 2-0 after wins over Tulane and Illinois, and they’ll look to gain bowl eligibility for the fifth straight season. Memphis has only played Duke twice in program history, and the Blue Devils won both meetings in 2012 and 2013.

The 2013 meeting was Paxton Lynch’s first start for the Tigers.

More at NCAAF College Football News, Photos, Stats, Scores, Schedule & Videos