Each week, the Post-Gazette compiles bowl projections for Pitt and Penn State from various national outlets. Here’s a look at the picture after the week concluding Saturday, Dec. 12.
Pitt
The Panthers have announced that they’ll be skipping bowl season this year, citing the rigors of playing amid the COVID-19 pandemic. John McGonigal has details here.
Penn State
Kyle Bonagura, ESPN: Guaranteed Rate vs. West Virginia (Phoenix)
Mark Schlabach, ESPN: Duke’s Mayo vs. Virginia Tech (Charlotte, N.C.)
Jerry Palm, CBS: Duke’s Mayo vs. N.C. State
Bill Bender, Sporting News: Duke’s Mayo vs. N.C. State
Brad Crawford, 247 Sports: Guaranteed Rate vs. TCU
Stewart Mandel, Athletic: Guaranteed Rate vs. Kansas State
The Nittany Lions are back on everyone’s radar after picking up their third consecutive win Saturday against Michigan State. They can finish no better than 4-5 with a win this week at Illinois. But as this space has noted all season, that’s not a dealbreaker because of changes to bowl eligibility requirements amid the pandemic. Throw in the fact that Pitt and other teams are declining bowl invites this year, and there should be plenty of room for Penn State if it gets that last win and wants to participate. Tantalizing matchups could await, too. Virginia Tech was supposed to appear on this season’s non-conference schedule, but that game was scuttled because of COVID-19. A do-over would be a fitting bookend to the season. West Virginia is a regional rival and is currently set to return to the schedule in 2023 and ’24. A bowl matchup could provide a compelling sneak peek. And the Lions rarely meet any of the Mountaineers’ Big 12 peers, so a date with one in Arizona would bring some novelty to a 2020 campaign that thus far has included only Big Ten foes.
Adam Bittner: abittner@post-gazette.com and Twitter @fugimaster24.
First Published: December 14, 2020, 4:40 p.m.
