FSU's latest bowl projection and probable opponent

Championship weekend is in the books, and things have played out about as well as Florida State fans could have hoped. The College Football Playoff looks set, with Clemson, Alabama, Oklahoma, and Michigan State (not necessarily in that order) set to compete for this year's national championship. So where will the Seminoles wind up?

Well let's eliminate some possibilities first. The Rose Bowl has announced its intentions of taking the top-ranked PAC-12 and Big Ten teams not in the playoff, so that certainly means the champ of the former, Stanford. What remains to be seen is if previously ranked No. 4 Iowa (12-1) falls below No. 6 Ohio State (11-1). The Hawkeyes gained a good deal of respect after almost beating the Spartans, and they could certainly gain this nod. They have one more win than the Buckeyes-- but OSU faced tougher competition. Either way, one of these teams is headed to Pasadena, and the other will play in another New Year's Six bowl.

The Sugar Bowl is an SEC vs. Big-12 matchup, and no team is close to Ole Miss from the former. After Baylor lost to Texas on Saturday, Oklahoma State seems to be headed to New Orleans as well.

That pretty much leaves two possible destinations for the Seminoles, and the most likely answer is the best one that 'Nole fans could have hoped for, ever since FSU's tough loss at No. 1 Clemson in the regular season: Atlanta. The Peach Bowl, in the Georgia Dome, is a prestigious New Year's Six Bowl in a city packed with Florida State alumni. It's also an easily drivable trip from Tallahassee; and the Seminole fan base will be closer to ATL than whichever team it figures to face.

Which teams are those? Notre Dame, the Big Ten team excluded from the Rose Bowl, and Houston (the Cougars secured an automatic NY6 bid by finishing atop the Group of Five conferences). The 'Noles, along with two of these three teams, will compete in the Peach and Fiesta Bowls. Notre Dame seems to be the squad least likely to play FSU, as the Irish have fans everywhere, and would draw a crowd in Somalia. Hence, they're most likely poised to compete in Glendale.

So ready yourself for a return to the ATL, 'Noles. What remains to be seen is if Florida State will face Ohio State, Iowa, or Houston. I suspect the powers that be will seek to juice up the New Year's Day game featuring Notre Dame by throwing them the Big Ten team, whereas the 'Noles will see a nevertheless exciting Houston squad in the New Year's Eve noon game, while many are running errands in preparation to ring in 2016. We'll find out at noon on Sunday.