Under the new SEC bowl order, the Capital One Bowl in Orlando Fla., will have first choice of available SEC teams after any conference schools have qualified for the College Football Playoff, the Sugar Bowl or the Orange Bowl. The Capital One Bowl matches the SEC against an opponent from the Big Ten or Atlantic Coast Conference.
From there, the SEC will determine the league representative for six bowl games in consultation with the schools and the bowl games. Those games are the Outback Bowl in Tampa, Fla., (vs. Big Ten), Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tenn., (vs. ACC or Big Ten), Gator Bowl in Jacksonville, Fla., (vs. ACC or Big Ten), Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tenn. (vs. Big 12), Texas Bowl in Houston (vs. Big 12) and Belk Bowl in Charlotte, N.C. (vs. ACC). The Texas and Belk bowls are new to the SEC lineup.
This bowl process gives us the best opportunity to address several issues that impact SEC fans, including the creation of intriguing matchups, the accommodation of travel for fans, reduced ticket obligations for our schools and a variety of assignments to help prevent repetitive postseason destinations, SEC commissioner Mike Slive said.
Once the SEC spots are filled in those six bowls, the Birmingham Bowl will have the first choice of available SEC teams, followed by the newly named Advocare V100 Bowl in Shreveport, La., which was formerly known as the Independence Bowl where Missouri has played three times since 2003. The Birmingham Bowl, located in the same Alabama city as the SECs headquarters, will match the SEC against a team from an undecided conference. The Advocare V100 bowl will also feature a team from the ACC.
