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Illinois Football Bowl Projections: Potential Foes Include Georgia, Alabama, Ole Miss

The Illini would be huge underdogs against any SEC powerhouse, according to oddsmakers we consulted

Steven Greenberg

Oct 19, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini players take the field before a game against the Michigan Wolverines at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
Oct 19, 2024; Champaign, Illinois, USA; Illinois Fighting Illini players take the field before a game against the Michigan Wolverines at Memorial Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Ron Johnson-Imagn Images / Ron Johnson-Imagn Images
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Be careful what you wish for, Illinois fans.

Very, very careful.

A theme has emerged from the latest round of college football bowl projections, and it’s both exciting and terrifying if viewed from the perspective of the 6-3 Illini, who are trying to take a couple of steps forward as a traditionally struggling program. According to most of the experts who published projections in Week 12, the Illini are going to run into an SEC heavyweight – with superpower Georgia in the Citrus Bowl as the most common predicted outcome.

But Georgia, currently at No. 12 in the College Football Playoff rankings, wasn’t the only potential SEC foe and certainly wasn’t the only scary one. There’s No. 11 Ole Miss. There’s No. 10 Alabama. There’s No. 7 Tennessee.

We requested point spreads for these matchups from the oddsmakers at BetOnline.ag, and here’s what they gave us: Georgia as a 20½-point favorite against Illinois, Alabama likewise by 20½, Ole Miss by 14½ and Tennessee by 13½. Any way you slice it, the Illini would be one of the biggest ’dogs of bowl season.

Let’s look at what’s being projected:

Citrus Bowl, Orlando, Florida, Dec. 31: At this point, this is the most commonly pegged destination for the Illini. ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura, 247 Sports’ Brad Crawford and SI’s Patrick Andres have them matched up with Georgia. CBS Sports’ Jerry Palm has them going against Ole Miss, the Action Network’s Brett McMurphy has them against Alabama, and USA Today’s Erick Smith has them against Tennessee.

ReliaQuest Bowl, Tampa, Florida, Dec. 31: College Football News projects Illinois to face Tennessee in this game. ESPN’s Mark Schlabach has it Illinois-South Carolina.

More From Illinois on Sports Illustrated:

Big Ten Football Week 12 Power Rankings: Illinois Holding Steady

Remembering Illinois Football's Last Bowl Win: Beating Back the Bruins

Illinois Football Coach Bret Bielema Embraces Tough Conversations

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Steven Greenberg
STEVEN GREENBERG

Steve Greenberg, a columnist for the Chicago Sun-Times, has written about college sports since the early 1990s.

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