South Carolina bowl projections: Orlando, Tampa gaining traction

South Carolina’s program got a jump-start in the early 2000s with a coach heavily linked to Notre Dame.

Could Will Muschamp’s second team end its season against Lou Holtz’s former school?

A Citrus Bowl meeting with the Irish is probably the most intriguing matchup from the batch of bowl projections released after South Carolina wrapped its regular season against Clemson. SBNation made that pick, but it appears USC could be more in line for an upper-tier Florida game.

In seven projections, two had USC in the Citrus, three in the Outback and two in the TaxSlayer Bowl. Both trips to Jacksonville would mean matchups with Virginia Tech. Big Ten opponents in the other two include Michigan, Michigan State and Northwestern.

Perhaps the biggest development for USC was what happened to Mississippi State on Thanksgiving. The Bulldogs lost to fall to 8-4 and lost star quarterback Nick Fitzgerald to a ghastly ankle injury, making them a less attractive bowl choice.

Bowl projections

▪  SBNation projects South Carolina will face Notre Dame in the Citrus Bowl in Orlando on New Year’s Day.

▪  ESPN’s Kyle Bonagura sends USC to the TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville on Dec. 30 against Virginia Tech. David Hale goes with a New Year’s Day Outback Bowl against Michigan State.

▪  CBSSports’ Jerry Palm puts the Gamecocks in the Citrus Bowl against Northwestern.

▪  SI.com has USC heading to the Outback Bowl in Tampa vs. Michigan.

▪  CollegeFootballNews puts the Gamecocks in the New Year’s Day Outback Bowl against Michigan.

▪  247Sports slots the Gamecocks in the TaxSlayer Bowl against Virginia Tech.

This story was originally published November 26, 2017 at 2:08 PM with the headline "South Carolina bowl projections: Orlando, Tampa gaining traction."