In what should come as no surprise to anyone paying attention, Alabama has been selected by the Capital One Bowl and will face Michigan State (11-1, 7-1) in Orlando on January 1st. The official press release from the Capital One Bowl:
The Michigan State Spartans and Alabama Crimson Tide have been selected to play in the 2011 Capital One Bowl. The New Year’s Day classic will kick off at 1:00 p.m. from the Citrus Bowl Stadium in Orlando and will be televised nationally by ESPN.
"We are very excited to stage the first meeting between these two tradition-rich programs here in Orlando,” said Selection Committee Chairman Chuck Beverly. “Their success on the field this year and passionate fan bases will make this a very popular ticket.”
Meanwhile, the SEC once again placed ten teams in bowl games -- point and laugh at Ole Miss, everyone -- and the bowl slate for the other nine SEC schools goes as follows:
BCS National Championship Game: Auburn v. Oregon
Sugar Bowl: Arkansas v. Ohio State
Cotton Bowl: LSU v. Texas A&M
Chick-Fil-A Bowl: South Carolina v. Florida State
Outback Bowl: Florida v. Penn State
Gator Bowl: Mississippi State v. Michigan
Liberty Bowl: Georgia v. Central Florida
Music City Bowl: Tennessee v. North Carolina
Birmingham Bowl: Kentucky v. Pitt
All in all, I think you have to feel pretty bullish for how things will shake out for the SEC. Auburn will smoke Oregon in Glendale -- you know it's true -- and bring home a fifth straight national championship for the SEC, and the rest of the slate looks set for quite a few wins by SEC schools. I don't like either one of the Tennessee or Kentucky match-ups, but those two games notwithstanding SEC schools will be favored in most other games and should do well.