There were no seismic shifts in Week 3 of the college football season. Road losses for No. 11 Tennessee (at Florida) and No. 15 Kansas State (at Missouri) certainly weren't stunners, and while several top teams struggled a bit, everyone else in the Top 25 ultimately took care of business.
But simply taking care of business doesn't always cut it in the world of bowl projections, where style points matter and results up and down the scoreboard have an impact on everyone.
Kyle Bonagura and Mark Schlabach are here to sort it all out, with projections for all 43 matchups, plus their takes on the College Football Playoff picture, surprise teams and the game they'd be most excited to see.
All times Eastern
College Football Playoff
CFP National Championship presented by AT&T
NRG Stadium (Houston)
Monday, Jan. 8, 7:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Georgia vs. Michigan
Schlabach: Georgia vs. Michigan
CFP Semifinal at the Rose Bowl Game presented by Prudential
Rose Bowl (Pasadena, California)
Monday, Jan. 1, 5 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Michigan vs. USC
Schlabach: Michigan vs. USC
CFP Semifinal at the Allstate Sugar Bowl
Caesars Superdome (New Orleans)
Monday, Jan. 1, 8:45 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Georgia vs. Florida State
Schlabach: Georgia vs. Florida State
CFP breakdown
Bonagura: It was an unconvincing weekend for the top four teams in the AP poll, with Georgia, Michigan, Florida State and Texas all winning without gaining any style points. The only change I made was to flip Florida State with idle USC. Texas might have had a chance to supplant Florida State, but the Longhorns needing the fourth quarter at home to finish off Wyoming didn't exactly inspire confidence and Alabama's struggle against USF cast a new light on Texas' win last week.
Although the top teams didn't fare great, Ohio State and Washington had strong performances and could easily be swapped with the playoff picks in their conferences (Michigan and USC). Several others are in a strong position -- Penn State, Oregon, Oregon State, Utah, Ole Miss and Oklahoma among them -- and we'll be monitoring those teams closely in the coming weeks.
Schlabach: Even though USC didn't play this past weekend, I moved the Trojans back into the top four, bumping Texas. With so many good teams in the Pac-12 this season, it's difficult to imagine that the last Pac-12 champion will be left out of the CFP. The Trojans would certainly earn a spot if they can finish unbeaten or 11-1; they'll play six more games against teams that are currently ranked, including road trips at No. 18 Colorado, No. 9 Notre Dame and No. 13 Oregon.
None of my other CFP picks -- Georgia, Florida State and Michigan -- was overly impressive Saturday. The Bulldogs trailed South Carolina 14-3 at halftime before pulling away with a 24-14 victory. It was the third straight slow start for UGA. Likewise, Michigan led Bowling Green only 14-6 after two quarters but then pitched a 17-0 shutout in the second half for a 31-6 win. Boston College took Florida State to the wire in the Seminoles' 31-29 road victory. Texas, Ohio State, Penn State and Notre Dame were also strongly considered for the CFP this week.
New Year's Six
Friday, Dec. 29
Goodyear Cotton Bowl Classic
AT&T Stadium (Arlington, Texas)
8 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Tennessee vs. Texas
Schlabach: Notre Dame vs. Texas
Saturday, Dec. 30
Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl
Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)
Noon, ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Alabama vs. Memphis
Schlabach: LSU vs. Penn State
Capital One Orange Bowl
Hard Rock Stadium (Miami Gardens, Florida)
4 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Duke vs. Ohio State
Schlabach: Miami vs. Ohio State
Monday, Jan. 1
Vrbo Fiesta Bowl
State Farm Stadium (Glendale, Arizona)
1 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Washington vs. Penn State
Schlabach: Washington vs. Tulane
Favorite matchups
Bonagura: Give me USC and Michigan in the Rose Bowl. One last traditional Rose Bowl in a high-stakes environment before the Trojans join the Big Ten and the Granddaddy of Them All is changed forever.
Schlabach: It's criminal that Notre Dame and Texas have played only 12 times and just twice since 1997. Teams with that kind of tradition and history should be required to play at least once every five years or so. This matchup would come 45 years after quarterback Joe Montana led the Irish to a stunning 38-10 victory over the No. 1 Longhorns in the 1978 Cotton Bowl, which vaulted Notre Dame from No. 5 to No. 1 in the final polls. Texas star Earl Campbell, the Heisman Trophy winner in 1977, ran for 116 yards but didn't score.
Bowl season
Saturday, Dec. 16
Bahamas Bowl
Thomas A. Robinson National Stadium (Nassau, Bahamas)
11 a.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Ohio vs. Liberty
Schlabach: Eastern Michigan vs. Liberty
Cricket Celebration Bowl
Mercedes-Benz Stadium (Atlanta)
Noon, ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Florida A&M vs. North Carolina Central
Schlabach: Florida A&M vs. North Carolina Central
R+L Carriers New Orleans Bowl
Caesars Superdome (New Orleans)
2:15 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Western Kentucky vs. South Alabama
Schlabach: Louisiana Tech vs. Georgia State
Cure Bowl
Exploria Stadium (Orlando, Florida)
3:30 p.m., ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Texas State vs. UNLV
Schlabach: Appalachian State vs. Florida Atlantic
New Mexico Bowl
University Stadium (Albuquerque, New Mexico)
5:45 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: New Mexico State vs. Troy
Schlabach: Arizona vs. San Diego State
LA Bowl
SoFi Stadium (Inglewood, California)
7:30 p.m., ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: UCLA vs. Fresno State
Schlabach: UCLA vs. Wyoming
Radiance Technologies Independence Bowl
Independence Stadium (Shreveport, Louisiana)
9:15 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Texas Tech vs. Colorado
Schlabach: Texas Tech vs. Washington State
Monday, Dec. 18
Myrtle Beach Bowl
Brooks Stadium (Conway, South Carolina)
2:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Navy vs. San José State
Schlabach: Florida International vs. South Alabama
Tuesday, Dec. 19
Scooter's Coffee Frisco Bowl
Toyota Stadium (Frisco, Texas)
9 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Appalachian State vs. San Diego State
Schlabach: West Virginia vs. Air Force
Thursday, Dec. 21
RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl
FAU Stadium (Boca Raton, Florida)
8 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Florida International vs. Utah State
Schlabach: Temple vs. Georgia Southern
Friday, Dec. 22
Union Home Mortgage Gasparilla Bowl
Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)
6:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Coastal Carolina vs. Auburn
Schlabach: Army vs. Auburn
Saturday, Dec. 23
Birmingham Bowl
Protective Stadium (Birmingham, Alabama)
Noon, ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Texas A&M vs. Cal
Schlabach: Mississippi State vs. North Texas
Camellia Bowl
Cramton Bowl (Montgomery, Alabama)
Noon, ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Georgia State vs. Eastern Michigan
Schlabach: Marshall vs. Northern Illinois
Lockheed Martin Armed Forces Bowl
Amon G. Carter Stadium (Fort Worth, Texas)
3:30 p.m., ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Kansas vs. South Florida
Schlabach: UTSA vs. Western Kentucky
Famous Idaho Potato Bowl
Albertsons Stadium (Boise, Idaho)
3:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Miami (Ohio) vs. Air Force
Schlabach: Ball State vs. Fresno State
68 Ventures Bowl
Hancock Whitney Stadium (Mobile, Alabama)
7 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Louisiana vs. Middle Tennessee State
Schlabach: Coastal Carolina vs. Toledo
SRS Distribution Las Vegas Bowl
Allegiant Stadium (Las Vegas)
7:30 p.m., ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Rutgers vs. Utah
Schlabach: Wisconsin vs. Colorado
EasyPost Hawai'i Bowl
Clarence T.C. Ching Athletics Complex (Honolulu)
10:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: UTSA vs. Wyoming
Schlabach: BYU vs. Boise State
Tuesday, Dec. 26
Quick Lane Bowl
Ford Field (Detroit)
2 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Michigan State vs. Toledo
Schlabach: Michigan State vs. Ohio
SERVPRO First Responder Bowl
Gerald J. Ford Stadium (Dallas)
5:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Marshall vs. Rice
Schlabach: Cincinnati vs. Cal
Guaranteed Rate Bowl
Chase Field (Phoenix)
9 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Illinois vs. TCU
Schlabach: Minnesota vs. Kansas
Wednesday, Dec. 27
Military Bowl
Navy-Marine Corps Memorial Stadium (Annapolis, Maryland)
2 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Wake Forest vs. Tulane
Schlabach: Illinois vs. Memphis
Duke's Mayo Bowl
Bank of America Stadium (Charlotte, North Carolina)
5:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Clemson vs. Mississippi State
Schlabach: Wake Forest vs. Kentucky
Holiday Bowl
Petco Park (San Diego)
8 p.m., Fox
Bonagura: Syracuse vs. Oregon
Schlabach: Duke vs. Utah
TaxAct Texas Bowl
NRG Stadium (Houston)
9 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: BYU vs. Kentucky
Schlabach: UCF vs. Missouri
Surprise team that has my attention
Bonagura: Duke is 3-0, smashed Clemson and has yet to play a close game. That is not something I had on my preseason bingo card, and assuming the Blue Devils don't get tripped up at Connecticut next week, there will be an appetizing game in Durham against Notre Dame on Sept. 30.
Schlabach: Florida was left for dead by almost everyone after its 24-11 loss at Utah in the season opener. But then the Gators did what they always seem to do: beat rival Tennessee in The Swamp on Saturday night. Florida's 29-16 upset of the No. 11 Volunteers is proof that, despite what many Gators fans might believe, coach Billy Napier does indeed have a plan in place to rebuild the program. Quarterback Graham Mertz played well in the first half, then Florida relied on its running game in the second half to control the clock. With upcoming games against Charlotte (home), Kentucky (road), Vanderbilt (home) and South Carolina (road), the Gators could be sitting pretty going into their Oct. 28 showdown against current No. 1 Georgia in Jacksonville, Florida, on Oct. 28.
Thursday, Dec. 28
Wasabi Fenway Bowl
Fenway Park (Boston)
11 a.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Pitt vs. SMU
Schlabach: Boston College vs. SMU
Bad Boy Mowers Pinstripe Bowl
Yankee Stadium (New York)
2:15 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: NC State vs. Minnesota
Schlabach: NC State vs. Rutgers
Pop-Tarts Bowl
Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)
5:45 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: North Carolina vs. UCF
Schlabach: Clemson vs. Kansas State
Valero Alamo Bowl
Alamodome (San Antonio)
9:15 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Oklahoma vs. Oregon State
Schlabach: Oklahoma vs. Oregon
Friday, Dec. 29
TaxSlayer Gator Bowl
TIAA Bank Field (Jacksonville, Florida)
Noon, ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Miami vs. Florida
Schlabach: Louisville vs. Texas A&M
Tony the Tiger Sun Bowl
Sun Bowl Stadium (El Paso, Texas)
2 p.m., CBS
Bonagura: Louisville vs. Washington State
Schlabach: Syracuse vs. Oregon State
AutoZone Liberty Bowl
Simmons Bank Liberty Stadium (Memphis, Tennessee)
3:30 p.m., ESPN and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Kansas State vs. Missouri
Schlabach: TCU vs. Florida
Saturday, Dec. 30
TransPerfect Music City Bowl
Nissan Stadium (Nashville, Tennessee)
2 p.m., ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Maryland vs. Tennessee
Schlabach: Maryland vs. Tennessee
Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl
Arizona Stadium (Tucson, Arizona)
4:30 p.m.
Bonagura: Northern Illinois vs. Boise State
Schlabach: Miami (Ohio) vs. UNLV
Monday, Jan. 1
ReliaQuest Bowl
Raymond James Stadium (Tampa, Florida)
Noon, ESPN2 and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Wisconsin vs. LSU
Schlabach: North Carolina vs. Alabama
Cheez-It Citrus Bowl
Camping World Stadium (Orlando, Florida)
1 p.m., ABC and the ESPN App
Bonagura: Iowa vs. Ole Miss
Schlabach: Iowa vs. Ole Miss