On Tuesday evening, the updated College Football Playoff Top 25 was released following the conclusion of the regular season. The final CFP Top 25 will be released Sunday following this weekend’s conference championship games, and the rest of the bowl slate will follow suit.
Liberty is one of 79 bowl eligible teams in play for 78 bowl slots, and the updated CFP Top 25 gives us a sneak peak of where the Flames could end up this bowl season.
The Flames have a secondary bowl agreement with the Cure Bowl, which is played December 21st in Orlando, Florida. The Cure Bowl pits a team from the Sun Belt and the American Athletic Association.
The highest ranked Group of 5 conference champion in Sunday’s CFP Top 25 will get an automatic bid into the Cotton Bowl. Based on Tuesday’s updated rankings, Memphis of the AAC would get the nod, and this would open up a spot for Liberty in the Cure Bowl, taking the AAC’s spot that it would not be able to fill.
Memphis is currently ranked #18 and they have a rematch Saturday in the AAC Championship game against #20 Cincinnati. Boise State of the Mountain West is currently ranked #19 ahead of their conference championship game this weekend against Hawaii. The Sun Belt’s Appalachian State is ranked #21 ahead of its Sun Belt Championship game against Louisiana.
If Memphis or Cincinnati remain ahead of Boise State following this weekend’s action, or if Appalachian State becomes the highest rated G5 conference champion, then the AAC or the Sun Belt would be unable to fill its slot in the Cure Bowl and the Flames would get the nod.
Cure Bowl Executive Director Alan Gooch was on hand in Lynchburg this past Saturday to watch Liberty become bowl eligible for the first time in school history. We caught up with him to get his thoughts on Liberty and its chances to make the Cure Bowl this season. Listen to the full interview below:
