Week 3 Bowl Projections: Miami, Virginia Tech the media favorites from ACC

The 29th Camping World Bowl is still a few months away, but it’s never too early to start predicting which ACC and Big 12 teams might be headed to Orlando.

Here’s a round-up of projections from around the college football media world after Week 3:

Kyle Bonagura (ESPN): Virginia Tech vs. TCU
Mitch Sherman (ESPN): Boston College vs. TCU
Eric Single (Sports Illustrated): Miami vs. Texas
Jerry Palm (CBS Sports): Notre Dame vs. TCU
Bill Bender (SportingNews): Miami vs. TCU
Jason Kirk (SBNation): NC State vs. West Virginia
Brant Parsons (Orlando Sentinel): Virginia Tech vs. TCU
CollegeFootballNews.com: Virginia Tech vs. Oklahoma State
247 Sports: Miami vs. TCU

Virginia Tech vs. TCU

• This would be the first meeting between programs.
• Virginia Tech made its second Camping World Bowl appearance last season; the Hokies lost to Oklahoma State 30-21.
• The Hokies’ first Camping World Bowl appearance was a 13-10 win over Rutgers in 2012 — the only overtime game in the bowl’s history.
• The Horned Frogs are currently ranked 28th in the nation in scoring offense (41.7 points per game) while Virginia Tech is tied for ninth in scoring defense (allowing 10 points per game).

Boston College vs. TCU

• The programs split a home-and-home series in 1987 and 1988, the only previous meetings between the teams.
• Boston College won the first game in Chestnut Hill 28-20, while TCU was victorious the next year in Fort Worth 31-17.
• Boston College is 2-0 in Camping World Bowl appearances; the Eagles defeated Michigan State 24-21 in the then-Champs Sports Bowl in 2007 and beat Virginia 21-13 in 1994, when the game was played in Miami and was known as the Carquest Bowl.
• This would not only be TCU’s first appearance in the Camping World Bowl, but the program’s first appearance in a bowl game in the state of Florida since they lost to Georgia 40-26 in the 1942 Orange Bowl.

Miami vs. Texas

• The Hurricanes and Longhorns last met in the 1991 Cotton Bowl, a 46-3 Miami victory.
• Before that, the programs met three times and have a split record of 2-2 overall.
• Texas has traveled to Florida for three previous bowl games — the last was the 1974 Gator Bowl — and would be making its debut in the Camping World Bowl.
• Miami has played in the Camping World Bowl five times – tied with NC State for the most appearances in game history.

NC State vs. West Virginia

2010 Camping World Bowl in which Russell Wilson led NC State to a 23-7 victory over West Virginia

• • This would be a rematch of our 2010 game, which saw a Russell Wilson-led NC State team top West Virginia, 23-7.
  • The Wolfpack and Mountaineers were scheduled to meet in Week 3, but the game was canceled due to Hurricane Florence.
  • The all-time series is tied 5-5; NC State has won past three meetings (2010, 1979, 1978).
  • The Mountaineers’ last victory in the series came in 1975 Peach Bowl.
  • NC State holds record for most appearances in Camping World Bowl history with five; West Virginia is second with four.
  • This matchup would pit two of the top-10 passing offenses in the nation against each other; WVU quarterback Will Grier has 761 yards on the season so far with a completion rate of 76.7, while NC State’s Ryan Finley has thrown for 679 yards with a completion rate of 74.1.

Oklahoma State defeated Virginia Tech 30-21 in last year’s Camping World Bowl

Notre Dame vs. TCU

• These two programs have only squared off one time previously on the gridiron.
• Notre Dame shut out TCU 21-0 in South Bend in 1972.
• The Fighting Irish have appeared in the Camping World Bowl one time before – an 18-14 loss to Florida State in 2011.
• Notre Dame’s last appearance in Orlando was just last year when the Irish beat LSU 21-17 in the Citrus Bowl.
• The Horned Frogs are averaging 41.7 points per game while the Fighting Irish defense is allowing just 16.5.

Miami vs. TCU

• Miami is 6-3 all-time against TCU; their first meeting came in 1946, a 20-12 Miami win.
• The programs have not faced each other since the 1992 season, when Miami defeated the Horned Frogs 45-10.
• Miami is 3-2 in the Camping World Bowl; its last appearance was in 2016 when the Hurricanes beat West Virginia 31-14.
• TCU’s offense is averaging 467.7 yards per game, whereas the Hurricanes’ fourth-ranked defense has been allowing just 236 yards per game.

Virginia Tech vs. Oklahoma State

• This would be a rematch of last year’s Camping World Bowl last season, in which Oklahoma State defeated Virginia Tech 30-21.
• This would be Oklahoma State’s second-ever appearance in this bowl, however the ‘Pokes did defeat BYU 49-21 in the 1976 Citrus Bowl (known at the time as the Tangerine Bowl).
• Oklahoma State would rely heavily on its 12th-ranked passing offense (333.3 yards per game), as Virginia Tech’s rushing defense is ranked 6th in the nation and allows only 64 yards per game.