Colorado bowl projections after Arizona State punches ticket to CFP

The Colorado Buffaloes have clarity about which bowl game they're going to thanks to Arizona State's Big 12 Championship game victory over the Iowa State Cyclones.

Deion Sanders and his Buffaloes rolled to a 9-3 record this year. Quarterback Shedeur Sanders established himself as one of the top draft-eligible quarterbacks in the sport while two-way star Travis Hunter became a Heisman Trophy favorite..

Since Coach Prime has indicated that Sanders and Hunter plan to play in the bowl game, Colorado might be one of the hottest tickets of bowl season.

Colorado bowl projection: Alamo Bowl ready to snatch up Buffaloes

Considering the star power bubbling up in Boulder, it's no surprise the Alamo Bowl looks likely to invite Colorado with the first pick of former Pac-12 programs.

The Athletic projects the Buffaloes to the Alamo Bowl. So does the San Antonio Express-News. It's essentially a formality. The official announcement will come on Sunday afternoon.

The bigger question is who the Buffaloes will face.

Bowl tie-ins were complicated by conference realignment, but to keep it simple, former Pac-12 schools are still governed by their previous bowl tie ins. The Alamo Bowl will take Colorado as their Pac-12 rep. Then they need to decide on a Big 12 rep.

Big 12 title game loser Iowa State is on the table. So are the BYU Cougars. Colorado missed the Cyclones and Cougars in the Big 12 slate this season, so the bowl organizers don't need to worry about a regular-season rematch. Both matchups have their merits.

Best guess, the Alamo Bowl will tap BYU and their national fanbase.

Colorado vs. BYU series history

The Buffs and Cougs haven't met since the Freedom Bowl in 1988. BYU won that one, 20-17. In fact, they've won three of the last four meetings going back to 1946. However, Colorado dominated the series in the first eight meetings from 1923 to 1942, going 7-0-1