2012 bowl game projections: Texas A&M to play in Cotton Bowl?

No. 9 Texas A&M enjoyed a rousing and successful first season in the SEC, taking down three ranked teams, including a surprising upset of then-No. 1 Alabama on Nov. 10.

According to Jason Kirk of SB Nation, the Aggies are currently projected to appear in the Cotton Bowl on Jan. 4, 2013 against No. 11 Oklahoma in a Big 12 rematch in Dallas. Texas A&M finished the regular season with a dominant victory over Missouri that likely secured freshman quarterback Johnny Manziel the Heisman Trophy. The Cotton Bowl would certainly be excited to have such a sudden national presence in the game.

The No. 18 Texas Longhorns, meanwhile, are currently set to appear in the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio against UCLA, according to Kirk. The Longhorns lost another disappointing game on Thursday, falling at home to TCU as questions about Mack Brown's future arise once more.

Look for the Purdue Boilermakers to get the inside track on either the Heart of Dallas Bowl or the Meineke Bowl in Houston, according to Hammer and Rails, who put the possibilities fairly succinctly:

Heart of Dallas Bowl: This is Purdue's worst case scenario and where I think we'll end up.

According to Kirk, Purdue is set to play Iowa State in the Heart of Dallas Bowl on Jan. 1, 2013.