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Bowl picture involving Pac-10 teams still cloudyFour bowls still have a chance to host Cats
Arizona Daily Star
Tucson, Arizona | Published: 11.28.2008
The Las Vegas Bowl could have something Gary Cavalli wants — Cal.
The bowl will have its choice between the Pac-10's fourth- and fifth-best teams — or, if the conference sends two teams to the Bowl Championship Series, fifth and sixth.
Cavalli will try to convince Las Vegas to pass on the Golden Bears, leaving them for their hometown Emerald Bowl in San Francisco.
"That would be an argument we would make," said Cavalli, the Emerald Bowl's executive director. "'Help us this year, and maybe if you've got a team you really want later…'"
Parceling Pac-10 teams into bowl slots is not as simple as it sounds. A series of quirks allows for maneuverability among the conference's five eligible teams — a number that grows to six if either UCLA or Arizona State wins its final two games.
The Arizona Wildcats can finish anywhere between tied for fourth place and alone in sixth.
They could still play in the Sun Bowl, usually reserved for the Pac-10 No. 3, or the Las Vegas, Emerald or Hawaii bowls.
Should the Pac-10 send two teams to the BCS — and that becomes more likely if Oregon State wins Saturday to make the Rose Bowl — then every other conference team would bump up one slot. If USC also makes the BCS, the Holiday Bowl would get the conference's third-place team.
In cases of a tie, the Holiday Bowl usually selects the team that has won the head-to-head game. But no Pac-10 bowl, save the Rose Bowl, is obligated to do so.
Then it gets sticky.
Contractually, the Sun Bowl cannot have the same team in back-to-back seasons.
The Sun Bowl would pass on Oregon, last year's participant, should it fall into its slot. In one scenario, the next-best team could be Arizona.
Once the Sun Bowl makes its selection, the Las Vegas Bowl has its choice of the next-best two teams.
That choice alternates every year between Las Vegas and the Emerald Bowl, which this year has the fifth slot.
Tina Kunzer-Murphy, executive director of the Las Vegas Bowl, said "there's a lot of interest" in selecting Arizona or, if eligible, Arizona State.
"The southern schools, geographically, make sense unless you have a team that really travels well," said Kunzer-Murphy, whose son graduated from the UA last year.
The bowl will pit either BYU or TCU against the Pac-10 representative. Kunzer-Murphy said Arizona's 10-year bowl drought makes it even more attractive.
"Everyone really wants to go to the Rose Bowl," she said. "Usually when you get the fourth or fifth team, they're not that excited to come to your place."
The Emerald Bowl gets the next choice, assuming there is one.
If the Pac-10 sends two teams to the BCS and neither UCLA nor ASU wins out, the Pac-10 won't have enough teams to satisfy the Emerald, Hawaii and Poinsettia Bowls.
All directors want to select a good game, Kunzer-Murphy said, but hotel occupancy and ticket sales play a major role.
The Las Vegas Bowl itself was invented to fill hotels during a typically slow week. The city's convention authority and team hotels are sponsors, putting a premium on selecting a team that will bring fans to Las Vegas.
Cavalli said he is always concerned about both the city's hospitality industry and filling the stadium.
"But if we had Cal," he said, "I'd be more interested in making sure I had a huge crowd."
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