I thought he had nothing to do with the Outback Bid?
http://www.montgomeryadvertiser.com/article/20091203/SPORTS0402/912030339/1002/sports/Some-of-the-best-drama-comes-before-bowl-gamesAuburn officials = JJ and the Athletic dept
Is this a great bowl season or what?
The games don't begin for 16 days, but the plot already has taken more turns than a Stephen King novel. Nowhere is the excitement more gripping than in the Southeastern Conference, where half a dozen teams finished with 7-5 records and find themselves lobbying for better bowl position.
The competition has been fierce.
After all, the right bowl can create advantages that last for years. Power is rooted in recruiting. Recruiting, in many ways, is rooted in exposure.
Bigger bowls with attractive dates and more national exclusivity can help create buzz throughout the recruiting world. Prospects know which programs are making progress.
They also can see which teams are sliding.
The past few days have been tense throughout the league. Athletic directors have been talking with bowl representatives and promoting the best elements of their programs -- and their fan bases -- in an effort to distinguish themselves.
If everyone is 7-5, it takes more than a record to curry favor.
Auburn was perhaps the most proactive program, working feverishly to secure a commitment from the Outback Bowl. The game, played on Jan. 1 in Tampa, has selected an Eastern Division program during each of the past 13 seasons.
The Tigers didn't care. They wanted to be in Tampa.
And they apparently made it work.
Auburn officials had three novel elements working in their favor. Coach Gene Chizik is a native of nearby Clearwater, Fla., and courted his wife there during the early 1990s. It's a good story.
Gus Malzahn's offense is exciting, innovative and noteworthy. It's a good story.
Auburn's fan base, excluded from the postseason fray in 2008, is enthusiastic about the team's renaissance. If Chizik somehow could move his team into a New Year's Day bowl during his first season, fans would feel even more strongly about making the trip to Florida.
Everything was in place. Outback Bowl officials, who initially felt compelled to invite Tennessee, instead worked with officials from the Chick-fil-A Bowl and found the Vols a closer postseason home.
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Other bowls with SEC tie-ins made their agreements as well. Georgia settled with the Independence Bowl. South Carolina (Papajohns.com Bowl), Arkansas (Liberty Bowl) and Kentucky (Music City Bowl) learned their fates as well.
Announcements were prepared. They were scheduled to occur Tuesday.
Then the SEC office intervened.
It put a moratorium on final agreements because of a potential snag. Officials from the Bowl Championship Series were unwilling to guarantee a BCS berth for the loser of Saturday's SEC Championship game.
Florida is No. 1. Alabama is No. 2.
The lesser of those two teams surely is worthy of a top-tier bowl -- each would be considered a favorite in the national title game -- but the BCS refused to provide a guarantee.
The move appears to be political.
A group of politicians voiced concerns earlier this year about the BCS and its relevance. A simple House resolution created to commend Florida on its 2008 BCS championship elicited 12 votes of either "no" or "present." Some still believe a playoff remains the only equitable way to determine a championship.
Those critics believe the BCS wields too much control.
So the BCS officials played it smart with the SEC by declining to promise anything. They said the games determine all and, at least in their own mind, took a stand against their critics by holding out.
Maybe it will work. Maybe one critic will change position.
Still, Alabama and Florida will finish their seasons in BCS bowls. The deals hammered out throughout the SEC earlier this week, currently delayed by the possibility of accommodating a BCS castoff, will stick.
A week of ticket sales will be lost. So it goes.
Who says the best drama is saved for the field?
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