Freedom Bowl Tickled With UCLA : Tie With Washington Brought Bruins Into Anaheim Fold

UCLA in the Freedom Bowl.

Think about that for a moment. Let the thought roll around in your mind.

Most definitely, this is a concept that takes some getting used to.

If the Bruins spend the bowl season in Southern California, they usually spend it in Pasadena with roses painted in the end zones, the Big Ten champion opposite them and decades of tradition behind them. UCLA plays in big bowls, prestigious bowls, bowls with a history.

When Matt Stevens was a freshman, the Freedom Bowl had no history. Before August, 1984, the Freedom Bowl was just a twinkle in the eyes of a few Orange County businessmen.

In its first season, the Freedom Bowl had to fight just to get out the word that it wasn’t the Liberty Bowl and it wasn’t the Independence Bowl. In its second season, the Freedom Bowl put together a who-cares matchup between Colorado and Washington--which, most figured, was just about right for this peculiar little bowl.

But Freedom III, scheduled for Dec. 30 at Anaheim Stadium, will apparently pit Terry Donahue’s 1986 Rose Bowl champions against either BYU or Air Force. Air Force and San Diego State are currently tied for the Western Athletic Conference lead with 5-1 records, while BYU is 4-1. The WAC champion gets an automatic bid to the Holiday Bowl.

A BYU or Air Force-UCLA matchup would be attractive, a breakthrough matchup--a stunning matchup, really, considering the Freedom Bowl’s newness to the community and public consciousness.

“From the start, this was our No. 1 goal,” said Tom Starr, executive director of the Freedom Bowl. “We wanted to get into the Pac-10, but especially one of the L.A. schools--UCLA or USC. It was almost tunnelvision, in fact.

“We’re delighted. This finally gives us the credibility we needed.”

Because the official signing date for bowls is next Saturday, Starr is careful when officially describing this year’s matchup. He couches his comments with “ If it’s UCLA” and talks about being “in UCLA’s picture.” For the record, Starr says, “We’re billing it as the Pac-10 against the WAC.”

But the verbal commitments have been made and the signatures on the contract are merely formalities.

Picture UCLA in the Freedom Bowl.

UCLA may stand for the University of California at Los Angeles, but for Starr and the Freedom Bowl, it spells ticket sales. After failing to draw more than 31,000 for either of the first two games, Starr is hopeful of at least 50,000 for Freedom III, now that a local team is involved.

“About two or three weeks ago, we did a telemarketing survey of the Orange County area and asked fans which teams they’d want to see in the Freedom Bowl,” Starr said. “UCLA and USC were overwhelmingly the No. 1 favorites.”

Realistically, Starr had been hoping for a pairing of Stanford and either BYU or Notre Dame when he left Friday for Chicago to scout the Michigan State-Northwestern game. “Just to keep our hand in the Big Ten, just in case,” Starr said.

But when he reached Chicago, Starr called his office and one of his messages told him to call Peter Dalis, the UCLA athletic director. When Starr did, and discovered Dalis to be more than mildly interested, Starr changed his travel plans and flew to Seattle for Saturday’s UCLA-Washington game.

After the Bruins and the Huskies tied, 17-17, a UCLA appearance in the Freedom Bowl was all but wrapped up.

Starr admits Saturday’s outcome helped his chances.

“If UCLA had won, some New Year’s Day bowls might’ve still been interested,” Starr said. “I can’t go to the dance with Tom Selleck and get the prettiest girl. But the tie put us back in the picture--strongly.”

Starr wouldn’t commit to just how strongly, but did admit, “I’m pretty excited. Aside from any of the New Year’s Day games, we’ve showed we can compete with any other bowl.”