It’s a Hard Buy for Mazzone : Rose Bowl: After the ticket controversy for the 1994 game, schools are more careful about sales.

Rick Dickson, Washington State’s athletic director, knew who was on the phone and why.

But he refused to take the recent calls from Angelo M. Mazzone III, a UCLA booster and ticket broker who was involved in the 1994 Rose Bowl controversy that left about 1,000 Wisconsin fans stranded in Pasadena without seats to the New Year’s Day game.

“I’m new to the Pac-10, but when I heard about that controversy, I didn’t want to be involved (with Mazzone),” Dickson said.

Some other Pacific 10 Conference officials also chose not to do ticket business with the one-time UCLA associate athletic director this year. Mazzone was turned down by USC and California.

And Mazzone, who often was on the Bruin sideline at games this season, did not buy tickets from UCLA. Athletic Director Peter Dalis said Mazzone did not even ask about tickets.

The only Pac-10 school that sold Mazzone tickets to the Jan. 2 game between No. 2 Penn State and No. 12 Oregon was Freedom Bowl-bound Arizona, which made 70 available to the Wildcat donor. Most Pac-10 schools offer their tickets to donors, season-ticket holders, students and faculty. Leftovers often go to ticket brokers.

“This is a business in a sense,” said John Kasser, Cal’s athletic director. “So we try to cover ourselves.”

Like other ticket brokers, Mazzone annually solicits Pac-10 schools to acquire Rose Bowl tickets at face value. He then resells them as part of tour packages or for inflated prices, depending on demand.

That practice was heavily criticized this year when it was learned that Mazzone and his partner had reaped a $400,000 profit as the middlemen for a large block of tickets to last season’s Rose Bowl game between Wisconsin and UCLA. They bought 4,000 tickets from UCLA at face value of $46 each, a controversial sale linked to a $100,000 donation Mazzone made to the school for athletic scholarships.

Mazzone also purchased 733 tickets from Arizona, Arizona State, Oregon, Oregon State and California.

That infuriated Wisconsin fans, some of whom paid up to 10 times face value to see their Badgers play in the Rose Bowl for the first time in 31 years. Some UCLA fans also were upset because they did not have a chance to buy those 4,000 tickets.

Although Mazzone’s actions were neither illegal nor unusual, the negative publicity left schools leery about Rose Bowl ticket distribution this time. Mazzone has had to scour classified advertisements in newspapers to find available tickets.

The Wisconsin incident also brought public condemnation of ticket practices in general. From the state houses in Harrisburg, Pa., and Salem, Ore., to a federal building in downtown Washington, came this recent consumer warning for ’95 Rose Bowl-bound fans: Caveat emptor.

Officials issued advisories telling fans to buy from reputable ticket agencies and to pay with credit cards so they will have a record of purchase.

“Last year was a rude awakening for many people,” said Jack Lewis of the Pennsylvania attorney general’s office. “Up until last year, people didn’t have any concerns at all.”

Even if the Badgers fail to return to the Rose Bowl for another 31 years, their legacy was firmly established after the ticket scandal resulted in class-action lawsuits, a change in federal policy, state legislation and outrage from Wauwatosa to Westwood.

Because of the Badger faithful, the ’94 Rose Bowl game drew some of the most intense fan interest in recent memory. Ticket prices escalated as some Midwesterners came to California without assured seats. Some of them paid thousands of dollars for tour packages that they assumed included tickets.

When they discovered the tours did not always guarantee game tickets, they complained to the Wisconsin attorney general’s office, which launched an investigation of state ticket brokers. The consumer protection divisions of the L.A. County district attorney’s office and the California attorney general’s office also investigated local brokers, and recently filed suit against two firms, which agreed to pay more than $36,000 in fines.

Secretary of Transportation Federico Pena issued a revised policy covering tour operators for bowl games. In essence, operators cannot sell packages without guaranteeing tickets to the games.

In November, a Madison, Wis., judge dismissed a class-action suit against UCLA, ruling that the school could not be held responsible for the fans’ losses because the fans and UCLA were not parties to a contract. UCLA had been targeted because of the Mazzone ticket deal.

Still, Judge P. Charles Jones said, “I firmly believe that the conduct of UCLA should not go unnoticed.”

It hasn’t.

The Pac-10 agreed to reduce its ticket allotment for the Jan. 2 game so that Penn State could sell more to its fans, and thus avoid another Wisconsin controversy.

“It’s their first time here (as a Big Ten representative) and they have a large alumni (group),” said Tom Hansen, Pac-10 commissioner.

Oregon received 39,000 tickets, Penn State 23,000. Last year, UCLA got 41,000, Wisconsin 21,000.

With the exception of USC, UCLA and Oregon State, the allotments of non-participating Pac-10 schools were cut from 500 to 400. USC and UCLA each normally receive 1,500 as host schools when not participating. This year, USC got 1,100, UCLA 1,200. Oregon State got more tickets than other Pac-10 schools outside Los Angeles because of its proximity to bowl-bound Oregon. The Pac-10 cut itself by 600 tickets.

Even so, Penn State’s needs were not met. Although the Nittany Lions regularly play in major bowl games, there is increased interest this year.

“The fact it is the Rose Bowl and we haven’t been there since 1923 has made a difference,” Penn State Athletic Director Tim Curly said.

Further complicating matters is the school’s massive alumni base. It has the country’s largest dues-paying group with 126,000. Many of them want the chance to see their team perhaps win a national championship.

But they have been reminded of the Wisconsin debacle as officials try to get the word out. Despite the precautions, consumer investigators say it will be impossible to stop fraudulent activity.

“We have not picked up on any outright scams, but we are certainly expecting to,” said Jan Margosian of the financial fraud division of the Oregon attorney general’s office.

“There are so many offers (for tickets) coming in, especially from California. So many of our scams come from California.”

Said Steven Tick of Murray’s Tickets, one of Los Angeles’ oldest and largest ticket agencies: “The potential is always there to be ripped off because people want the ticket so badly they will do almost anything for it.”

Compared to this year’s game, however, when Wisconsin fans occupied at least three-quarters of the stadium, fan interest in the 1995 Rose Bowl is more widespread.

This, even though Oregon has not been to Pasadena for a New Year’s game in 37 years and Penn State, a new Big Ten member, in 72 years. The game seems to have piqued more general interest because it offers two fresh faces.

Kasser, Cal’s athletic director, said he had so many ticket requests that he cut off sales three weeks ago. Last year, Cal sold only two-thirds of its allotment to interested donors. Mazzone was able to buy 51 tickets.

Oregon State, Stanford, USC, Washington and Washington State also sold out quickly this time.

Dickson said 70% of Washington State’s allotment was sold to boosters and season-ticket holders, the rest to Oregon’s faithful.

And, from a public relations perspective, that is better than dealing with ticket brokers and the potential for controversy.

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Times staff writer Jim Hodges contributed to this story.

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