Rose Bowl Can Become a Nightmare for Fiesta

It is the Fiesta Bowl’s worst nightmare.

What happens if Ohio State and Southern Cal go undefeated and meet in the Rose Bowl on Jan. 1, the day before the Fiesta is supposed to stage a national championship game in Arizona?

“We have no control over the situation, so it doesn’t do any good to worry about it,” said John Junker, the Fiesta’s executive director.

Still, the Rose Bowl scenario is a nerve-racking one for the Fiesta Bowl, which has been billing itself as the site of a “likely national championship game.”

Under the new bowl alliance, the Fiesta is guaranteed a 1-2 matchup unless the Big Ten or Pac-10 champion is No. 1 or No. 2. Those teams are committed to play in the Rose Bowl, which has refused to join the alliance.

By scrapping all the old conference tie-ins except the Big Ten-Pac-10 deal with the Rose, the bowl alliance hoped to improve the chances of getting an undisputed national champion. But fourth-ranked Ohio State (6-0) and No. 5 Southern Cal (6-0) aren’t cooperating.

Even if the Fiesta gets a 1-2 game between Nebraska and the Florida State-Florida winner, an undefeated Rose Bowl champion could make a strong argument for the national title--just as Penn State did last year when it went 12-0 and finished second behind Nebraska in the final polls.

But the Fiesta would face a real disaster if top-ranked Florida State, No. 2 Nebraska and No. 3 Florida all lose and the Rose Bowl gets a 1-2 game between Ohio State and Southern Cal.

“We knew all along that something like that could happen,” Junker said. “I’m sure if it does, there will be lot of finger-pointing and second-guessing. But I still think the new system is the best one we’ve ever had.”

Although an Ohio State loss would benefit his bowl, Junker insists he hasn’t been rooting against the Buckeyes.

“I grew up in Ohio and had three sisters go to Ohio State,” he said. “I’m also close friends with (Ohio State coach) John Cooper. I’ve known him since his days at Arizona State, and I really wish him the best.”

*

TOUGH LUCK: Along with their black-and-gold uniforms, Purdue and Army have something else in common this season--bad luck.

The Boilermakers (2-3-1) and the Cadets (1-3-1) have each lost three games by a total of 11 points.

Purdue’s losses were 35-28 to Notre Dame, 39-38 to Minnesota and 26-23 to Penn State. The Boilermakers were stopped at the Notre Dame 5-yard line with 52 seconds left, missed a 42-yard field goal with 21 seconds remaining against Minnesota, and gave up the winning TD to Penn State with 2 1/2 minutes left.

Army was beaten 23-21 by Duke, 21-13 by Washington and 28-27 by Notre Dame. The Cadets lost to Duke on a 28-yard field goal with four seconds left, ended the Washington game on the Huskies’ 1-yard line, and came up inches short on a 2-point conversion attempt that would have beaten Notre Dame.

*

LOFTY GOAL: When Glen Mason arrived at Kansas in 1988, the Jayhawks were coming off a 1-9-1 season. Now he’s talking about winning a national championship.

“Given enough time and putting enough things in order, there’s no reason why that can’t be done,” said Mason, whose seventh-ranked Jayhawks are 6-0.

Mason cited Miami as an example of a school that went from rags to riches in a short time. Miami considered dropping football a few years before it started winning national titles in the 1980s.

“We’re sure not talking about dropping football at Kansas, so I don’t know why we couldn’t (win a national title),” Mason said. “It might take us a little longer, but if everything’s in place, and I think with the reductions in scholarships now, anything’s possible.”