Nothing But Iron: What’s in Your Stadium? January 1, 2006 by Steven R. Lagman, M.D., C.A.S.W. Barry Alvarez said he was disappointed with the projected low turnout for the Capitol One Bowl game. I have this reply: Coach, it’s your own damn fault. You are a bonafide college football big shot, having gained national respect by resurrecting a downtrodden, deeply insolvent football program, and what do you say? "There is no such thing as a bad bowl game." With all due respect, Coach, are you kidding me? Sure Sports Illustrated generously rated the Cap One at three (out of four) footballs on the worth-watching scale, but I believe that much of sports-watching population, including many potential ticket buyers, just doesn’t care. If it is true that there is no such thing as a bad bowl game, then games like the Emerald Bowl will thrive long after the implementation of a meaningful playoff system. I acknowledge that no single person can turn the BCS into the CPS (Championship Playoff Series), but, given that university presidents are all about the money and the media are all about its sponsors, the movement will have to start with the coaches. Every year at this time I sit before my computer utterly perplexed that the only coaches who publically proclaim the need for a better system are the one’s who are screwed out of the so-called championship game. If BCS insanity grates on me so badly, how can elite competitors like you, Coach, stand not knowing who is really the best? Some of you will say that the absence of a meaningful post season is a minor factor in the low turnout in Orlando. You are wrong, but it is true there are other etiologies. Etiologies is an expensive medical word for reasons, which is not found in billable diagnosis codes: 1) There is wide perception that the Badgers are grossly overmatched and cannot be competitive against the Tigers. As an aside, I disagree. By the time you read this the game will have been played and my prediction will only be credible if I am wrong. Trust me, I would not go back and change something just to make myself look smart. I have said too many dumb things for that to matter now. 2) Cap One is a Monday game. If it had been played on Sunday, with Monday as a travel day, that might have been worth a couple thousand more fans, including the one writing this column. 3) The success of the Wisconsin program has caused a paradoxical apathy. Said another way, having won three Big Ten championships, there is only one significant accomplishment, assuming you buy into that championship drivel, that eludes the Badgers. Winning the Capitol One Bowl is not it. 4) Cap One is as much the Rose Bowl as Dan Quayle is John Kennedy. For those of us who made it to Pasadena in 1994 and 1999, it is unimaginable that any other game could compare. Are we spoiled? Yes, I suppose we are. 5) Late season collapses against conference opponents has hurt. A win against Iowa would have preserved a lot of momentum. 6) Hawaii trumps Florida. I doubt that a lot of fans will have been able or willing to make both trips. 7) People who have been to Florida in January know the weather can be miserable. There is a chance that you will be better off going north instead, like did this weekend. It’s cold, but at least there is snow. _______________ Nothing But Iron is an amateur sports column. Though it is not apparent in this column the author is deeply grateful to Coach Barry Alvarez for his role in the resurrection of Wisconsin athletics. An Alvarez dedication piece is in the works, and should be complete by the time Brett Bielema retires in 2032. ©2006 DrTM Enterprises. All rights reserved.