The Bowl Name Game, sponsored by Wikipedia
Hey, so after a long layoff, we finally get to see some college football again tomorrow! Utah vs. Navy in the San Diego Country Credit Union Poinsettia Bowl! Whoo!
This gem of a game is definitely worth watching, if only to hear the announcers attempt to say the entire name in one breath (Navy’s triple-option is also fun to watch, especially if you think the forward pass is symbolic of all that is wrong with modern society). Anyway, this game, currently the record-holder for the longest bowl name, is also a contender for the title of "most ridiculous corporate-sponsored bowl name", though I think both the Meineke Car Care Bowl and the Papajohns.com Bowl are worse.
Now, while we all love our new corporate-sponsored bowl name overlords (who needs a Tangerine Bowl when you can have a Champs Sports Bowl!), I sometimes long for the days of my youth (or perhaps my parents’ youth), when bowls had simpler, fruit-inspired names. Everyone knows about the Rose Bowl and the Cotton Bowl, but few remember some of the other great bowl names and games that, for whatever reason, just didn’t stand the test of time.
Come, follow me on a trip down memory lane (a.k.a. Wikipedia). Here are some of my favorites:
Someone apparently thought that Fresno could become a tourist destination, because not only did the Raisin Bowl (great name, isn’t it?) last for 4 years (1946-1949), but the California Bowl (much lamer, still in Fresno, sometimes marketed as the California Raisin Bowl) lasted for 11 before calling it quits after 1991. Almost all of the games featured either Fresno State or San Jose State, so at least someone came to the games.
Other games in crappy locations (especially during winter) include…
the Cherry Bowl (Pontiac, Michigan - 1984 and 1985)
the Aviation Bowl (scenic Dayton, Ohio on Dec. 9, 1961)
the Garden State Bowl (East Rutherford, New Jersey - 1978-1981; Cal lost the 1979 game 28-17, to Temple, a team now so bad it got kicked out of the Big East)
…and, of course, just what I’m sure Kentucky and Villanova were waiting to hear in December of 1947 - "Hey, congrats on the great year, and welcome to the Great Lakes Bowl in Cleveland, Ohio!!" What a coincidence! That’s where I was hoping to spend my Christmas vacation!
Now, while the Poinsettia Bowl currently holds the record for longest bowl name, few remember that San Diego was also the previous record holder for longest game name, and they didn’t even have a corporate sponsor back then! Back in 1921 and 1922, the country (or at least the greater San Diego area) was treated to the San Diego East-West Christmas Classic Bowl. In the inagural edition, Arizona lost, 38-0, to something called Centre, which, although I don’t know what it is, sure sounds British to me. Now, I don’t know the actual circumstances of the game, but if you lose in football to anything British, the ball damn well better be checkered black and white.
Some of my other favorite bowl names…
the Freedom Bowl (in lovely Anaheim - freedom from what?) 1984-1994
the Mercy Bowl (in Los Angeles - mercy from what?) 1961
the Oil Bowl (in Houston, of course) 1946 and 1947
the Salad Bowl (in Phoenix, Arizona. Honestly, who doesn’t want to win the Salad Bowl?) 1948-1952
…and finally, who couldn’t get excited about playing in the Bacardi Bowl, held in Havana, Cuba!! (sometimes referred to as the Cigar Bowl or the Rhumba Bowl). The first 5 bowls featured an American University versus a Cuban school, while the 1937 game showcased Auburn and Villanova. That game was played in a revolutionary atmosphere, as Fulgencio Batista, the dictator who would be overthrown by Fidel Castro 22 years later, had just assumed power. The game was almost canceled because Batista’s picture was not in the game program. However, a quick trip to the printer saved the Bacardi Bowl.
Yessirree Bob, bowls sure have come a long way since the Pasadena Tournament of Roses decided to host a football game on January 1, 1902. By the way, for those of us Cal fans who revel in Stanford’s misery (that’s pretty much all of us, right?), here’s an account of the first Rose Bowl game, lifted entirely from Wikipedia (who apparently lifted it from Bowl Games: College Football’s Greatest Tradition, by Robert Ours):
Originally titled the "Tournament East-West football game," the Rose Bowl was first played on January 1, 1902, starting the tradition of New Year’s Day bowl games. The inaugural game featured Fielding Yost’s dominating 1901 Michigan team, representing the East, who crushed a previously 3-1-2 team from Stanford University, representing the West, by a score of 49-0 after Stanford quit in the third quarter. Michigan finished the season 11-0-0 and was considered the national champion. Yost had been Stanford’s coach the previous year. The game was so lopsided that for the next 15 years, the Tournament of Roses officials ran chariot races, ostrich races, and other various events instead of football.
Way to almost kill the Rose Bowl, Stanford. Quitters!
Yea quitters! Just like their rugby team!
Comment by Montezuma's Revenge — December 19, 2007 @ 4:22 pm
Ha! That ‘Furd story is a classic. Gives me a snappy comeback when the Stanford alumni in my life begin the Big Game taunting.
As far as Centre, my guess is that no, they weren’t Brits, but Centre College in Kentucky. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Centre_College
Note that the 1921 team beat Harvard. And remember that in 1921, beating Harvard actually meant something. Kinda like how beating Notre Dame used to mean something.
Comment by Axeless — December 19, 2007 @ 4:48 pm
Interesting! Good for Centre. I wonder why we haven’t heard from their football team since…
Comment by ragnarok — December 19, 2007 @ 4:56 pm
What, no mention of the Poulan Weedeater Bowl?! Or the Humanitarian Bowl, which I believe was once sponsored by everyone’s favorite charity, the Human Fund. And as Papa Kapp would say, The Bear Does Not Quit (but the Indian/Cardinal apparently does.)
Comment by California Pete — December 19, 2007 @ 6:39 pm
Cal Pete,
Both those those bowl names are up there in terms of ridiculousness, but I was mostly focusing on bowls that no longer exist. The Poulan Weedeater Bowl is still around, this year as the PetroSun Independence Bowl, while the Humanitarian Bowl is back after a brief interlude as the MPC Computers Bowl. Man, though, the Weedeater Bowl is pretty awful!!
That could be fun, though, coming up with a top 10 list of the most ridiculous bowl names ever. Maybe to kill time next week…
Comment by ragnarok — December 20, 2007 @ 10:30 am
Nothing much to say other than awesome post. Bowl games, no matter how “name-y”, are still fun
Comment by Ben — December 21, 2007 @ 6:24 pm
I recently came across your blog and have been reading along. I thought I would leave my first comment. I don’t know what to say except that I have enjoyed reading.Nice blog,I will keep visiting this blog very often.
Comment by Yiwu Vehicle Market — March 20, 2011 @ 8:37 pm
Nothing much to say other than awesome post.
Comment by Tim — April 15, 2011 @ 4:03 am
May be it’s one of the most interesting post that I have ever seen. Interesting article
Comment by Tim — April 15, 2011 @ 4:05 am
Thanks for taking the time to discuss this, I feel strongly about it and love learning more on this topic. If possible, as you gain expertise, would you mind updating your blog with more information? It is extremely helpful for me.Keep it up.
Comment by Big Circle Drop Stud Earrings — May 5, 2011 @ 2:12 am
Hua 20110506Autumn is still higher than that of a flock of wild geese flying in supra skytop sale formation position and Eagle eye. Efforts supras footwear to arrive. Dry cheap supra shoes eagle eye can still be seen. Hut in the autumn winds supra muska skytop out of the way as long arms. There was an embarrassing end of the tk society supra story. The heroism of the skytop supra shoes collapse. Sea of weeping, As well as cold Crow singing climb in Old home with supra shoes skytop. Starry night through sacrificial rites for praying for rain in skytop supra shoes ancient times the River, log weathered heroic man. Wade supra footwear sale experienced insurance completely changed since Jiao. http://www.supraer.com/specials.html
Comment by supra suprano high — May 6, 2011 @ 4:09 am
nice post
Comment by jewelry Armani — May 15, 2011 @ 7:26 pm
Hello, nice day.. Your article is quite uplifting. I never believed that it was feasible to accomplish something like that until after I looked over your post. You certainly offered a great insight on exactly how this whole system operates. I will make sure to return for more advice. Keep it up!
Comment by yiwu china — May 18, 2011 @ 2:36 am
Here are some of my favorites:
Comment by dr dre headphones — May 23, 2011 @ 5:31 am
i dont know what to say after seeing these comments. but i would like to say that this site was very interesting. i had a great time. thatnks for th good post..
Comment by Lovely Black Feather Drop Earring — May 24, 2011 @ 10:56 pm
this site was very interesting. i had a great time. thatnks for th good post
Comment by learn a language — May 25, 2011 @ 1:21 am
Great article about this topic, I have been lately in your blog once or twice now. I just wanted to say hi and show my thanks for the information provided.
Comment by hollister clothing — May 28, 2011 @ 12:02 am
Nice post Amazing, I found your site on Bing looking around for something completely unrelated and I really enjoyed your site. I will stop by again to read some more posts.
Comment by abercrombie uk — June 2, 2011 @ 9:42 am
You’re the best, thanks for the awesome article. I’m having troubles subscribing to your blogs feed. Thought I’d let you know.
Comment by abercrombie and fitch uk — June 2, 2011 @ 9:49 am
it seems prophetic until you look at Detroit and the history of the working man in these companies. The energy, the rawness and the distortion capture a lot of ang
Comment by pandora bracelets — June 6, 2011 @ 10:54 pm
very nice idea thanks
Comment by pandora bracelets — June 6, 2011 @ 10:56 pm
I am visiting this site first time & it has awesome information. I have come to know a lot of information after visiting this site. Keep this sort of posting in future as well.
Comment by yiwu stopper — June 9, 2011 @ 2:23 am
I really appreciate the effort you have given to this post. I am looking forward for your next post. I found this informative and interesting blog. I just hope you could make another post related to this. This is definitely worth reading.
Comment by yiwu trimming — June 9, 2011 @ 2:24 am
Took me awhile to read all the comments, but I really enjoyed the article. It proved to be very useful to me and I am sure to all the commenters here! It’s always nice when you can not only be informed, but also engaged! I’m sure you had fun writing this article
Comment by yiwu webbing — June 9, 2011 @ 2:26 am
For me as a reader is a pleasure to give congratulations to the creators of this article is fabulous, I think that long ago I have no chance to see a blog with such interesting topics and so popular, I think it’s great to have had the delicacy to share with readers this information.
http://www.aliexpress.com/fm-store/603540
Comment by AliExpress — June 9, 2011 @ 2:27 am
good
Comment by tea length wedding dresses — June 16, 2011 @ 6:58 pm
anime cosplay costumes from http://www.webcosplaycostumes.com
Comment by anime cosplay costumes — June 20, 2011 @ 12:04 am
wedding dresses from
http://www.dresspromgirl.com/
Comment by wedding dresses — June 20, 2011 @ 12:06 am
china electronics wholesale from
http://www.buybuyseller.com
Comment by china electronics wholesale — June 20, 2011 @ 12:07 am
You…are…amazing! This weblog is so great. I really hope a lot more people read this and get what you are saying, ’cause let me tell you, it’s critical stuff. I never would have thought about it this way unless I would run into your web site. Thanks for sharing it. I hope you’ve excellent achievement.
Comment by pandora charms — June 25, 2011 @ 1:37 am
46.in which there are many rare animals such as komodo dragons
Comment by gucci bags online — June 27, 2011 @ 6:02 pm
Wonderful! I definitely love how it is easy on my eyes as well as the information are well written. I am wondering how I can be notified whenever a new post has been made. I have subscribed to your rss feed which need to do the trick! Have a nice day!
Comment by Dr Dre Headphones — July 5, 2011 @ 2:25 am
Cool album, just sit down and relax.
Wonderful.
Comment by cheap oakley sunglasses — July 5, 2011 @ 6:56 pm