Monday Reading Room - Orange Bowl may be played in a stadium with no name

Iowa has played bowl games in Jack Murphy Stadium and Raymond James Stadium.

It's played bowl games in stadiums that at the time were called the Rose Bowl and Sun Bowl and Citrus Bowl and Gator Bowl. Imagine that, bowl games played in stadiums named after . . . bowls!

But the Hawkeyes have never appeared in a bowl game at a stadium with no name. Not yet, anyway.

We in Iowa had been told the Jan. 5 Orange Bowl between Iowa and Georgia Tech will be played at Land Shark Stadium. It may not. More on that in a bit. First, how did the stadium in Miami Gardens, Fla., which is 16.5 miles from Miami, get named Land Shark Stadium?

It involves singer Jimmy Buffett, a close personal friend of Hawkeyes football broadcaster Ed Podolak.

Stephen Ross, a New York billionaire, bought 50 percent of the Miami Dolphins and their stadium last January. He approached long-time Dolphins fan Buffett to play a role in rebranding the franchise. What followed was the Dolphins getting a naming rights deal with a joint brewing project between Buffett's Margaritaville empire and Anheuser-Busch Inbev called Land Shark Lager.

So the stadium was rechristened Land Shark Stadium in May, but only through the end of the NFL regular season, which is Jan. 3. The Dolphins are free to make a deal with someone else after that, someone who would then have their name on the 22-year-old facility for this year's Pro Bowl and Super Bowl, both of which will be played at the stadium in 2010.

If no new sponsor is secured by Jan. 5, the Orange Bowl presumably will be held in Dolphin Stadium. Workers could be busy scrubbing off all those land sharks. The Dolphins have a home game against the Pittsburgh Steelers on Jan. 3.

The venue originally was called Joe Robbie Stadium. Then Pro Player Park. When Iowa played in the Jan. 2, 2003 Orange Bowl, it was Pro Player Stadium. Then it was Dolphins Stadium, which got turned into Dolphin Stadium. And for the last eight months, Land Shark Stadium.

Are you as confused about this as me?

Not everyone in Miami will be sad to see the Land Shark name go the way of the Land Dinosaur. Kyle Munzenrieder wrote this for Miami New Times:

The horrible eight months in which we've had to refer to our football stadium as "Land Shark" in honor of a horrible Chevy Chase sketch Jimmy Buffett's beer is almost over.

Gregg Easterbrook of ESPN.com has these thoughts on the matter:

I kicked off this season by declaring on "The Brian Kenny Show" that I liked the Colts and Saints to meet in the Super Bowl. This prediction is faring so well, it's almost spooky. After 11 games, there are no teams I would rather see when I take my seat Feb. 7 at -- where, exactly? The facility, currently called Land Shark Stadium, has a naming deal that expires at the end of the regular season. If no new sponsor is found, the place will be called Dolphin Stadium that day. But Stephen Ross, majority owner of the stadium, is actively seeking a Super Bowl stadium name sponsor. Dubai Field now seems unlikely, as does Saab Stadium. How about this: Oprah Winfrey Presents Oprah Winfrey's Oprah Winfrey Stadium Featuring Oprah Winfrey.

I'll tell you what some wealthy, entrpreneurial Iowan should do. Namely, call Mr. Ross and buy the stadium-name rights for the day of the Orange Bowl only.

The Hawkeyes are playing on national-television in prime-time in the only football game being aired on Jan. 5. You think you wouldn't buy yourself a little instant immortality in Iowa if you slapped your name on that stadium for a night?

I'm an idea man.

Meanwhile . . . former Hawkeye kicker Nate Kaeding was 2-of-2 in field goals in his San Diego Chargers' 20-17 win at Dallas Sunday.

That means Kaeding is 27-for-30 this year for a rather splendid 90 percent. More remarkable, he is 145-for-167 in his six-year NFL career for 86.83 percent. That is the all-time NFL record.

Kaeding has nudged past Mike Vanderjagt this season. Vanderjagt made 230 of his 266 field goal tries from 1998 through 2006 for 86.47 percent.

Kaeding is 8-of-12 in his career from 50 yards or longer. He made a 55-yarder two weeks ago against Kansas City.

He has made his last 65 field goals from inside 40 yards. He was a third-round draft pick of the Chargers in 2004 after winning the Lou Groza Award as a Hawkeye in 2002. He was not drafted too soon.

Meanwhile, former Coe Kohawk Fred Jackson had another darn good day with the Buffalo Bills Sunday.

Jackson had 99 yards on 20 carries, and caught passes for another 23 yards in the Bills' 16-10 win at Kansas City. He has rushed for 731 yards this season though he has only started eight of Buffalo's 13 games.

This Buffalo News story elaborates on Jackson's play Sunday. Excerpts:

Jackson spent Sunday afternoon turning what looked like 1-yard gains into 4 yards and 4-yard gains into 8 yards.

"The guy is amazing," said Bills center Geoff Hangartner of Jackson. "There was one run where I thought he was going to get tackled in the backfield and he ended up running for 18 yards."

"He's got great balance, he's aggressive and physical and he keeps the pile moving," Hangartner said. "He does it on kickoffs, too. He'll get hit at the 20 and end up at the 30."