Iowa's Rose Bowl chances may grow slimmer

As if it isn't difficult enough for Iowa to earn a spot in the Rose Bowl (it's been 19 years, Hawkeye fans), it's about to get harder.

Tony Barnhart of the Atlanta Journal-Constitution came up with an interesting tidbit Friday in this piece.

Over the course of the week I found out that there is an interesting little nugget in the new BCS contract with ESPN, which will begin after the 2010 regular season.

In past contracts if the Rose Bowl lost one of its traditional partners, the Big Ten or Pac-10 champ, to the BCS championship game, it could simply fill with another Big Ten or Pac-10 team that qualified. That's how a 9-3 Illinois team got to Pasadena two years ago.

But in the new contract, I'm told, there is an interesting clause: The first time in the deal that the Rose loses one of its champions to the BCS title game, that opening will be automatically filled by a Coalition (non-BCS conference) team if one has qualified.

I've said it before and will say it again. The Rose Bowl is the bowl game that matters (Oh sure, the BCS title game would be OK, too. But it would be better if it's in the one year of every four when it's played in Pasadena.).

The Hlog always sides with the non-BCS schools in any BCS matter, and is happy to see this rule. But some year, a Big Ten team and its fans will pay for it. Perhaps that team will be Iowa, which already missed out on a Rose Bowl seven seasons ago because of the BCS bowls' crazy rules.

Of course, a Sugar Bowl wouldn't be a bad consolation prize. I've always wondered what would happen if Hawkdom descended upon New Orleans. It has yet to happen.

New Orleans certainly wouldn't be a Tampa or San Antonio, which willingly gives itself up to the black-and-gold in exchange for the Midwest tourist dollars. New Orleans doesn't change for anyone. Instead, you change once you get there. Forever.

One last BCS note: Here's a great and true passage from Keith Arnold at collegefootballtalk.com:

Amidst all the outrage of the coaches poll going back to anonymous, I thought it made sense to take a look at the leader of the American Football Coaches Association. When speaking to a group of reporters, Los Angeles Times writer Chris Dufresne noted that AFCA executive director Grant Teaff was anything but concerned about opinions that making the poll secret was a mistake.

“That's your opinion,” Teaff said.

When told there'd be quite a bit of criticism from the decision, Teaff simply responded, “let ‘er rip.” ...

This smug attitude permeates from just about every comment the 75-year-old Teaff makes.  It's the same attitude shown by BCS commissioner John Swafford, when dealing with members of Congress and the same delusional attitude Big Ten commissioner Jim Delany showed when claiming that the BCS was “too complex” for our country's President.

Well put, Keith.