For San Jose State: Just win, maybe?

Byline: AROUND THE NATION By Bob Clark The Register-Guard

Has there ever been an instance where a team could enhance its opportunity for a bowl game by losing?

That's probably the unlikely situation that San Jose State finds itself in Saturday, when the Spartans play host to Boise State, in a game that was ticketed for an ESPN2 national telecast, but then was bounced by the network.

What happened there? It apparently came down to ESPN trying to exert power over the Western Athletic Conference to allow it to drop its scheduled - and contracted - telecast of the Fresno State-Louisiana Tech game on Nov. 24.

One can't argue with ESPN wanting to drop that game, but why make San Jose State pay? Or take away the chance for the nation to see Boise State?

`This is a game that deserves national television,' WAC commissioner Karl Benson said. `ESPN owes San Jose State, (coach) Dick Tomey and his team an apology.'

On the other hand, maybe ESPN also realized San Jose State might be best served by losing to Boise State and wondered if ...

Well, no, that would never happen, but it is an odd situation.

Here's the deal: The WAC has three contracted bowl slots. Boise State is obviously the choice of the MPC Computers game in Boise, if it doesn't qualify for a game in the Bowl Championship Series. Hawaii (7-2) has already taken the WAC spot in the Hawaii Bowl. That leaves the New Mexico Bowl - yes, there's a game in Albuquerque this year - which is likely to much prefer Nevada (6-3), with a base of fans who will travel, over San Jose State (6-2), not likely to bring many supporters.

If, however, Boise State (9-0) wins out, and only Utah State (1-8) and Nevada remain after San Jose State, then the Broncos will be in a BCS game, and there will still be three spots for WAC teams, including one for San Jose State. That BCS berth for Boise State would also be worth $14.5 million for all the WAC teams to divvy up.

`I know all these (league) athletic directors are rooting against us for the BCS thing,' Tomey said. `But there's absolutely no way we want to do anything but win the game.'

The bowl count

Entering this weekend, there are 49 teams that are bowl eligible, with 64 berths to be filled this year. Two spots have been settled: Hawaii in its home game, and Navy (6-3) in the Meineke Car Care Bowl.

It technically takes a winning record (either 7-5 or 7-6) to be in a bowl, though 6-6 teams qualify if it's the only way a league can fill its contracted berths, or the only way a bowl can find a participant.

Even then, the Big Ten may come up short of filling its seven berths, and likely eight with Michigan and Ohio State both headed for BCS games. There are currently five Big Ten teams bowl eligible, and Purdue (6-4) gets there with one more victory (Illinois, Indiana and Hawaii remain) in a 13-game season.

Indiana (5-5) needs to beat either Michigan or Purdue. Michigan State and Minnesota (both 4-6) play each other Saturday and then the Spartans finish with Penn State while the Gophers play Iowa.

The Motor City Bowl, last in order of picking, doesn't like the odds of all that playing out to provide it a Big Ten team.

`It's going to be close,' Motor City executive director Ken Hoffman told the Dayton Daily News. `There are probably several commissioners calling the NCAA to find out what the options are. Frankly, that might be my next phone call.'

A Pac-10 opponent

The Pac-10 team that ends up the Emerald Bowl in San Francisco could be playing Miami or Florida State as the representative of the Atlantic Coast Conference.

Both the Seminoles (5-4) and Hurricanes (5-4) are in disappointing seasons and still aren't eligible for bowls, but seem likely to be in the mix of ACC teams for the Car Care, Music City and Emerald bowls, which go fifth, sixth and seventh in selection of ACC teams.

`It's pretty exciting to contemplate having a chance at Miami or Florida State,' Gary Cavalli of the Emerald Bowl told the Orlando Sentinel. `Those are teams that, when you think of the ACC, you tend to think of them being first or second.'

Neither is likely to bring along many supporters, but Cavalli said `we don't really expect the ACC (team) to bring us tens of thousands of fans.'

That would be left to Oregon, Oregon State or Washington State, the likely options for a bowl that is ticketed to have fourth or fifth choice from the Pac-10, working with the Las Vegas Bowl on which gets the option of picking ahead of the other.

Also very interested in the Seminoles or Hurricanes is the MPC Computers Bowl, with the Boise game picking eighth from ACC teams.

The dream game for Boise? That would be Miami against Idaho, where former Hurricanes (and Oregon State) coach Dennis Erickson has the Vandals hoping for a bowl at 4-6, with Fresno State (after a bye this week) and San Jose State left to play.

Rainbows are in?

If it's a surprise that Hawaii is one of only two teams already settled into its bowl position, join the throng.

`We're 7-2 and a pretty good team but the rest of America doesn't know it yet,' Hawaii coach June Jones said.

The top offensive team in the country (averages of 534 yards and 47.3 points), the Warriors have won six consecutive games, by an average of 34 points. The only defeats were at Alabama by eight points and at Boise State by a touchdown.

Hawaii finishes the season with four home games against Louisiana Tech, San Jose State, Purdue and Oregon State, so maybe a top 25 ranking is in the offing.

`If we just stay on course, all that stuff takes care of itself,' Jones said.

Hawaii quarterback Colt Brennan has thrown 39 touchdown passes, which puts him within reach of the national record of 54, by Houston's David Klingler in 1990.

`I get this question all the time: `Is it the offense?' Yeah,' Jones said of his run-and-shoot style. `The offense makes average quarterbacks a whole lot better than they would be in another scheme. But when you have a great one, they're better in what we do.'

Paterno injured earlier

Joe Paterno won't be coaching Penn State on Saturday against Temple, but not because he didn't push doctors to allow him to be in the press box booth.

`I'm learning the art of negotiation as we go through this,' said Dr. Wayne Sebastianelli, director of athletic medicine at Penn State.

Paterno underwent surgery Monday for a broken leg and torn knee ligaments, suffered when he was knocked down by players on the sideline at last Saturday's game.

In discussing the surgery and prognosis for recovery, Sebastianelli also disclosed that the 79-year-old Paterno suffered three broken ribs in a collision with players on the practice field the last week in September.

`He got knocked down, knocked the dust off his pants and kept coaching,' Sebastianelli said.

Spurrier returns ... again

It's homecoming week for Steve Spurrier on Saturday when the former Florida coach is in Gainesville.

It was also a homecoming for Spurrier when he returned to Gainesville earlier this season with the 1996 Gators he coached to the national title, and again when he was back to see his name placed in the Ring of Honor around the Florida stadium, for both his coaching exploits and winning the Heisman Trophy in 1966 as the quarterback of the Gators.

This is a little different, as Spurrier brings his South Carolina team to play Florida, the first time he's coached against his former school in a game at Florida Field.

`Is there a shadow?' said Urban Meyer, the current Florida coach. `Sure, but it's a shadow that will be there for the next 50 years.'

Florida has already clinched a berth in the SEC title game but the Gators are still hunting a berth in the BCS championship game. Spurrier, meanwhile, is trying to get his team (5-4) eligible for any bowl.

`I'm not being critical of our team,' said Spurrier, who often is just that. `It's just that to win against good competition, you just can't have those kinds of things that we keep doing. That's why we're losers.'

As Mack says ...

Was that really Texas coach Mack Brown complaining about the BCS rankings? Has he forgotten how that very same poll provided his team a berth in the Rose Bowl a couple years ago? Well, that and his great lobbying effort.

Now, Brown is after BCS computers for not ranking his team highly enough. Though the Longhorns are fifth overall in the BCS, their computer average is seventh, the result of a weak Big 12 and a nonleague schedule that included North Texas, Rice and Sam Houston State, albeit along with Ohio State.

`If all the coaches and athletic directors could understand exactly who the computers want us to play and where they want you to play the game ... it would probably help all of us,' Brown said.

TODAY'S TV GAME

UTEP at Alabama-Birmingham: 5 p.m., ESPN2

SATURDAY'S TV GAMES

Cincinnati at No. 10 West Virginia: 9 a.m., ESPN2

No. 16 Wisconsin at Iowa: 9 a.m., ESPN

Baylor at Oklahoma State: 9:30 a.m., FSN 

Colorado State at Utah: 11 a.m., Versus

No. 2 Michigan at Indiana: 12:30 p.m., ESPN

South Carolina at No. 6 Florida: 12:30 p.m., CBS 

No. 8 California at Arizona: 12:30 p.m., ABC 

Oregon State at UCLA: 3:15 p.m., Comcast 14

No. 13 Tennessee at No. 11 Arkansas: 4 p.m., ESPN2

Texas Tech at No. 17 Oklahoma: 4 p.m., FSN

Alabama at No. 12 LSU: 4:45 p.m., ESPN

No. 4 Texas at Kansas State: 5 p.m., ABC

No. 21 Oregon at No. 7 Southern California: 7:15 p.m., FSN

ELSEWHERE IN THE PAC-10

Stanford at Washington: 12:30 p.m.

Washington State at Arizona State: 6 p.m.

ELSEWHERE IN THE TOP 25

No. 1 Ohio State at Northwestern: 12:30 p.m.

Georgia at No. 5 Auburn: 9:30 a.m.

No. 9 Notre Dame at Air Force: 1 p.m.

No. 14 Boise State at San Jose State: 3 p.m.

No. 18 Wake Forest at Florida State: 5 p.m.

No. 19 Georgia Tech at North Carolina: 9 a.m.

Kent State at No. 20 Virginia Tech: 12:30 p.m.

Duke at No. 22 Boston College: 4 p.m.

Miami at No. 23 Maryland: 12:30 p.m.

Nebraska at No. 24 Texas A&M: 12:30 p.m.