In football terms, it's fourth-and-long for the Western Athletic Conference and its hopes of securing more than two bowl bids.
WAC commissioner Karl Benson acknowledged this weekthat the 16-team league has yet to secure a spot to send its champion this year. Talks are ongoing, however, even though bowls can officially extend invitations as early as Sunday.Having communicated with several bowls (including the Liberty, Motor City, Music City and Micron PC), Benson discussed possible options with athletic directors from the WAC's six bowl-eligible schools in a teleconference Tuesday. BYU's Rondo Fehlberg and Utah's Chris Hill were among those participating.
Nothing is out of the question, Benson said, as the WAC tries to avoid what he calls the "roll of the dice" when it comes to securing bids. The break-up of the WAC led to the severing of formal ties with the Holiday and Cotton bowls. Despite previous reports to the contrary, Benson said the Holiday Bowl is under no written obligation to take a WAC team ranked higher than the Big 12 No. 3.
At least two conference schools, though, are guaranteed to be bowl-bound. The league has agreements to send teams to the Las Vegas and Oahu bowls. Benson expects both to make their selections Sunday -- almost two weeks before the WAC championship game is played. He said each is anxious to get a jumpstart on marketing and ticket sales.
Neither, however, is obligated to select the WAC champion. Instead, they'll choose from a pool of eligible candidates featuring BYU, Utah, San Diego State, Air Force, Wyoming, Colorado State and Rice, if the Owls win their final game Saturday.
Both Las Vegas and Oahu will inform Benson of their picks in confidence Sunday, and the commissioner will then contact those selected. No options here. Teams selected by the Las Vegas and Oahu bowls are obligated to accept the invitations -- regardless if a better offer may be waiting in the wings. Only if both bowls want the same team, Benson said, will a school be able to choose its destination.
Benson believes such a scenario is unlikely, given the fact that bowl committees have been in contact with each other as the season winds down. And the Las Vegas Bowl, for obvious reasons, may go out of its way to avoid bringing a WAC finalist back to town two weeks after the league finale at Sam Boyd Stadium. That in itself may bode well for the loser of Saturday's BYU-Utah game -- as well as Wyoming or Air Force.
The Hawaii situation is a bit more clear. The Oahu, or Mele Kalakimani Classic as its known, is part of a Christmas day doubleheader at Aloha Stadium. Benson said officials could opt to take the WAC champ, runner-up, or both -- placing one in the accompanying Aloha Bowl. A decision is expected Sunday.
Another possibility is the Liberty Bowl. Benson has pitched a plan to bowl organizers in Memphis to pit the WAC champion against Conference USA winner and nationally ranked Tulane.
"I think once they see the (WAC) championship game match-up," Benson said, "they'll be able to evaluate the risk vs. reward."
It's not out of the question for the Liberty and Oahu bowls to work out a WAC deal on their own, either. Air Force and BYU are rumored to be on the wish list of both games.
Benson, however, said the Liberty Bowl and its $1.1 million payout carries a healthy financial expectation as well. Organizers will likely require whoever's invited to purchase 17,000 tickets as a guarantee. In 1995, Stanford did so in outbidding BYU for a berth in the bowl.
It remains to be seen if any WAC school would agree to such an obligation.
At-large bids to lesser bowls also remain a possibility, as do openings created by conferences that fail to qualify enough teams to meet previous arrangements.
"I think it's too early to tell," Benson said.
The problem is, it may be too late as well.