NEW ORLEANS — Utah coach Kyle Whittingham and Alabama coach Nick Saban held their final pregame press conferences Thursday morning. Between sessions they posed for pictures with the Sugar Bowl trophy.
Now it's all about the big game.
"Our guys have handled themselves well. They've enjoyed the city. At the same time, they understand why they're here," Whittingham said after thanking the bowl committee for its hospitality. "(Our) primary objective is to go out and compete in the football game. I don't believe they've lost sight of that. I have a sense that they're in the right frame of mind and have handled their business the right way.
"It's been a positive experience all the way around," he added.
Saban acknowledged that Alabama has enjoyed its stay in the Big Easy.
"It's certainly special to be here for us," he said. "It's a special venue to have the opportunity to participate in."
There will be plenty of pomp and circumstance at the 75th anniversary Sugar Bowl. The committee has invited past head coaches and most valuable players back for the celebration.
Those who have accepted invitations include former NFL quarterbacks Archie Manning and Kenny Stabler.
BEEN THERE: Saban took exception to a reporter's assertion that Alabama's football program has financial and facility advantages over Utah.
"Have you ever been to Utah?" Saban retorted.
The coach then delivered plenty of praise to the Beehive State.
"Well, I've been to Utah. I went there to work out Alex Smith when I was at Miami (as coach of the Dolphins). It's a beautiful place. Salt Lake City is a beautiful place. They have nice facilities, nice indoor. I mean, it's a nice place," said Saban. "They have a lot of tradition. They've won seven straight bowl games. They're undefeated.
"They're well-coached. Urban Meyer did a great job there. Kyle has done a fantastic job there carrying on," he continued. "So they have resources, and they do a fantastic job with what they got."
YES AND NO: During the practices in Salt Lake earlier in the month, Ute officials turned the heat up at the Eccles indoor facility to supposedly simulate conditions at the Superdome. However, after practicing at the Superdome Wednesday for the first time, the Utes found the conditions different from what they expected.
"We've been practicing indoors at home, and it's been hotter at home than it is here," said safety Robert Johnson. "We expected it to be hotter here. But it's real cool here. This is a normal temperature here, but when we were practicing in Utah it was like 112 in there."
The Utes also practiced with crowd noise blaring off speakers back in Utah to simulate conditions anticipated in the dome.
WEDDING BELLS: Will Naylor is a walk-on member of the Utah football team and with his teammates at the Sugar Bowl.
His sister, Becca, is getting married today to Dallin Homer. Because the parents, Allen and Sarah Naylor, can't be two places at once, they stayed in Utah for their daughter's wedding.
However, that doesn't mean their son won't be a part of the wedding.
A reception Thursday night featured a life-size cardboard cutout of Will, wearing a U. T-shirt over his suit, holding a poster of why he's not in town.
The Naylors said brother and sister are very supportive of each other and wish each other the best on the big day.
LAVELL COMPARISONS: Utah coach Kyle Whittingham was taken aback a bit by a question Thursday from an Alabama reporter asking if he envisioned a career like his former college coach LaVell Edwards.
"Wow, tough question," he said as he stumbled for an answer. "I mean, he was there 30-some-odd years. I'm not sure that's my master plan. I love Utah, I'm just not sure I want ... I've been doing this four years and 26 more years would put me at 70-something ... "
That's when Whittingham gave his final answer.
"No, I can tell you right now, I'm not going to go that far," he said, smiling. "I love it here and hope to be here awhile longer. But the JoePas (Penn State's Joe Paterno) of the world, that I can guarantee you is not going to be me."
EXTRA POINTS: The Utes mingled with well-wishers at a pep rally Thursday afternoon at the team hotel near the French Quarter ... Only 21 of 45 undefeated teams in the Sugar Bowl left the game with a victory ... With the exception of 2006 when the game was moved to Atlanta because of the devastation left by Hurricane Katrina, the Sugar Bowl has been played in the Louisiana Superdome every year since 1975 ... This is the first ever meeting between Alabama and Utah ... The only other time two 12-win teams played in the Sugar Bowl was 2004 when LSU (with Saban as head coach) defeated Oklahoma 21-14 to win the national championship ... Alabama is making its 13th appearance in the Sugar Bowl, tying LSU for the most appearances ... Several banners hang in the Superdome honoring Louisiana sports heroes, including Pete Maravich. The "Pistol" has a Jazz logo next to his name.
Contributing: Mike Sorensen
E-mail: dirk@desnews.com