Thumbs up, thumbs down
The good, the bad and the ugly of Orange Bowl week.
January 5, 2008
By Asher Fusco
The Orange Bowl is over, and Kansas is headed home as the unlikely champion and even more unlikely rags-to-riches story in college football this season. The game was great in every way, from the enthusiastic crowd to the comfy stadium to the high level of coaching and play showcased on the field. I have a feeling many a Jayhawk fan is smiling on his or her way back from south Florida with the knowledge that Kansas shocked the world, the television pundits and the Virginia Tech Hokies while putting the finishing touches on a season to remember.
For the most part, Miami was great. Here’s a quick recap of what was wrong and right about the Orange Bowl and its accompanying festivities:
Thumbs up to Ed Warinner. The Kansas offensive coordinator strapped on his thinking cap in the weeks leading up to the bowl game and devised some interesting and effective ways to utilize his personnel. He drew up pass plays to Kerry Meier and Aqib Talib, lined tackles Cesar Rodriguez and Anthony Collins up as wide receivers and was able to keep the vaunted Hokie defense guessing for long stretches in the first half. When things got stale for the Kansas offense in the second half, Warinner didn’t look like much of a genius, but the Jayhawk defense and special teams were there to save the day.
Thumbs down to “BeamerBall”. Virginia Tech head coach Frank Beamer is renowned for the extra attention his teams pay to special teams and their success in the kick and punt games. But the Jayhawks beat Beamer at his own game Thursday night, blocking a potentially game-tying field goal and earning a first down with a tricky fake punt on fourth-and-10. To be fair, Virginia Tech did do some good things on special teams. Wide receiver Justin Harper returned a punt 84 yards for a touchdown and wide receiver Eddie Royal enjoyed some success on kick returns.
Thumbs up to Dolphin Stadium. After suffering through the abomination that was the Kansas-Missouri matchup at Arrowhead Stadium, this writer was certainly not looking forward to covering a game at an NFL stadium. But Dolphin Stadium proved media-friendly and fairly useful as a multi-purpose venue. Sure, the internet lagged a bit and the view wasn’t great from the baseball press box, but it was easy to get around, the pretzels were outstanding, and the parking/media shuttle worked out beautifully.
Thumbs down to 8:20 p.m. kickoffs. The Orange Bowl started at 8:20 eastern standard time, meaning it didn’t wrap up until about 12:30 a.m. by my estimation. After the extensive and jubilant celebration on the field and postgame interviews, most print journalists were left with about 15 minutes to meet deadline for the second edition…and don’t even think about anyone actually making the early deadline – the game wasn’t even in the fourth quarter at that point. Writers were filing out of the stadium until about 3 a.m. – making early flights the next morning rather undesirable.
Thumbs up to the Orange Bowl’s treatment of media. The Orange Bowl treated media to a week’s worth of free stuff, including rain jackets, a casino party and unlimited food and drink at a very hospitable media hospitality suite. At this point I’m not convinced playing in the Orange Bowl is any better than covering it.
Thumbs down to the WaMu Orange Bowl FanFest. When an event’s top selling point is a performance by the alternative rock band Collective Soul, the event probably doesn’t have much going for it – unless this event happened 12 years ago. Unfortunately for the WaMu FanFest and everyone involved, it is currently 2008 and there wasn’t much to keep fans’ attention at the event. Plus, it was ridiculously cold and windy in downtown Miami Wednesday afternoon.
Thumbs down to the crazy Miami weather. When I arrived in south Florida last Thursday evening, it was t-shirt weather: I was glad for that fact. When I woke up a few days later I expected to waltz out of my hotel room, hang out by the pool and sport sandals and a pleasant disposition. Instead, I was greeted by howling winds and, dare I say, Midwestern temperatures. Wednesday and Thursday were pretty oppressive as far as the weather was concerned, but it didn’t do much to dim the sun-and-fun experience. I really feel for the Kansas and Virginia Tech fans who flew down the day before the game expecting 80 degrees and instead facing 45 degrees. Even worse, Friday was shaping up to be a beautiful day – a beautiful day many fans didn’t get to experience.
Mega thumbs down to US Airways. Not only did the airline send Kansan photographer Jon Goering and I to Key West, Orlando and Charlotte before depositing us in Kansas City nine hours later, it lost my luggage. Basically, I spent my entire 21st birthday suffering through meager portions of in-flight peanuts, waiting around at airports far out of the way back to Kansas City and wondering what I am going to wear for the next few days while all of my clothes sit in some godforsaken warehouse in who-knows-where.
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