Could the Chick-fil-A Bowl replace the Fiesta in the BCS?
BCS-wise, I'm pretty sure I know how the cow would vote. (AJC photo by Curtis Compton)
A column back in 2004 prompted the Chick-fil-A Bowl’s president to threaten never to offer this correspondent a game credential again. The threat, never carried through, was a response to this writer’s claim that the game was third-tier — not to say third-rate, I stipulated then and stipulate now — and therefore would not find a place in the BCS rotation, which was due to expand by one.
(My definition of tiers: First were the BCS games themselves; second were the New Year’s Day games [Cotton, Capital One, Outback, et cetera]; third was the Chick-fil-A and its ilk. The Independence Bowl would be 10th-tier.)
But now it’s 2011 and Gary Stokan and I have since actually exchanged something approaching pleasantries, and now I’m posing the question I dismissed back when: Might Atlanta’s bowl actually make the leap to Tier 1?
I ask because the BCS is the process of distancing itself from the Fiesta Bowl, which just jettisoned president John Junker — full disclosure: I’ve met John Junker — due to revelations involving reimbursement to bowl staffers for political contributions. (That’s illegal, FYI.) And if the Fiesta falls completely out of BCS favor, some bowl would have to replace it. Could the Chick-fil-A be that bowl?
Ryan McGee of ESPN The Magazine offers a list of five possibilities. One of the names on the list is the Fiesta itself, coming in at No. 3. (McGee’s take: The Fiesta could still hold its spot.) No. 1 is the Cotton Bowl, which has moved to Jerry Jones’ new stadium. No. 2 is the Capital One, which is played in a nice city (Orlando) but in an ancient stadium. No. 5 is the Outback, which is staged in Tampa and has a pirate ship in the end zone.
No. 4 is the Chick-fil-A Bowl, of which McGee writes:
Anyone who has ever been to the game formerly known as the Peach Bowl knows that its atmosphere is one of the most electric of the entire bowl season. Again, it has plenty of cash, a big league infrastructure, a city that makes its living hosting gigantic events, and an ESPN TV deal. But of all the games listed here, this bowl might be the least interested in messing with its current formula, an SEC versus ACC showdown that has enjoyed 14 consecutive sellouts. Then again, all the factors that I listed above might allow the Chick-fil-A Bowl organizers to keep their current game and add one more, two in the years they host the BCS Championship Game. Hey, the Fiesta Bowl staff has been pulling that off for years.
Here I would add only this: Unless I’ve been completely off in my reading of Stokan and Co. over time, they would be very much interested in moving up to the Big(ger) Time.
Do I think it’s apt to happen? Not really. That game in Arlington and the outsize presence of Mr. Jones would be tough to trump. But as president of the Atlanta Sports Council, Stokan spent years lobbying for big events to come here, and he created the Chick-fil-A Kickoff Game, which began in 2008 and is already a major deal, from nothing at all. Were a BCS slot to come open, I’m guessing he could find it within himself to make another pitch.
By Mark Bradley
Tell us what you think about the site
Customer Care »
Vacation stops, manage subscriptions and more
AJC Services
Sections
Other Editions
Visitor Agreement | Privacy Statement
© 2013 The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
195 comments Add your comment
T3
March 31st, 2011
2:15 pm
I say, move the Orange Bowl to Orlando, ASAP.
Good stadium at Joe Robbie, but City of Miami (FTL)sucks,
and it’s a long trip to get there.
Orlando is a better city, has better logistics & travel access,
and Disney World / EPCOT / Universal and everything else is close by.
These and many more great reasons are why lots more sports fans
would WANT to travel to Orlando in late December or early January,
even if their team isnt playing for a Natl Championship.
Lots more fans from almost any location or conference would find it
much more desirable to travel to Orlando than to Miami.
Also, how come the Georgia Dome doesnt host more than just one single bowl game.
Why not at least 2 each year?
Footballrules
March 31st, 2011
2:49 pm
It’ll never replace anything if they don’t change the name back to PEACH BOWL. Can you imagine the Rose Bowl doing something like that? THEY JUST DON’T GET IT.
question?
March 31st, 2011
3:34 pm
dawg gone
what does uga’s record against GT have to do with GT playing Fresno state?
‘Bug Village’? What are you? 8?
Einsteindawg
March 31st, 2011
4:35 pm
It should have initially been the Cotton Bowl rather than Fiesta. Maybe Junker slid a little money to the BCS to get in the loop…but, it’s always about the money.
joe
March 31st, 2011
4:51 pm
As much as I would NOT want to give Jerry Jones another “something” I have to agree on giving it to Arlington and the Cotton Bowl. After all, it was the 4th biggie until stadium conditions warranted a change. Bring it back.
BTW How did the Fiesta Bowl trump all the others that came before it??
Chris
March 31st, 2011
5:32 pm
If I remember it correctly, the Cotton Bowl was always one of the big 4, until the mid/late 80s when the Southwest Conference disolved and the Fiesta Bowl snuck in by offering the first million dollar payout.
PTC DAWG
March 31st, 2011
5:41 pm
Why would the Peach Bowl want this? They sell out EVERY year now. Get in the BCS rotation and you’ll get Uconn/BC every 2 years.
dawg4u
March 31st, 2011
6:17 pm
Either the old Seattle Bowl or the Emerald Bowl. It would be nice if there was a stadium built in Savannah and it could be called the Forrest Gump Shrimp Bowl plus UGA-FLA. could alternate playing in Jacksonville one year and Savannah the next.
wxwax
March 31st, 2011
6:56 pm
I’m rooting for the whole rotten system to implode.
College football is so corrupt it’s unseemly to be a suitor for a bowl game and a system which perpetuates and encourages avarice and deceit.
rw
March 31st, 2011
6:56 pm
As others have mentioned, the geography doesn’t work for either the Chick-fil-A or Capital One bowl since the Fiesta hosts the Big 12 champ. The short term problem for the Cotton is that ESPN has the BCS TV contract, but FOX has the Cotton Bowl contract.
My guess is that the BCS keeps the Fiesta through the end of this round of TV contracts, but then changes to the Cotton.
The Chick-fil-A bowl’s best chance is if the next round of TV negotiations leads to a plus one format and a fifth bowl is added.
gator meat
March 31st, 2011
7:08 pm
don’t make the chik-fil-a bowl a BCS bowl. Then there is now way UGA will ever get to play in the Ga Dome….apart from kickoff classics!
17 out of 20…..
AtlantaNative62
March 31st, 2011
7:34 pm
I have been to a number of “Peach” Bowls over the last 15 years and they are always great games (with the exception of Tech’s stinker with LSU). I just don’t see how it gets better than the GA Dome and Atlanta. Yes, I’m a homey but I’m also hard on things in this city. If they take an honest and in-depth look, the Peach (it will always be the Peach for me) is a fantastic bowl all the way around.
51WTGW50
March 31st, 2011
8:26 pm
Why no coverage of the NIT championship with BAMA?
51WTGW50
March 31st, 2011
8:30 pm
BAMA is TRYING to make SHAKA look better than he is. VCU’s kids are Bama’s Grant recruits. Bama is in the NIT championship and VCU is in the FINAL FOUR. SHAKA ZULU ain’t nothing. GRANT is the MAN that built both teams(BAMA & VCU).
51WTGW50
March 31st, 2011
8:40 pm
Atlantanative62
15 years? Give me a break. You never sat in Fulton County Stadium for the PEACH Bowl, the Super Bowl of Motocross, the FEW Falcon playoff games.
The DOME may not seat all that want to be at the BCS/MNC game but so the F…. WHAT. The ATL airport and MARTA make the DOME a GREAT BCS game host.
money talks
March 31st, 2011
11:34 pm
Atlanta needs a huge, state of the art outdoor stadium to get the BCS bowl game. It will cost taxpayers $800 million, but it will be worth in additional sales tax for restaurants and hotels. Just raise property taxes and income taxes for a few years to pay for it.
Joe Tess Fish House
April 1st, 2011
6:42 am
No way do peeple want to come to downtown ATL 4 a game with all the crime and thugs and queers.
coachx
April 1st, 2011
8:36 am
Common sense says ts the Cotton Bowl with Jerry Jones super stadium to fill the spot.
North Avenue Ned
April 1st, 2011
9:27 am
So, whatever happened to the “Poulan Weed Eater Bowl” anyway?
Fan Since '66
April 1st, 2011
9:28 am
Hey Tess, did you miss that line about “consecutive sellouts?”
schmeckdawg
April 1st, 2011
9:52 am
This would be AWESOME; however, they would need to re-incorporate “The Peach Bowl” back into the name!
Just like they had before. The Chik-Fil-A Peach Bowl!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! How cool for Atlanta! The SEC Championsip and a BCS Bowl game. Big bucks for the ATL!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Gator Mike
April 1st, 2011
10:40 am
Does anyone know when Tony Barnhart will get back in the fray? Thanks.
51WTGW50
April 1st, 2011
10:46 am
Gator Mike Tony will be back ONLY ONLY if his radio contract lets him and that will be when College football really starts.
Crimson Logging Co.
April 1st, 2011
11:25 am
What about the Toomers.com Arbor Day Bowl in Auburn Alabama?
Crimson Logging Co.
April 1st, 2011
11:26 am
Pay to Play – The AU Way
Crimson Logging Co.
April 1st, 2011
11:29 am
Where there’s smoke, there’s fire.
Just like there will be in the fireplaces of homes all around Auburn next winter when you burn those toilet papered logs.
The NCAA is coming to shut you down.
Crimson Logging Co.
April 1st, 2011
11:31 am
There will be some more mail in the AU coaching staff’s office soon, but this time it will be pink slips, not cash filled envelopes.
CHEATERS
P
R
O
B
A
T
I
O
N
Coming Soon
Crimson Logging Co.
April 1st, 2011
11:32 am
AU and UT getting raided at the same time. Christmas in April.
tony masella
April 1st, 2011
12:51 pm
jerry world (arlington ) all the way yes atlanta deserves it just as much when they decide to build a outdoor stadium w/natural grass in gwinett county
BRW
April 1st, 2011
1:43 pm
No way the former PEACH bowl gets it. I went to the Dome two years ago for the bowl game and was absolutely embarassed for my city/state at what they did for half time, pre-game, etc. They must have pumped every bit of 100 dollars into the “festivities”. What a joke. It reminded me of my high school band days.
Ben
April 1st, 2011
1:56 pm
Gotta consider location. Taking out Fiesta and replacing it with the Chick-Fil-A puts three BCS bowls all in the Southeast, and two in SEC venues, something the rest of the country wont be happy about
Delbert D.
April 1st, 2011
2:17 pm
The Emerald Bowl is no more. Became the Kraft Fight Hunger Bowl.
Delbert D.
April 1st, 2011
2:22 pm
BRW – How far did you expect a sponsor who is an Evangelical to go? Dancing girls and Hip-Hop music?
BRW
April 1st, 2011
2:56 pm
Delbert, That’s what was most embarassing of all! What you just stated WAS the show! At one point there were at least 100 basically 90%-naked 15 year old girls (read “un-paid from jr. high”) on the field, shaking body parts they didn’t even have to begin with. And that was the high-light of the “festivities”. Just in poor taste and totally amaturish. Not Evangelical, just trashy.
Don
April 1st, 2011
3:36 pm
I am ready for 8 reason why the braves won’t squander this lead Bradley you doofus.
Arizona Dawg
April 1st, 2011
3:53 pm
Kick the Fiesta to the curb, Junker is an embarassment to himself, college football, etc.. What a total self absorbed asshole. But what I really want is for Chick-Fil-A to do the right thing and bring back the name of the Peach Bowl. They were wrong to ask for it to be dropped and whoever agreed to get rid of the name Peach Bowl should be run out of Atlanta.
Georgia Son
April 1st, 2011
3:59 pm
I want Truett Cathy to do the right thing and rename it the Chick-Fil-A Peach Bowl. They should have never asked for the name Peach to be dropped and who ever agreed to it should be run out of town. To dismiss all of those previous bowl years for a few bucks you and Chick-Fil-A should be ashamed. I know it does not matter but I have not eaten at a Chick-Fil-A since that happened. Bring back the Peach Bowl!!
Shine Time
April 1st, 2011
5:33 pm
How about the Midpoints Station Freeloader Bowl? The city can invite a bunch of the rif raf that hang around outside the 5 points marta station all day and provide them with some smokes, booze and drugs, then have them act as “greeters” for the big time bowl officials in town.
yellow fuzz
April 1st, 2011
5:38 pm
I like the
C
E
N
T
R
A
L
F
L
O
R
I
D
A
B
O
W
L
myself
Joe Tess Fish House
April 1st, 2011
6:21 pm
Enter your comments here
Mo Money
April 1st, 2011
9:15 pm
To get the BCS title game, the city will nee a much bigger stadium than the old, worn out ga dome, and it will have to have a lot more suites, corporate boxes, etc. to entertain all the fatcats who come to the game.
Fire Mark Richt
April 2nd, 2011
1:36 pm
Having a major bowl named the “Chick-fil-A Bowl” would be appropo for the times, but I’m hoping the Cotton Bowl gets restored to its rightful place as a major bowl. It’s recent second-tier status sort of diminishes all the classics games from the old days that had national title implications, like Georgia’s 10-9 win over Texas after the ‘83 season.
tyger78
April 4th, 2011
3:19 pm
No way in hell will the Capital One Bowl be in there. That stadium is a piece of crap.
King Gator
April 4th, 2011
10:18 pm
What about the Liberty Bowl….and losing to UCF… now that’s big time! Go Gators!
Disney
April 5th, 2011
11:25 pm
How about the disney bowl in orlando’s stadium. Disney can spend a few hundred mil to upgrade the stadium to something good, and have all their characters at the game working the stands, selling stuff, etc.