Officials begin to ponder bowl future

Steve Guiremand

Monday, Dec. 20, 1999 | 9:43 a.m.

Now what?

That's the question facing members of the EA Sports Las Vegas Bowl committee just hours after what will go down as the most successful of their eight games so far.

Utah's 17-16 victory over Fresno State not only produced a record paid crowd of 28,227 -- 22,542 were actually in the stands -- but it also produced a hard-hitting, competitive contest on the field that wasn't decided until Tommy Truhe's 33-yard field goal with just 5:03 left.

It was the final year of the Las Vegas Bowl's contract with the WAC and also with ESPN2 to televise the game. The bowl still has two years remaining on its deal with the Mountain West Conference to get its second choice of schools from that league. The Liberty Bowl gets first pick for the next two years.

The Las Vegas Bowl pays only $750,000 per team and there has been a push from some committee members to increase its payoff in order to attract teams from "prestige" conferences such as the Big Ten or Big 12, or to try to attract an at-large team from a major conference. The bowl's timing -- just days before Christmas when many people are too busy saving or shopping for the holiday -- also has been questioned.

Rossi Ralenkotter, executive director of the EA Sports Las Vegas Bowl, said his committee would review all of its options when it gets back together in January.

"We've got three difficult decisions to make in January," Ralenkotter said. "The first is the date of the game. Being the first bowl game of the year has a lot of advantages that go with it. And, putting back on my LVCVA hat again, it's also the slowest weekend of the year for filling hotel rooms. Having a game that weekend definitely helps in that regard.

"If we look at any (date) change at all, it would be to the 26th or 27th (of December). We want to stay away from the New Year's weekend crowds."

Second, and perhaps most important, is what kind of new TV deal the Las Vegas Bowl can negotiate with ESPN. The more money TV kicks in, the more money to use for payouts to teams.

"ESPN has been very pleased with our game," Ralenkotter said. "But we have to sit down and negotiate and see where we go from here. That's something that probably won't get done until late spring."

Then there is the matter of lining up an opponent for the Mountain West Conference. WAC commissioner Karl Benson made it clear all last week that his conference would love to continue to send its champion to Las Vegas, but Fresno State's somewhat disappointing ticket sales (about 8,000) didn't exactly help his cause.

Imagine this scenario. What if Rice, the mid-season WAC leader, hadn't folded down the stretch and made it to Las Vegas? Odds are the Owls would have been hard-pressed to bring more than a few thousand from Houston for the game.

"We have to decide whether we want to renew our agreement with the WAC or go open-ended," Ralenkotter said.

One potential problem for the Las Vegas Bowl is that two more bowl games, the Silicon Valley bowl in San Jose and a yet-to-be-named game in Houston, are expected to come aboard next winter. That takes away four more potential bowl teams to select from if Las Vegas elects to invite an at-large team.

As for attracting a Big Ten or Big 12 team next year, the odds are pretty slim.

"Most of the bowl games are tied up to 2001," Ralenkotter said. "That will be a critical year for all the bowls because everyone will be up for negotiations. That's when you could see some real movement among the bowl affliations."

Still, Ralenkotter is happy with the progress the game has made in just eight years. And he believes his game will continue to grow each year.

After all, Ralenkotter points out, the Las Vegas Bowl does have a trump card in its pocket.

"Everyone wants to come to Las Vegas," he said. "That is going to be a very big plus for us."

* MVP, PART TWO: Somewhat overshadowed by the remarkable 254-yard, two-touchdown performance by Utah running back Mike Anderson was the gutsy play of Utes backup quarterback Darnell Arceneaux.

Arceneaux suffered what was called "a massive concussion" just six weeks earlier in a Utah loss to Wyoming and there was some question whether he would ever play again because of the seriousness of the injury. But when Utah starter T.D. Croshaw went down with a shoulder injury early in the second quarter, Arceneaux came off the bench to complete 8-of-15 passes for 94 yards.

Not bad for someone who admitted afterward that he was still battling vision problems that had plagued him since his Nov. 6 concussion.

Arceneaux said he experienced spots in his vision after getting hit on just his third play in the game. The spots never departed, but Arceneaux stayed in the game to rally his team to victory.

"Were we worried about him? For sure. For sure," offensive tackle Jordan Gross said.

"He came back from no man's land," Utah coach Ron McBride said. "Everyone thought that he had played his last rep (against Wyoming)."

Arceneaux took a particularly vicious hit to the head from Fresno State safety Curtis Edwards -- most people would call it a cheap shot -- after handing off to Anderson with a little less than two minutes to go. Edwards was flagged for a 15-yard unsportsmanlike conduct penalty which gave Utah a first down and all but eliminated any Bulldog hopes of a last second comeback.

"I guess he was frustrated about getting his butt whipped and wanted a free shot," Arceneaux said.

Arceneaux, a junior, hinted he may switch positions next season.

"I'll discuss it with my mom," he said. "If I'm still seeing spots like this, then it's something I'll have to consider."

* HAPPY HOMECOMING: Utah cornerback Andre Dyson, who spent much of his youth shuttling between Las Vegas and Clinton, Utah, was the only Ute defensive player invited to the podium for the post-game press conference.

Dyson had just one tackle, but added two pass deflections, including one on fourth-and-7 at the Fresno 49 with 2:24 to go which stopped the Bulldogs' last drive.

Dyson stuck his hand in front of a Billy Volek slant pass that was intended for Rodney Wright.

"I should have caught that ball," Dyson said. "It should have been for a touchdown."

Dyson, who secured game tickets for 37 friends and relatives, said he couldn't have asked for a better ending to his first bowl game.

"I can't explain how good it is," he said. "It doesn't feel better than beating BYU, but it's up there."

Younger brother Patrick, a backup safety, also had a big game, finishing with five tackles.